Skoda PA-I

History of the Skoda PA-I

The post-WWII Skoda-Fiat Turin armored car was not a success for the newly formed Czech army. Introduced in 1920, only a dozen cars were completed, and they were all out of service by the end of the century. As early as 1923, this led to a newer armored vehicle design - the Skoda "PA-I".

The PA-I rewrites the Czech approach to armored vehicles, offering a specially designed system with powerful performance and more modern qualities. It uses a symmetrical "dual drive" configuration that allows the car to travel backwards at the same speed without having to turn the car completely to avoid danger - the world's first military vehicle with this particular capability. This means there are two driver positions, one at the front and one at the back. Externally, except for the direction the roof turret is facing, the car looks like it's missing the front of a truck.

Armament includes 2 x 7.92mm Maxim MG08 water-cooled machine guns, the turret provides the required lateral and height capabilities, and has excellent firing angles on the superstructure.

The armor protection of the critical fairing reaches 5.5 mm, and the crew size is 5 people. Four rubber tire wheels are used, and the units are widely spaced when the vehicle is viewed from the side.

Doors on either side of the fuselage superstructure provided the necessary access to the interior fighting compartment, while viewing windows provided at least a small amount of situational awareness for the crew.

The PA-I was used only as an experimental platform, with only two examples completed in 1923 for testing purposes. Nonetheless, they laid the foundation for a more advanced version - the Skoda PA-2 "Zelva" - or "Turtle", thanks to its unique circular armor shape.

More than a dozen of these forms subsequently went into production, and the entire collection became iconic for its unique interwar appearance.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

Armor

300 x 7.92mm ammo

Changes