Begleitpanzer 57

2020-11-29T21:00:03Z

U26238767: /* Description */ Updated description to better discrible APHE belt.

{{Specs-Card|code=germ_begleitpanzer_57}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} German light tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.73 "Vive la France"]].

At first glance, the Begleitpanzer 57 may be confused for a SPAA due to the light armored chassis and a rapid-fire 57 mm auto cannon. On the turret is also a TOW launcher that can be fired in a SACLOS manner, meaning it will automatically align itself with the cross hair in-flight.

The Begleitpanzer 57 overall construction is similar to that of the [[T114]] with light armor all around that even heavy machine gun ammunition can penetrate through the sides. The turret's nature with its exterior gun mount also has its similarities.

As a light tank, the Begleitpanzer 57 carries a great firepower punch for its mobility despite its lack of armor. A rapid firing 57 mm cannon carries enough penetration rivaling that of the [[ZSU-57-2]], but the addition of a TOW launcher system makes this vehicle a dangerous opponent by being able to engage a variety of target at its leisure.

While the cannon shares the caliber with the Russian 57 mm gun, it is quite different in performance. The Russian SPAA has a slightly better combined fire rate and significantly more accuracy at range. You also start to lose the penetration advantage at 1 km compared to the APHE belt of the ZSU-57-2. All of this combined makes you very reliant on your ATGM, of which you only have 6. Upgrading to the better ATGM is highly encouraged, as the improved missile is far deadlier and much more reliable. The APHE belt, although lacking penetration, should not be ignored. It struggles to penetrate some Russian side armor, however it is still possible, as it should not be forgotten that you have an ATGM. Against IFVs and other western MBTs, the APHE shells are more than adequate. They are especially effective against weakly armored cupolas, other IFVs, and the side armor of many western MBTs, including the M48/M60, Chieftain, and Centurion tanks.

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armor ===

'''Armor type:'''

* Rolled homogeneous armor

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armor !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 11 mm (76°), 32 mm (32°) ''Front glacis'' 32 mm (31-61°) ''Lower glacis'' || 15 mm (30°) ''Top'' 15 mm || 11 mm (24°) ''Top'' 11 mm (26°) || 11 mm
|-
| Turret || 25 mm (39°) ''Turret front'' 25 mm (0-9°) ''Gun mantlet'' || 15 mm (12-16°) ''Left side'' 15 mm ''Right side'' || 15 mm (39°) || 11 mm
|-
|}
'''Notes:'''

* Suspension wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick.
* Belly armor is 11 mm thick.

=== Mobility ===


{{tankMobility|abMinHp= 930|rbMinHp= 531|}}

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|Bofors L/70 Mk.I (57 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="6" | [[Bofors L/70 Mk.I (57 mm)|57 mm Bofors L/70 Mk.I]]
|-
! colspan="2" | Capacity
! Fire rate (shots/minute)
! Vertical guidance
! Horizontal guidance
! Stabilizer
|-
| colspan="2" | 96 (48) || 200 || -8°/+45° || ±180° || N/A
|-
! colspan="6" | Turret rotation speed (°/s)
|-
! Mode
! Stock
! Upgraded
! Prior + Full crew
! Prior + Expert qualif.
! Prior + Ace qualif.
|-
| ''Arcade'' || 20.0 || 27.67 || 33.6 || 39.53 || ??.??
|-
| ''Realistic'' || 12.5 || 14.7 || 17.22 || 20.87 || ??.??
|-
! colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Stock
! Prior + Full crew
! Prior + Expert qualif.
! Prior + Ace qualif.
|-
| 15.00 || 15.00 || 15.00 || 15.00
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| 57х438 AP-T || APCBC || 125 || 122 || 107 || 91 || 77 || 66
|-
| 57х438 HE-T || HE || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8
|-
| 57х438 HE-VT || HE || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8 || 8
|-
| 57х438 SAP-T || APHEBC || 94 || 92 || 81 || 69 || 58 || 50
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="11" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! rowspan="2" | Normalisation at 30° from horizontal
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| 57х438 AP-T || APCBC || 950 || 2.4 || N/A || N/A || N/A || +4.0° || 48° || 63° || 71°
|-
| 57х438 HE-T || HE || 1,020 || 2.4 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 450 || +0.0° || 79° || 80° || 81°
|-
| 57х438 HE-VT || HE || 1,020 || 2.4 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 450 || +0.0° || 79° || 80° || 81°
|-
| 57х438 SAP-T || APHEBC || 950 || 2.4 || 1.2 || 9.0 || 75 || +4.0° || 48° || 63° || 71°
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''96''' || 72 ''(+24)'' || 48 ''(+48)'' || 24 ''(+72)'' || 0 ''(+96)'' || No
|-
|}

