![]() Faced with these many hurdles, the mass production of the VK9.01 was constantly subject to delays, changing requirements, and the threat of cancellation. Instead, the project floundered in a state of uncertainty, as other competing projects to improve the Panzer II, including the VK9.03, the VK13.03 (better known as the ‘Luchs’), and the VK16.01 ( Panzer II Ausf.J) came to show greater promise. Hampered by the fickle nature of its advanced drivetrain, the VK9.01 never fulfilled its destiny of becoming a mass produced replacement for the Panzer II. These technological problems were to hound the VK9.01 throughout its history. Guided by these tenets, the VK9.01 project made use of many sophisticated yet technically immature automotive components in order to meet these stipulations a decision which engendered constant delays and frequent modifications to the design. Convinced that successful tank design revolved around delivering the maximum firepower at the highest possible speed, Kniepkamp was an advocate of the latest high-performance technology developed by German automotive engineers. ![]() Known initially as the VK9.01, this project encapsulated the design philosophy of one influential figure in German armored fighting vehicle design: Heinrich Ernst Kniepkamp. In the summer of 1938, the German Army (Heer) authorised the development of a new model of the Panzer II light tank in an effort to create a more mobile armored fighting vehicle that could supplant its technologically inferior predecessors in the Panzer Divisions.
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