Flakpanzer 341

Flakpanzer 341

Flakpanzer 341

Germany

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
6.7	6.3	6.3

Class:

SPAA

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Description

The 3,7 cm Flakzwilling auf Panther Fahrgestell, Flakpanzer 341, also known as Flakpanzer V Coelian, is a gift rank IV German SPAA with a battle rating of 6.7 (AB) and 6.3 (RB/SB). This vehicle was originally introduced as a main tree vehicle in Update 1.43 but was shifted to a gift vehicle in Update 1.91 "Night Vision", making it only available to players who previously owned it.

The Coelian was designed to be made on the chassis of the Panther. It was supposed to be made with a fully enclosed turret with two 37 mm autocannons. In the end though, the only "model" of the vehicle ever made was a wooden mock-up turret on a Panther chassis.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

Armourfront / side / back

Hull50 / 41 / 15

Turret60 / 40 / 40

Crew5 people

Visibility107 %

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, turret)
• Structural steel (Side skirts, mudguards, storage boxes)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	80 mm (55°) Front glacis 50 mm (55°) Lower glacis	50 mm (30°) Top 41.5 mm Bottom 5 mm (4°) Side skirts	40 mm (25°)	17 mm 40 mm Area connecting to front glacis
Turret	60 mm (40°) Turret front 30 mm (40°) Gun mantlet	40 mm 30 mm Gun mantlet	40 mm (cylindrical)	16 mm (71°) Front part 16 mm Rear part

Flakpanzer 341's crew positions. As clearly seen here, the Driver, Gunner and Commander are all lined up if it shows its front, which means that the best place to shoot is the right side of the upper glacis

Notes:

• Suspension wheels, tracks and torsion bars are 20 mm thick.
• Add-on 20 mm tracks cover the sides of the engine compartment.
• Mudguards and storage boxes on the hull are 4 mm thick.

The Flakpanzer 341 is in practice an anti-aircraft turret put on top of a Panther G chassis. The frontal glacis can deflect some hasty shots, but most enemies will aim at the turret, which is poorly armoured. As with the other Panthers, side armour is practically nonexistent, while the rear armour is weak. The rest of the turret, sides and rear, is only lightly armoured.

The tank won't suffer much of ammo rack detonation, even when filled to the brim with ammunition. Your vehicle will rather be disabled when most of the crew is knocked out. The tank has the same 5-men crew as a standard Panther: driver, gunner, commander, loader and radio operator. The turret houses the gunner, commander and loader while the driver and radio operator both sit in the front hull section.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB50 / 4 km/h

RB and SB46 / 4 km/h

Number of gears7 forward

1 back

Weight44.8 t

Engine power

AB1 145 hp

RB and SB600 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB25.6 hp/t

RB and SB13.4 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	50	4	44.8	852	1,145	19.02	25.56
Realistic	46	4		531	600	11.85	13.39

As the tank is built on a Panther G chassis, it retains most of the mobility. As with the Panther G, the engine is a downgrade from the Panther A and Panther D, with 600hp rather than 700hp. This means that it has somewhat sluggish acceleration, but better top speed than other anti-aircraft vehicles due to its torsion bar suspension. A negative point is the extremely poor reverse speed: only -3 km/h (AB & RB).

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB3 265 → 4 417

RB3 410 → 4 613

SB5 174 → 7 000

Total cost of modifications61 700

103 300

Talisman cost1 800

Crew training61 000

Experts210 000

Aces890

Research Aces570 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

130 / 160 / 230 %

178 / 178 / 178 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Suspension Research: 2 800 Cost: 4 700 155 Brake System Research: 2 800 Cost: 4 700 155 Filters Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Transmission Research: 6 600 Cost: 11 000 360 Engine Research: 6 600 Cost: 11 000 360	Improved Parts Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Improved FPE Research: 2 800 Cost: 4 700 155 Crew Replenishment Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170	37mm_ger_flak36_HE_ammo_pack Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Horizontal Drive Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 37mm_ger_flak36_AP_ammo_pack Research: 2 800 Cost: 4 700 155 Adjustment of Fire Research: 2 800 Cost: 4 700 155 37mm_ger_mgr_HE_ammo_pack Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Elevation Mechanism Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Smoke grenade Research: 3 100 Cost: 5 200 170 Artillery Support Research: 6 600 Cost: 11 000 360

