page_title: Hetzer
section_title: Survivors
hierarchical_section_title: Hetzer / Survivors
caption_attribution_description: Jagdpanzer 38(t) (Sd.Kfz. 138/2) on display at the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster , Germany.
context_page_description: The Jagdpanzer 38 was a German light tank destroyer of the Second World War based on a modified Czechoslovakian Panzer 38 chassis.
  German armored forces in World War II created a variety of vehicles by mounting anti-tank guns on obsolete tank chassis. These machines performed even better than expected, yet were still vulnerable due to high vehicle profiles and open-topped turrets. Allied bombings took a heavy toll on German production facilities, and further increased the need for an easily produced yet effective light tank destroyer to replace vehicles like the StuG III and Marder series. Prototypes of the Jagdpanzer 38 were ready by 1944 and mass production began in April of that year. The Jagdpanzer 38 was covered entirely with sloped armor, and possessed a compact form and low silhouette, giving it much improved defensive ability over other self-propelled guns. Armament consisted of a 7.5 cm Pak 39 L/48 gun in fixed mounting as well as a remote-controlled MG 34. It featured a wide body to accommodate the four-man crew, as well as strengthened lower hull with enlarged wheels, guide rollers and tracks.
context_section_description: Due to the large number produced, the Jagdpanzer 38 is probably the most abundant World War II German tank destroyer remaining today, though many survivors are actually post-war Swiss G-13 variants. In addition to numerous examples in museums, there are Jagdpanzer 38 in various conditions in private collections.
  In 2007, a Jagdpanzer 38 was recovered from the Baltic Sea in Jurata, Poland. It is currently being restored in Gdansk.
caption: Jagdpanzer 38 on display at the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster, Germany.
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