The Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion, 1943
Perhaps surprisingly, the fully armoured Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion did not really appear until 1943. During 1942, a new light halftrack was introduced, and one or two Companies adopted the vehicle. By early 1943, the Battalion was intended to be fully mechanised, adopting the structure given below.
The Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion, circa mid-1943
Battalion Headquarters (5 Officers, 22 men)
Communications Platoon (1 Officer, 60 men)
Battle Train I (22 men)
Battle Train II (1 Officer, 3 Officials, 53 men)
Rations Train (1 Officer, 1 Official, 7 men)
Baggage Train (5 men)
Heavy Armoured Car Platoon (1 Officer, 21 men)
6 SdKfz 233
Light Column (1 Officer, 50 men)
Column HQ (1 Officer, 14 men)
Detachment (11 men)
Two Detachments, each (9 men)
Train (7 men)
Heavy Company (5 Officers and 199 men)
Company HQ (1 Officer, 15 men)
Antitank Platoon (1 Officer, 36 men)
Infantry Gun Platoon (1 Officer, 24 men)
Pioneer Platoon (1 Officer, 58 men)
Cannon Platoon (1 Officer, 37 men)
Company Train and Maintenance (29 men)
Armoured Car Company (4 Officers and 114 men)
Company Headquarters (1 Officer, 9 men)
Maintenance Section (12 men)
Battle Train I (14 men)
Battle Train II (12 men) is deleted by handwritten amendment, no date, excluded from Company total
Baggage Train (4 men)
Heavy Platoon (2 Officers, 22 men)
3 SdKfz 231
3 SdKfz 232
Three Light Platoons, each (1 Officer or NCO, 17 men)
4 SdKfz 222
2 SdKfz 223
Armoured Car Company 'c' (3 Officers, 110 men)
Company Headquarters (1 Officer, 10 men)
1 SdKfz 250/5
Maintenance Section (12 men)
Battle Train I (14 men)
Battle Train II (10 men) is deleted by handwritten amendment, no date, excluded from Company total
Baggage Train (4 men)
Four Platoons, each (1 Officer or NCO, 17 men)
2 SdKfz 250/5
4 SdKfz 250/9
Two Light Armoured Rifle Companies (3 Officers, 233 men), each comprised of;
Company Headquarters (1 Officer, 12 men)
Maintenance Section (13 men)
Battle Train (13 men)
Baggage Train (4 men)
Heavy Platoon comprised of;
Platoon HQ (1 Officer, 5 men)
Mortar Group (18 men)
Two Heavy Machine Gun Groups, each (17 men)
Three Rifle Platoons, each comprised of;
Platoon HQ (1 Officer or NCO, 8 men)
Three Rifle Squads, each comprised of 12 men
Total Strength of;
1161 all ranks (32 Officers and 1129 men)
6 SdKfz 223 and 12 SdKfz 222
3 SdKfz 231 and 3 SdKfz 232
6 SdKfz 233
9 SdKfz 250/5 and 16 SdKfz 250/9
Points of note
The issue of the Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion being largely reliant on wheeled vehicles to scout ahead for tracked tanks was finally addressed with the above organisation. While there remained a standard Armoured Car Company, the bulk of the Battalion was equipped with halftracks, which improved off road capability. However, the conversion process could not be completed overnight and there are indications that certain units retained a Motorcycle Rifle Company in lieu of the second halftrack mounted Light Rifle Company.
The elements of the Battalion
Battalion Headquarters - contained the Battalion Commander, Adjutant, ordnance and medical officers, equipped with two halftracks plus various cars and motorcycles.
Communications Platoon - fulfilled the same role as that in the Infantry of maintaining radio and line communications within the Battalion.
Heavy Armoured Car Platoon - the Platoon generally operated in support of the Armoured Car Company. It was equipped with the SdKfz 233, another variant of the SdKfz 231 eight-wheeled heavy car, which was armed with a snub nosed 7,5-cm gun and had a crew of three. The Platoon operated six such machines, and had its own small train with two lorries.
Heavy Company - was the same as found in The Armoured Panzer Grenadier Battalion 1943 to 1944
Armoured Car Company - was identical to that used previously in The German Motorised Reconnaissance Battalion 1942 to 1943
Armoured Car Company 'c' - the second Armoured Car Company in fact used the light halftrack, the SdKfz 250, which was introduced during 1942. The Platoons used two variants of the vehicle, the first being the SdKfz 250/5 observation model, which was crewed by a commander, driver and radio operator. Armament was a single MG34 and the vehicle was distinguishable by the large antennae frame that covered the hull. Along with it was the SdKfz 250/9, which had a commander, driver and gunner, and a small turret mounting a 2-cm main gun and co-axial MG34. The Platoon had two SdKfz 250/5 and four SdKfz 250/9 halftracks, and mirrored the Light Armoured Car Platoon.
The Rifle Company - the Light Armoured Rifle Company used the smaller SdKfz 250 halftrack series, and had the same basic structure of a standard Panzer Grenadier Company.
The Rifle Squad was twelve men strong, with a leader and assistant, armed with a machine pistol and rifle respectively. They commanded two guns teams, each with a gunner and loader, and four riflemen. The two gunners each carried a light machine gun and pistol, their two assistants both pistols, the remaining four men each a rifle. The Squad was completed by two drivers. Each driver was responsible for one of the Squad's two SdKfz 250/1 halftracks, which was capable of carrying six men. Both vehicles carried their own machine pistol and light machine gun.
Platoon HQ was also split over two vehicles. The first was a standard SdKfz 250/1 while the second was an SdKfz 250/10, which mounted a 3,7-cm Pak for fire support. Personnel consisted of the Platoon commander, with a machine pistol, Platoon NCO and stretcher-bearer with pistols, and a messenger with rifle. Each halftrack had a driver with rifle, and the SdKfz 250/10 added a commander and two loaders, with pistols. Again each halftrack had a single LMG and MP40.
Further fire support came from the Heavy Platoon. The Mortar Group operated four SdKfz 250/7, two mounting an 8-cm mortar each, plus one for the Group leader and a fourth carrying ammunition. Each Heavy Machine Gun Group dismounted two MG34 or MG42 teams, with three SdKfz 250/1 vehicles per Group. Platoon HQ added another such halftrack.
Company HQ had two SdKfz 250/3 command vehicles plus five motorcycles, and as ever there was the Train and Maintenance for supply and repair duties.
Summary
There is some evidence that certain Battalions still had a mixture of mechanised and motorised elements into 1943, so might have deployed a single Light Armoured Rifle Company alongside a Motorcycle or Volkswagen transported version. The fully armoured Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion had though now arrived, and would provide the Panzer Division with one of its most striking units.
German Reconnaissance units 1939 to 1945