How many Tiger tanks were there on the Western Front? Tank Tiger

This most formidable German tank of the Second World War was a perfect example of military equipment.

The history of the creation of the tank is very long and confusing. The development of a new heavy tank as part of the Panzerkampfwagen VI program began at the end of January 1937, when Henschel received an order to design a combat vehicle under the symbol DW1 (Durchbruchwagen - breakthrough vehicle). In parallel with the Henschel company, the Porsche company was also working on the project of a new heavy tank (Dr. Porsche was generally the Fuhrer’s favorite). By 1941, both companies had created their own chassis versions, VK 3001 (H) and VK 3001 (P), respectively. But in May 1941, during a meeting at the Berghof, Hitler proposed a new concept for a heavy tank, which had increased firepower and armor protection and was designed to become the striking force of tank formations, each of which was supposed to have 20 such vehicles.

In the light of the Fuhrer's proposals and taking into account the test results of experimental heavy tanks, tactical and technical requirements were developed, and then an order was issued for the development of the VK 4501 tank. The prototypes were supposed to be produced by May - June 1942. Ready-made tank platforms had to be created almost anew. The competition between both companies reached its climax in the spring of 1942, when both vehicles, equipped with identical turrets from Friedrich Krupp AG, arrived at the Wolfsschanze headquarters in East Prussia for demonstration tests.

Minister of Armaments of the Third Reich Albert Speer personally tests the chassis of the new Tiger tank

Both cars also had their (sometimes significant) disadvantages. For example, a crude, unfinished electric transmission seriously hampered the maneuvering of the VK 4501(P), for example, the tank made 90° turns with great difficulty. During speed tests, the VK 4501(H) accelerated over a section of 850 m to only 45 km/h, and the engine overheated so much that there was a risk of fire. Having weighed all the pros and cons, despite Hitler’s special affection for Dr. Porsche, the commission conducting the tests nevertheless decided in favor of the Henschel tank. The VK 4501(P) chassis was later used for the Ferdinand self-propelled guns.

At the top is a prototype of the Tiger tank from Porsche, the design of the rollers is clearly visible,
used later in "Ferdinand" (below)

At the beginning of August 1942, serial production of a new heavy tank began, which, however, did not mean the end of testing. They continued, but already at the main Wehrmacht tank training ground in Kummersdorf. The first tank had covered 960 km by that time. On moderately rough terrain, the car reached speeds of up to 18 km/h, while fuel consumption was 430 liters per 100 km.

During mass production, changes and improvements were almost continuously made to the design of the tank, which was produced in one modification. The very first production vehicles had a modified box for equipment and spare parts, mounted on the rear of the turret. The prototypes used a box borrowed from the Panzerkampfwagen III. The hatch with a loophole for firing personal weapons on the right wall of the tower was replaced with a manhole hatch.

Picture: general view of the tank, the first models were painted this way,
it was believed that tanks were so powerful that they did not require any protective painting,
on the contrary, their mere appearance should have inspired fear.

For self-defense from enemy infantry, mortars for anti-personnel mines of the "S" type were mounted along the perimeter of the hull. This mine, the warhead of which included 360 steel balls, was fired at a small height and exploded. In addition, NbK 39 smoke grenade launchers of 90 mm caliber were installed on the tank turrets.
At that time, the Tiger was the only production tank in the world equipped en masse with underwater driving equipment (to overcome water obstacles- not all bridges could withstand the weight of the tank), which found widespread use in tank building only in the 50s. True, this equipment was practically not used by the troops and was abandoned over time. The quality of the system is evidenced by the fact that during tests at the factory site, where a special pool was built for this purpose, the tank with the engine running was under water for up to two and a half hours.
The Tigers used two types of tracks - transport, 520 mm wide, and combat, 725 mm wide. The first ones were used for transportation by rail in order to fit into the dimensions of the platform (also specially reinforced - six-axle), and for moving under its own power on paved roads outside of combat.

Replacing transport tracks with combat tracks

The design of the tank was a classic version with a front-mounted transmission.
In the front part there was a control compartment. It housed a gearbox, a turning mechanism, controls, a radio station, a forward machine gun, part of the ammunition, and workplaces for the driver (on the left) and the gunner-radio operator (on the right).

The fighting compartment occupied the middle part of the tank. The turret was equipped with a cannon and a coaxial machine gun, observation and aiming devices, aiming mechanisms and seats for the tank commander, gunner and loader. Ammunition was located in the hull in niches, along the walls and under the turret floor.
In the front part of the turret, in a cast mantlet, the main armament of the Tiger was installed - an 8.8 cm KwK 36 cannon of 88 mm caliber, developed on the basis of the famous Flak 18 anti-aircraft gun. The gun barrel had a length of 56 calibers - 4928 mm; together with the muzzle brake - 5316 mm. The KwK 36 differed from the prototype primarily in the presence of an electric trigger and a highly effective muzzle brake, which significantly reduced the recoil of the gun when fired. A 7.92 mm MG-34 machine gun was paired with the cannon. The course machine gun was placed in the front plate of the turret box in a ball mount. On the commander's cupola of the later type, on a special device Fliegerbeschussgerät 42, it was possible to install another (anti-aircraft) MG-34 machine gun.