Armaments

Main armament

2 x 37 mm FlaK44 cannon

Ammunition1 504 rounds

Belt capacity8 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

0.3 → 0.2 s

Fire rate250 shots/min

Vertical guidance-5° / 90°

37 mm FlaK44 (x2)						Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	1,504 (8)	250	-5°/+90°	±180°	N/A	52.8	73.1	88.8	98.2	104.5	0.31	0.28	0.25	0.24
Realistic						35.7	42.0	51.0	56.4	60.0

The Flakpanzer 341 is armed with 2 37mm FlaK 44 cannons side by side in the turret. These guns have enough damage potential to down a single-engine aircraft with a single shot, with 2 or 3 needed to down larger aircraft. The guns have a fire rate of 250 shots per minute each, which gives a shot per second value of about 4 per gun. This should be enough to shoot down the planes that usually populate the air in battles in 6.7 like A2Ds, Su-6s and the like. Furthermore, the turret traverse speed is incredible fast for its BR, and the fastest of the non-radar SPAA.

Ammunition

• Default: APHE · FI-T
• Sprgr. 18: FI-T
• PzGr: APHE
• M.Gr.18: HEI-T

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
FI-T	7	7	5	4	3	3
APHE	49	46	33	22	14	10
HEI-T	7	7	6	4	4	4

Shell details
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
						0%	50%	100%
FI-T	820	0.62	0.1	0.1	49.3	79°	80°	81°
APHE	770	0.69	1.2	9	22.1	47°	60°	65°
HEI-T	914	0.55	0.1	0.1	108	79°	80°	81°

Ammo racks

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	7th rack empty	8th rack empty	9th rack empty	10th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
188	170 (+18)	152 (+36)	132 (+56)	114 (+74)	94 (+94)	76 (+112)	58 (+130)	38 (+150)	20 (+168)	2 (+186)	No

Ammo racks of the Flakpanzer 341

Notes:

• Racks disappear only after you've fired all clips in the rack.
• As your ammo is subdivided in 188 clips of 4 shells, you can pack a mix of FI-T and APHE shells to deal with both aircraft and lightly armoured ground vehicles.

Usage in battles

The Flakpanzer 341 should be used as a vehicle of its class. It has the armament and fire rate to take out aircraft but lacks the penetration rates to effectively combat heavier tanks. Remember that the lead on the Flakpanzer 341 is less than on the Bofors due to its higher velocity (914m/s vs 874m/s) while having better damage. The Flakpanzer 341 can also go hunt light tanks, which rarely have the armour to stand up against the 49 mm penetration, but make sure that the Flakpanzer 341's firepower destroy them before they get a chance to shoot the Flakpanzer 341. Here is a list of some of the vehicles the Flakpanzer 341 can take on:

• AMX-13 series: Shoot at the side armour. If that is not present, shoot their tracks to bits and then their barrel. For the SS.11 version, just fire the 37 mm autocannons directly at the front missile rack.
• M56 and M50 Ontos: Anywhere, preferably with AP to maximise damage as the Flakpanzer 341's 37 mm has explosive filler.
• T92: Shoot it until it stops, then shoot the mini turrets.
• M42 Duster: Anywhere. Preferably the tracks so that it stops, then the turret crew.
• BMP-1: Turret or side armour, as the autocannon won't get through the front.
• SU-100P: Due to the thin armour, shooting anywhere should cause sufficient damage.
• Fv4005: Just fire at its turrets with as many armour-piercing shells as possible, and the problem should sort itself out.
• R3 T106 FA, Fiat 6614 and R3 T20 FA-HS: Shooting these vehicles anywhere will be sufficient, as long as they are hit before they get a shot off (except the T20 FA-HS, as its 20 mm armament)

