The Tiger I and II had some fording equipment to allow pass trough 2,1 meters of water, the early Tiger 1 carried a deep fording gadget with a snorkel wich allowed more than 4 meters fording.
Tiger 1 Henschel V1 with deep fording apparatus.
The height of folly and wasted resources resulting from Hitler’s Freudian nightmares
More likely from his wagnerian dreams.
A very good site about the Henschel Tiger 1 and his armament, no much to add to Fabian prado website, just that the requeriment to the Tiger 1 was first stated by Hitler in may 1941, so is not a response to the T-34. Obviously the menace of the russian tanks speed up the development.
Nice site Panzerknacker. Thanks for the link.
Thanks welcome to our forum torque, nice Bader picture there.
Tiger 1 tru water.
i like the tiger tank but it is so big
What is a person to do if it gets stuck?Would be a major bummer and embarrassing.
What is a person to do if it gets stuck?Would be a major bummer and embarrassing.
well, this is not a specific problem of heavy tanks. for 2 years, I served as a gunner and later as squad leader on the bundeswehr APC marder 1a3 and during exercises, the vehicles often got stuck in mud - it`s combat weight is about “only” 35 tons with 600hp on the other side. the cross-road ability of an (old) AVF should not be overestimated, I have seen weird things regarding that. then it will be pulled out by another tank, often by a so called “bergepanzer” (recovery-tank). in wartimes a dangerous action to do.
jens
When the Tiger 1 enterd in service in 1942 there was no an adecuate revovery vehcle for it.
Generally if a Tiger get stuck then 2 or even 3 Sd.Kfz 9 heavy tractors were used to get him out.
SdKfz 9 towing pz III.
then it will be pulled out by another tank, often by a so called “bergepanzer” (recovery-tank). in wartimes a dangerous action to do
.
In 1943 the best recovery vehicle for the heavy tanks entered in service, that was the BergePanther. In this image we can see a Tiger recovered under artillery fire.
Excellent King Tiger tank pictures I found.
I have a few questions…
-Where was the drivers veiw-slit in the Tiger II? Would this be similiar to the later Panthers with a periscope?
-Was the drivers veiw-slit ajustable in the Tiger I? Or does it just have a unique look to it?
Thankyou very much!
Oh yes, sorry for double-posting, but was there a difference between 2 the AP MGs in the Tiger I and II? (Radio-Operators and Gunners)
Also, if there was an AP or AA MG mounted above the copula/hatch of the tank, would the commander be in charge of it?
Yes it did adjust. You could make it smaller or close it up.
Both MG’s were the same model that had an armoured barrell. It was not the type issued to infantry units. One of the 2 MG’s had to be dismounted to attach to the coupla. There was no ‘third’ AA MG issued to Tiger crews
Thanks mkenny,those are nice pictures.
Good images Mckenny
First tigers on the Eastern Front:
[LEFT]
The first appearance of the Tiger on the Eastern Front was unsuccessful. The first Tigers were issued to the 1st platoon of the 502 Battalion of Heavy Tanks (Schwere Panzer Abteilung 502). On the 29th of August 1942, the four Tigers arrived at the Mga railway station near Leningrad. Early that day, the tanks were unloaded and prepared for battle. At 11:00 AM, the Tigers went into their battle positions. Major Richard Merker commanded the platoon, which included four Tigers, six PzKpfw III Ausf. L and J, two infantry companies and several trucks of the technical support unit. A representative of the Henshel firm - Hans Franke accompanied this unit in a VW Kubelwagen right behind the first Tiger. After the attack, the error in trying to use the heavy Tiger in ground so soft was realized, for their maneuverability was hampered.
[/LEFT]
The elephant badge of the S.Pz.Abt 502:
[LEFT]
The Russian infantry retreated, and their artillery opened heavy fire to cover the troops. Major Merker’s unit, divided into two groups, started to attack on two parallel side roads. Very soon the first Tiger was abandoned because of transmission failure. The second one was abandoned a few minutes later after engine failure. In spite of Russian fire, the Henschel representative started to inspect the tanks, but very soon Merker came by with his Tiger and said that the third tank was disabled because the steering control failed. During the night, all three damaged Tigers were evacuated using Sd Kfz 9 prime movers-three per tank. Fortunately for the Germans, the Russians could not take any action to capture the disabled tanks. After the inspection, spare parts for the Tigers were delivered by plane from the Henshel plant in Kassel and on the 15th of September all four Tigers were repaired and ready for action. [/LEFT]
[LEFT]
The second action of the Tigers was no better than the first. On the 22nd of September, four Tigers, supported by PzKpfw III tanks, were to accompany the 170th Infantry Division in attacking the 2nd Soviet Army. The terrain was very bad, the ground was too soft after the rains, and Major Merker opposed the use of Tigers in this operation. After a direct order from Hitler, the Tigers went into battle. Very soon after the attack began, the first Tiger received a direct hit in the front armor plate. The shell did not penetrate, but the engine stopped and there was no time to restart it. The crew abandoned the Tiger and threw hand grenades into the fighting compartment. The other three Tigers reached the Russian trenches, but very soon were damaged by Russian artillery crossfire as they lost maneuverability on the soft ground. Later on, the three Tigers were evacuated, and German engineers destroyed the fourth in order to prevent its capture.
[/LEFT]
[LEFT]General Guderian: “It was not only the heavy losses, it was the loss of secrecy and suprise in the future”.
The Tigers were successful in their third battle. On the 12th of January 1943, the 502nd supported the 96th Infantry Division opposing an attack of Russian tanks. Four Tigers destroyed 12 T-34/76 tanks and the rest of the Soviet tanks were forced to retreat.
[/LEFT]
[LEFT]
On the 16th of January 1943, the Russians captured their first Tiger during a German attack near the Shlisselburg on the Leningrad front. The captured tank was immediately delivered to the Kubinka Proving Grounds and inspected by Soviet Engineers. The Tiger was no longer a new secret weapon
by Dmitry Pyatakhin Edited by Joe Koss & George Parada[/LEFT]
I’m sorry, but didn’t the first Tigers appear in North Africa? At El Alamain? Or did you just mean the first Tigers to appear on the Eastern Front?
Actually not, they came to Afrika a little later in October-november 1942.
Tiger in Tunis.
Oh thankyou! I find myself mistaken…must get better accurate information…
Stuffs face in WWII History Encyclopedia
Oooo pretty! (LOL)
I think it had an interesting design…but what was that weird housing on the back of the turret? A radio or something? Almost every German Panzer had one except the Panther…
the Russian tank busters would shread these to dust, check them out and relating pictures with tiger tanks having no rear due to it is simply fragmated.