The turret was driven by a hydraulic turning mechanism on the bottom of the tank with a power of 4 kW. Power was taken off from the gearbox using a special driveshaft. At 1500 rpm of the crankshaft, the turret rotated 360° in 1 minute. When the engine was not running, the turret was turned manually, but due to the long barrel, even at a tilt of 5°, manual rotation was impossible.
The engine compartment housed the engine and all its systems, as well as fuel tanks. The engine compartment was separated from the combat compartment by a partition. The tank was equipped with Maybach HL 210P30 engines with 650 hp. or Maybach HL 230P45 with 700 hp. (from the 251st car). Engines are 12-cylinder, V-shaped, carburetor, four-stroke. It should be emphasized that the HL 230P45 engine was almost identical to the engine of the Panther tank. The cooling system is liquid, with two radiators. There were twin fans on both sides of the engine. Due to the isolation of the engine compartment from the air flow of the cooling system, special blowing of the exhaust manifolds and generator was used on both engines. The fuel was leaded gasoline with an octane rating of at least 74. The capacity of four gas tanks was 534 liters. Fuel consumption per 100 km when driving on the highway is 270 liters, off-road - 480 liters.
The chassis of the tank, applied to one side, consisted of 24 road wheels arranged in a checkerboard pattern in four rows. The track rollers measuring 800x95 mm on the first 799 tanks had rubber tires; all subsequent ones have internal shock absorption and steel bands. Weak point the running gear of the "Tiger", which could not be eliminated, was rapid wear and subsequent destruction of the rubber tires of the road wheels.

Most of the Tigers produced went to the eastern front.

Starting with the 800th vehicle, road wheels with internal shock absorption and steel tires began to be installed on the tank. At the same time, the outer row of single rollers was removed. Due to the use of an automatic hydraulic servo drive, no significant physical effort was required to control the 56-ton tank. Gears were changed literally with two fingers. The turn was carried out by lightly turning the steering wheel. Control of the tank was so simple that any crew member could handle it, which turned out to be important in a combat situation.

The hull of the tank was box-type, assembled from armor plates connected into a spike and welded with a double seam. The armor is rolled, chrome-molybdenum, with surface cementation. At the same time, having installed all the hull armor plates vertically, the tank designers completely ignored the simple and very effective method enhancing armor protection through the inclined arrangement of armor plates. And although the thickness of the frontal armor of the hull was 100 mm, and the sides and stern - 82 mm, armor-piercing shells The Soviet 76.2 mm ZIS-3 cannon could hit the frontal armor of a tank from 500 m, and the side and rear armor even from a distance of 1500 m.

Moscow, summer 1943. The first trophy "Tiger" at the exhibition in the Central Park of Culture and Culture named after. Gorky.

A new tactical unit was created especially for the Tiger tanks - a heavy tank battalion (schwere Panzerabteilung - sPzAbt), which was a separate military unit that could act either independently or be attached to other Wehrmacht units or formations. Subsequently, 14 such battalions were formed, one of them operated in Africa, another in Italy, and the rest on the eastern front.

Column of "Tigers" near the city of Berdichev.

In August 1942, the first tanks were already “tested” on the outskirts of besieged Leningrad (and already in January 1943, our troops captured the first almost undamaged Tiger). The Tigers were most widely used during the Battle of Kursk, or, as the Germans called it, Operation Citadel. By May 12, 1943, it was planned to have 285 combat-ready “tigers” to participate in this battle, but this plan was not fulfilled, only 246 vehicles were transferred to the troops.

Tigers are marching on Kursk. Transportation without switching to transport tracks.

By the beginning of the Allied landings in Normandy in June 1944, the Germans had 102 Tigers in the West as part of three heavy SS tank battalions. One of them distinguished himself more than the others, mainly due to the fact that one of his companies was commanded by the most effective German tankman - SS-Obersturmführer Michael Wittmann. His exploits largely contributed to the glory of the tank; in total, he owned 138 tanks and self-propelled guns.

Michael Wittmann and the crew of his "Tiger" No. S21

In general, the efficiency of using the tank was based on its effective armament, complemented by excellent optics and thoughtful internal layout. Most tanks of those years were inferior to the Tigers in range and rate of fire. Thus, the Tiger crew could start the battle from a safe distance and end it without allowing the enemy to really get close. All known cases of victory over "Tigers" in tank battles were with a significant numerical superiority. The same Wittman died in the end breaking through the Sherman formation; he was simply shot at point-blank range by at least five tanks.