But remember, aircraft will still be the Flakpanzer 341's primary targets as an SPAA.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good hull armour for an anti-aircraft vehicle
• Is fully enclosed, saving the turret crew from small-caliber aircraft bullets
• Incredible turret traverse speed to track down fast-flying aircraft
• 3.7 cm guns are devastating to enemy aircraft
• Has smoke grenades (6 in total)

Cons:

• Slow reverse speed
• Low penetration power on AP shell
• Smoke grenades are fired one at a time and take a while to hit the ground
• The Panther's hull is big and tall, easy to get spotted and shot at

History

The 3,7 cm Flakzwilling auf Panther Fahrgestell, Flakpanzer 341, also known as the Flakpanzer V Coelian, was a concept for a Flakpanzer first proposed in early 1944. Reacting to the increased threat posed by fighter-bombers and low altitude attackers, a proposal was made for a Flakpanzer based on the hull of a Panzer V Panther. This would have a fully enclosed turret to protect the crews from enemy fire, unlike the turrets of vehicles that were already in use such as the Flakpanzer 38 or the Flakpanzer IV Möbelwagen. In response to this tender, Rheinmetall developed the "Coelian", originally envisaging a number of the turret and armament variants such as the 2cm Flak-Vierling 151 armed with four 20 mm MG 151/20 guns. However, the German Army High Command's requirements kept on changing, demanding for ever-heavier armaments and armour, and eventually, two different designs were settled upon in May of 1944, one armed with a twinned 3.7 cm Flakzwilling 44, and one with a newly designed 5.5 cm Flak gun.

However, by the time the design had been finalised, external factors had already more or less decided its fate. The impact of the Allied strategic bombing campaign on the German arms manufacturing industry, the lack of raw materials, and the need for ever-increasing quantities of Panther tanks meant that no Panther hulls could be released for the Coelian project. Work on the design was given a lower priority, and by February of 1945, only a single wooden mock-up model of the 3.7 cm twin-gun tower on the hull of a Panther D had been completed. The war ended before an actual prototype could be constructed.

Archive of the in-game description

A planned self-propelled anti-air installation based on a Panther tank from which the turret was removed and replaced with a special, newly-designed turret with paired 37mm FlaK 44 guns. The project never existed as a fully-constructed model. The project was cancelled due to Germany's defeat. It had reached the phase of having a tank chassis with a wooden model of the planned turret installed on it. In December, 1943 a wooden mock-up of the turret was built and installed on the chassis of a remodeled Pz.Kpfw.V Ausf.D Panther. Since the Pz.Kpfw.V Ausf.G Panther modification was already being produced, the AA vehicle was supposed to be built on the chassis of this modification with the option to install full-metal rollers with internal amortization. The number of serially produced vehicles has not been determined. Whether or not it was ever used in combat conditions is also unknown.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Flakpanzer 341 from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same chassis

• Panzer V Panther (Family)

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

• Kugelblitz

External links

• [Devblog] Flakpanzer V "Coelian"
• [Wikipedia] Flakpanzer Coelian
• [Tanks Encyclopedia] 3.7 cm Flakzwilling auf Panther Fahrgestell "341"

Germany anti-aircraft vehicles
Wheeled	Sd.Kfz.222
Half-track	Sd.Kfz.251/21 · Sd.Kfz. 6/2
Flakpanzer IV	Wirbelwind · Ostwind · Ostwind II · Kugelblitz · Zerstörer 45
Other Flakpanzers	Flakpanzer I · Flakpanzer 38 · Flakpanzer 341
Wiesel AWC	Wiesel 1A4 · Ozelot
Radar SPAAG	Gepard · Gepard 1A2
Missile SPAA	FlaRakPz 1 · FlaRakRad