Hauptmann Bodo Spranz, the highest scoring Stug Commander with 76 kills and winner of the Oak Leaves. Batterie chef with Sturmgeschutz-Brigade 237.

Served during the Invasion of Poland, Battle of France, Operation Barbarossa, Battle of Smolensk and the Battle of Halbe....
Upon successful completion of his training, he was assigned to Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 185 as a Zugführer with the Heeresgruppe Nord on the Eastern Front. On 30 September 1941, he was transferred to Schweinfurt as a
Batterieoffizier with the Sturmgeschütz Ersatz- und Ausbildungsabteilung 200.

He was once again serving on the Eastern Front between 15 January 1942 and 13 January 1943 as a Zugführer and later Batteriechef with Sturmgeschützabteilung 185 and on 1 April 1942 he was promoted to Oberleutnant.

For a short time he returned to the Sturmgeschütz Ersatz- und Ausbildungsabteilung 200 at Schweinfurt but transferred back to the Eastern Front on 2 June 1943 as a Batteriechef with Sturmgeschütz-Brigade 237.

As a consequence of being decorated with the Knights Cross and the Oak Leaves,
both on 3 October 1943, he received a promotion to Hauptmann. He served with
the Sturmgeschütz-Brigade 237 until 2 April 1944, after which time he was
assigned as Hörsaalleiter with the Sturmgeschütz-schule at Magdeburg.

From the beginning of 1945 until the end of the war, Bodo Spranz was assigned as an Ordonnanzoffizier with the Chef Generalstab des Heeres, General Oberst Heinz Guderian, with the 29. Panzergrenadier-Division in
Italy and finally with Army Commander General Wenck in Berlin. He was captured by the Americans on 6-7 May 1945, trying to escape Soviet captivity and transferred to a British POW camp until his release.

