R-1 light tank
R-1 light tank.
R-1 light tank.
General Pantazi inspecting the 5th Mechanised Squadron of the 8th Cavalry Division in Crimea, 8 August 1942.
On 1 April 1936 the Romanian Military accepted in service the AH IV light tank produced by Ceskomoravska Kolben Danek (CKD) factories and in August 1936 they placed an order of thirty-five vehicles. Upon delivery, the AH IV tanks (often reffered as tankettes) were modified according to the Romanian Army needs. The commander cupola was removed from the top of the turret, the armour was diminished from 15mm to a maximum thickness of 12mm and the original 60hp Praha engine was replaced with a lighter 50hp engine of the same type. The weight reduction with over half a ton also reduced the mileage and increased the maximum range on road to 160 kilometers. The vehicle, designated "R-1", equipped the mechanised reconnaissance squadrons of the cavalry brigades. The 5th, 6th and 8th Cavalry Brigades received six R-1 tanks each, while the 1st, 7th and 9th Cavalry Brigades received four. In 1941-42 they saw action with the Cavalry Corps (5th, 6th and 8th Cavalry Brigades) advancing in southern Ukraine and in Caucasus, and on other fronts assigned to cavalry troops (Odessa). After the disastruos battle of Stalingrad, the Cavalry Training Centre retreated R-1 from the active service.

Specifications
Crew2
Weight3.5t
Dimensions
Length3.2m
Width1.79m
Height1.67m
Engine
TypePraha, water cooled
Cylinders6L
Power50hp
Fuelpetrol
Performance
Max road speed45km/h
Max cross-country speed20km/h
Trench crossing1.5m
Fording depth0.9m
Gradient45°
Range160km
Armament
Main1 x 7.92mm ZB37 mg
Secondary1 x 7.92mm ZB30 mg
Ammunition3000 cartridges
Armour
Armour5-12mm
 Top
User Comments Add Comment
Dan Iloiu  (5 March 2009)
I was the one to wrote that article. The problem is that in 1989 there was not a lot of info available and my article was also somehow modified.
The model without the cupola is in fact the R-1. There was a single Romanian AH-IV with a commander cupola, this one was a prototype built by CKD for the planned production of the AH-IV in Romania. See the serial number 301 painted on the hull. Production that never materialized. This prototype had some other modified parts, some to be used later in the Swedish m37.
Agarici  (20 July 2005)
The tank from the first photo is NOT a Skoda R 1 but an original CKD-AH IV. Note the commander cupola which is not removed and compare that photo with the two pictures bellow.
Agarici  (20 July 2005)
According to an article from “Modelism” magazine (no. 25 - 4/1989), page 23 (not signed), in 1937 a number of 75 modified CKD AH-IV light tanks (designated as “tancheta Skoda R 1” in the Romanian army) were purchased. They were distributed as follows: 10 pieces to the 1st Cavalry division, to the 2nd and 3rd cavalry divisions 11 pieces each, 9 pieces to the 4th Cavalry division and 35 pieces were retained by the Cavalry Training Center. Also after Romania entered WW 2 an unknown number of CKD AH-IV without modifications (the original design) were delivered by the Germans in order to replace the lost material.