==== [[Optics]] ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="3" | {{PAGENAME}} Optics
|-
!
! Default magnification
! Maximum magnification
|-
! Main Gun optics
| X4.0 || X12.1
|-
! Comparable optics
| colspan="2" | ???
|-
|}

=== Additional armament ===

{{main|BGM-71B TOW}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="4" | BGM-71B TOW ATGM
|-
! Capacity
! Vertical guidance
! Flight speed (m/s)
! Range (m)
|-
| 6 || -6°/+20° || 299 || 3,000
|-
! colspan="4" | BGM-71C TOW ATGM
|-
! Capacity
! Vertical guidance
! Flight speed (m/s)
! Range (m)
|-
| 6 || -6°/+20° || 296 || 3,750
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| TOW || ATGM || 430 || 430 || 430 || 430 || 430 || 430
|-
| I-TOW || ATGM || 630 || 630 || 630 || 630 || 630 || 630
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="11" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! rowspan="2" | Normalisation at 30° from horizontal
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| TOW || ATGM || 299 || 18.8 || N/A || 0.1 || 2,450 || +0.0° || 80° || 82° || 90°
|-
| I-TOW || ATGM || 296 || 19 || N/A || 0.1 || 2,080 || +0.0° || 80° || 82° || 90°
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''6''' || 4 ''(+2)'' || 0 ''(+6)'' || No
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|MG 3A1 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="4" | [[MG 3A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm MG 3A1]]
|-
! colspan="4" | ''Coaxial mount''
|-
! Capacity (Belt capacity)
! Fire rate (shots/minute)
! Vertical guidance
! Horizontal guidance
|-
| 5,000 (1,000) || 1,200 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==


The Begleitpanzer 57 is a very capable light tank and support vehicle. With proximity fuse HE shells in its 57 mm cannon, it can effectively engage air targets, and can destroy enemy IFVs and even MBTs with its high-penetration rounds. However, when shooting at enemy planes, it is best to wait until they are close before firing, since the vehicle does not have a very high ammo count. Alternatively, the vehicle carries missiles which can be used very effectively to destroy both helicopters and tanks at long ranges. The missile's travel time must be taken in to consideration, but it is nice to have when the enemy is too far away to engage with the 57 mm cannon.

The Begleitpanzer's main cannon can sometimes destroy MBTs from the front, but does damage much more consistently when shooting the enemy's weaker armored side. For this reason, it is often wise to adopt an ambushing or flanking playstyle. This is helped by the vehicle's small profile and good mobility. It is easy to reach good firing positions and maneuver around the enemy quickly and without being seen. (And since the vehicle has poor armor, avoiding being seen will be very important for survival).

At the end of the day, the Begleitpanzer can be played as a light tank scout. It can't engage the enemy front-on, but it can be a valuable asset to the team and is lethal when played in the correct positions. Be sure to use the scouting ability to help friendly players locate enemy tanks. During night battles, the NVD modification will make scouting both easier to do and even more helpful to the team.

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Tier
! colspan="2" | Mobility
! Protection
! colspan="3" | Firepower
|-
| I
| Tracks
|
| Parts
| Horizontal Drive
| 57x438 SAP-T
|
|-
| II
| Suspension
| Brake System
| FPE
| Adjustment of Fire
| Airstrike
| I-TOW
|-
| III
| Filters
|
| Crew Replenishment
| Elevation Mechanism
| 57x438 HE-VT
| NVD
|-
| IV
| Transmission
| Engine
|
| Artillery Support
| Improved optics
| Laser rangefinder
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Effective against IFVs, MBTs, and aircraft
* Great for spotting and disabling tracks and gun barrels
* Lethal when shooting enemies from the side
* Has access to thermal vision devices
* Proximity HE shells are deadly against aircraft
* Has access to a laser rangefinder

'''Cons:'''

* Low gun elevation (45 degrees) when dealing with enemy planes
* Can easily be hull broken or destroyed by even high-caliber machine guns
* Cannot destroy many enemies frontally
* Fairly low ammunition count
* Lacks a gun stabilizer.
* Gun breech is easily destroyed
* Must stop to fire AGTMs
* Loses accuracy when firing continuously

== History ==
''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).''

== Media ==


;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicleCountry=germany&vehicleType=tank&vehicleClass=light_tank&vehicle=germ_begleitpanzer_57 Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|ZQ0XIBPcF4E|'''The Shooting Range #73''' - ''Metal Beasts'' section at 00:30 discusses the Begleitpanzer 57.|2h5kFyznXKU|'''Best IFVs''' discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 3:41 - ''War Thunder Official Channel''}}

== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==


* [https://warthunder.com/en/news/5069-development-begleitpanzer-57-bofors-marder-united-at-last-en [Devblog<nowiki>]</nowiki> Begleitpanzer 57: Bofors/Marder united at last!]

{{Germany light tanks}}
[[Category:ATGM vehicles]]

War Thunder Wiki - User contributions [en]

Begleitpanzer 57