Here is a list of the top Sturmgeschütz Stug commanders:
Spranz, Bodo - 76 kills (Stug.Abt. 185 , Stug.Abt. 237)
Primozic, Hugo – 68 kills (Stug.Abt. 667)
Brandner, Josef ("Sepp") - 66 Kills (Stug.Brig. 912 and 202)
Sauer, Konrad - 65 kills (Stug.Abt. 209 , Stug.Brig. 393)
Timpe, Heinz - 59 kills (Stug.Brig. 300 (Feld))
Rohrbacher, Josef - 56 kills (Stug.Brig. 245)
Witte, Albert - 56 kills (He.-Stug.Brig. 394)
Kochanowski, Johann - 55 kills (Stug.Abt. 201)
Engelmann, Richard - 54 kills (Stug.Brig. 912)
Arnold, Friedrich - 51 kills (Stug.Abt. 201 and 237)
Fiebig, Walter - 50+ kills (Stug.Brig. 301)
Adamowitsch, Felix - 50 kills (Stug.Abt./Brig. 904)
Spielmann, Johann (Johannes) - 48 kills (Stug.Abt. 197, Stug.Abt./Brig. 202)
Zillmann, Erich - 48 kills (Stug.Abt./Brig. 245)
Höper, Ahrend - 47 kills (Stug.Brig 202)
Lutz, Waldemar - 47 kills (Stug.Abt. 245)
Ohler, Kurt - 47 kills (Stug.Abt. 270 , Pz.Jg.Abt. 152 / 1. Skijäger-Brig./Div.)
Deutsch, Heinz – 46 Kills (Fsch.Stug.Brig. 12)
Przedwojewski, Felix ("Sched") - 45 kills (2./SS-Stug.Abt. 3 / 3. SS-Pz.Div. "Totenkopf")
Bose, Georg - 44 kills (Stug.Abt. 300 and 177)
Amann, Herbert - 42 kills (Stug.Abt. 905)
Amling, Fritz - 42+ kills (Stug.Abt. 202)
Oberloskamp, Walther – 40+ kills (Stug.Abt. 667)
Scharf, Heinz - 40+ kills (Stug.Brig. 202)
Wegener, Paul - 40+ kills (Stug.Abt. 237)
Schwalb, Helmut - 40 kills (Stug.Abt./Brig. 190)
Tornau, Gottfried - 40 kills (Stug.Abt. 184 , He.-Stu.Art.Brig 911/Führer-Gren.Div.)
Tadje, Fritz - 39 kills (Stug.Abt. 190)
Angel, Otto - 38 kills (Pz.Jagd.Abt. 6)
Baurmann, Heinz - 38 kills (Stug.Abt. 667, Stug.Brig. 322, He.-Stu.Art.Brig. 300 (Feld))
Henke, Fritz (Friedrich) - 38 kills (SS-Stug.Abt. 1 / 1. SS-Pz.Div. "LSSAH")
Laubmeier, Ludwig - 38 kills (Stug.Brig. 191)
Paul, Roland - 37 kills (Stug.Abt. "Das Reich" / SS-Pz.Gren.Div. "Das Reich")
Schramm, Richard - 37 kills (Stug.Abt./Brig. 202)
Malachowski, Wilhelm von - 35+ kills (Stug.Abt. 189 and 228)
Brandt, Gerhard - 35 kills (Stug.Brig. 202)
Krämer, Richard - 35 kills (Stug.Brig. 232)
Serck, Julius - 32 kills (Stug.Brig. 300 (Feld))
Kirchner, Kurt - 30+ kills (Stug.Bttr./Abt. 667)
Stier, Gottwald - 30+ kills (Stug.Abt./Brig. 667)
Trägner, Josef – 30+ kills (Stug.Abt. 667)
Pfreundtner, Karl - 30 kills (Stug.Abt. 244)
Bausch, Dr. jur. Albert - 29 kills (Stug.Abt. 226 and 286)
Buhr, Martin - 29 kills (Stug.Abt. 202)
Schließmann, Kurt - 29 kills (Stug.Abt. 226 , Stug.Brig. 286)
Bostell, Wolfgang von - 28 kills (Stug.Abt. 1023 i.d. Pz.Jg.Abt. 23 / 23. ID and Pz.Jg.Abt. 205 / 205. ID)
Alex, Ernst - 27 kills (Stug.Abt. 243)
Ertel, Reinhold - 27 kills (Stug.Abt. 276)
Schwarzenbacher, Josef - 25+ kills (Stug.Brig. 912)
Dath, Friedrich - 25 kills (Stug.Brig. 286)
Truxa, Rolf [von Santa Truxa, genannt Truxa] - 25 kills (Stug.Abt. 190)
Banze, Karl-Heinrich – 24 Kills (Stug.Abt. 244)
Angelmaier, Heinz - 23 kills (Stug.Brig. 203 and 279)
Chrzonsz (Carsten), Günter - 23 kills (Stug.Abt. 277)
Metzger, Eugen - 23 kills (Stug.Abt. 203)
Rade, Hans-Dietrich – 23 kills (Stug.Abt. 244)
Wagner, Klaus – 22 kills (Stug.Abt. 667)
Zitzen, Kurt - 22 kills (Stug.Abt. 177)
Sowada, Bernhard - 21+ kills (Stug.Abt. 237)
Naumann, Horst - 21 kills (Stug.Abt. 184)
Nippes, Kurt - 17 kills (Stug.Abt. 276)
Engel, Heinrich - 25 kills (Stug.Abt. 259)
Berg, Karl-Erich - 12+ kills (Stug.Abt. 191)
Bertram, Ludwig - 12+ kills (Stug.Brig. 237)
Feldkamp, Heinrich - 12 kills (Stug.Brig. 341)
Regeniter, Alfred – 10 kills (Stug.Brig. 267)

Jagdpanzer IV (Sd.Kfz. 162)
Roy, Rudolf - 36 kills (SS-Pz.Jg.Abt. 12 / 12. SS-Pz.Div. "HJ")

Panzerjäger (Sd.Kfz. 164) "Nashorn"
Ernst, Albert - 55 kills (s.Pz.Jg.Abt. 519 [Nashorn] and 512 [Jagdtiger])

"Ferdinand" (Sd.Kfz. 184)
Teriete, Heinrich – 22 kills (s.Pz.Jg.Abt. 653)
Kretschmer, Franz – 21 kills (s.Pz.Jg.Abt. 653)

Jagdpanzer 38 "Hetzer"
Dallmeier, Josef - 50 kills (Pz.Jg.Kp. 1183 / 6. VGD)