Panzer III J

The Panzer III J was the numerically most common version of the Panzer III. It served in North Africa and on the Eastern Front. In both cases it struggled against newer Allied Tanks. In North Africa the newly-arriving US medium tanks (the M# Grant and M4 Sherman) both outgunned it, as did the T-34 and KV heavy tank series on the Eastern Front. Following the Battle of Kursk, the Panzer III was withdrawn, and succeeded by the Panzer IV and Panther. The chassis of the Panzer III formed the basis for the very successful Sturmgeschutz III.