Polish Panzer-faust equivalent

[robertp6165]

What if, in 1935 or 1936, a Polish ordnance officer invented a shaped-charge anti-tank warhead and a device similar to the OTL German Panzerfaust to fire it. After trials, the Poles begin deploying it in quantity to their infantry in late 1938. By the time the Germans cross the border in September 1939, there are tens of thousands of these things scattered among the Polish infantry formations. How does this affect Germany's Polish campaign? If the Germans are taking huge tank losses due to these weapons, will Stalin "stab Poland in the back" as in OTL by risking his own tank forces in an attack? Can Poland survive long enough for Britain and France to get their act together and intervene effectively?

 

[Landshark]

Dale Cozort used to have a scenario like that on his site.

 

[Prinz Richard Eugen]

Against the tin-can German panzers of 1939, the losses will be heavy. This may be to the advantage of the Germans in the long run, leading to better tanks designs much earlier than OTL. But such a weapon does not help against overwhelming German air power. The German infantry is better trained and its artillery is superior. Poland is too small to hold out long against Germany. Stalin will wait longer before joining in (he was expecting to intervene much later in OTL and had to hurry up when the Germans beat the Poles so quickly).

The French did not plan any major offensives in the West. I doubt longer Polish resistance would change that. I assume they did not expect a sudden Polish defeat any more than Stalin did, but I don't recall ever reading how long the French expected the Poles to hold out.

 

[seraphim74]

I vaguely remember I read something like "What if Poles had bazookas in 1939?".
Actually, in 1939 Polish Army had quite effective anti-tank rifle 7,92mm kb Ur wz 1935, capable to destroy every German tank of that time. Of course Poles didn't have "ten thousands" of them, but they have them quite a lot.
I'm not sure if Poland would have decided to produce such many anti-tank weapons - before 1939 mass usage of tanks in Blitzkrieg was only a theory, and infantry was supposed to fight enemy infantry or cavalry supported by tanks.
But lets assume a miracle has happened, and Poles have those bazookas/Panzerfaust. rman situations is serious. E.g. in the battle of Mokra IOTL Polish cavalry brigade managed to stop whole German armoured division for whole day with anti-tank cannons, rifles and support of armoured train. Against bazookas German elite Panzertruppen are decimated and their ability to break through Polish lines is very limited.
Germans still have air superiority, better communication (more radios), better artillery, and motorized forces on tracks. Poles still are pushed back, but Germans losses, especially tanks, are enormous. While motorized infantry can manouver much faster, it is still infantry, and artillery might have problems with following it. Air support is not alway possible or efficient enough.
In short, Poles are pushed back from their borders, but Germans are unable to surround major Polish forces. Armies from the West (Poznań, Pomerania) are in relatively good condition. German attack in south is also slower, so Poles have much more time to finish their mobilization and reorganize. Succesful retreat to line of Vistula-Narew to make a stand there is quite possible.
With Polish campaign not finished in few weeks, Poland's western allies might decide to move their butts after all, and do something really damaging to Germans. Poland has a chance to survive.
But there is another factor. Stalin. I think he would attack anyway. With pretty much all Polish forces fighting with Germans, invasion from east would be relatively easy. Losses? Stalin didn't care about losses. And while Red Army was in 1939 still in disarray after purges, even without tanks the mass of Soviet infantry and cavalry would be enough to defeat Polish Border Corps and reserve units.

 

[Alexius]

One issue: Most of the German tanks in the invasion of Poland were Pz.I and Pz.IIs. These had so little armour that anti-tank rifles (which the Poles had in large numbers) were effective against them.