The main drawback of the tank was, undoubtedly, its armor, or rather its quantity and weight. By placing thinner armor plates at large angles of inclination, the designers of the Panther, for example, were able to achieve protection parameters almost similar to the Tiger, reducing the weight by 13 tons.

The Tiger's vertical armor is its weak point.

The Tigers, with the maximum engine power of that time being 700 hp, found it very difficult to move effectively over rough terrain. A tank weighing 56 tons is simply an elm on marshy soils. For comparison: the T-34, weighing 26 tons, was driven by a 500-horsepower diesel engine. In addition, this also caused many complications in the design and often led to problems during transportation and operation.

In urban battles on narrow streets, the Tigers lost almost all their advantages.

The "Tiger" is often called the best heavy tank of the Second World War (only the IS-2 can compete) and despite all its shortcomings, based on the totality of its parameters, this was probably the case - many concepts and technical solutions are still used in tank building today.

Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausf. H1, or "Tiger" is the first German heavy. One of the most famous tanks in Germany.

History of creation

The history of the famous “Tiger” began in 1937. At that time, the Wehrmacht did not have heavy tanks, while the French had the Char B1, and the Russians had the T-35. At the same time, in France and Poland, low-moving vehicles were not particularly needed, so the requirements for a heavy tank were very vague.

In 1937, Henschel & Son AG was ordered to develop a heavy 30-33 ton breakthrough tank, the DW1. The main task of the tank was to support infantry in close combat, so they decided to equip it with a 75-mm PzKpfw IV cannon. The chassis was already ready, but in 1938 it was unexpectedly ordered to stop work and begin developing a 65-ton super-heavy tank.

Soon two prototypes of the VK 6501 were created, but at the very beginning of testing it was ordered to return to DW1. As a result, by 1940, the DW2 prototype was created, 32 tons, with a 75 mm howitzer. In 1941, the prototype began to be tested, and MAN, Daimler-Benz AG and Porsche also began working on the breakthrough tank.

During testing, the vehicle was given the designation VK 3001 (H). The shape of the tank was similar to the PzKpfw IV, but with a fundamentally new suspension.

In 1941, the tank was about to be mass-produced, but the Soviet T-34 appeared on the scene, and the Germans decided to hold off. The VK 3001(H) project was discarded, although the created prototypes were turned into artillery self-propelled guns Рz Sfl V.

The designers sat down to the drawings again, and soon new designs for a heavy tank were ready. The Porsche company proposed the VK 3001 (P) project, “Leopard”, but the commission found it too complicated, so it was rejected. The companies MAI and Daimler-Benz AG were also unlucky - the projects were considered too outdated. As a result, by March 1942, Henschel and the son of AG nevertheless created a prototype that met all the wishes of the Fuhrer personally. It was equipped with an excellent 88 mm anti-aircraft gun FlaK 36, which successfully dealt with other people's tanks. As a result, the VK 4501(H) project was put into production and received the name “Tiger” Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausf. H1

By the way, almost immediately work began on its modernization and the creation of “”, which appeared only in 1944.

TTX Tiger 1

general information

• Classification – heavy tank;
• Combat weight - 56 tons;
• Layout - engine compartment at the rear, transmission and control compartment at the front;
• Crew – 5 people;
• Years of development: 1941;
• Years of production – 1942-1944;
• Years of operation – 1942-1945;
• A total of 1354 pieces were produced.

Dimensions

• Hull length – 6316 mm, with gun forward 8450 mm;
• Case width – 3705 mm;
• Height – 2930 mm;
• Ground clearance – 470 mm.

Booking

• Type of armor – rolled chrome-molybdenum, surface hardened;
• Body forehead, top – 100/8 mm/degree;
• Hull side, top – 80 mm;
• Hull rear, top – 80/8 mm/degree;
• Bottom – 28 mm;
• Hull roof - 26 mm, by the end of the war 40 mm;
• Turret forehead – 100 mm;
• Gun mask – from 90 to 200 mm;
• Turret side – 80 mm;
• Cutting feed – 80 mm;
• The roof of the tower is 28 mm.

Armament

• Caliber and brand of gun – 88 mm KwK 36 L/56;
• Gun type - rifled;
• Barrel length - 56 calibers;
• Ammunition - from 92 to 120 in 1945;
• HV angles: −8…+15°;
• GN angles – 360 degrees;
• Sight – telescopic TZF 9a;
• Machine guns - 7.92 mm MG-34, 2 or 3 pieces;
• Another weapon is the S anti-personnel mortar.

Mobility

• Engine type - first Maybach HL210P30, in other Maybach HL230P45 cars V-shaped 12-cylinder carburetor with liquid cooling;
• Highway speed – 44 km/h;
• Speed ​​over rough terrain – 20-25 km/h;
• Cruising range on the highway – 195 kilometers;
• Cruising range over rough terrain – 110 kilometers;
• Specific power – 12.9 hp/t;
• Suspension type – individual torsion bar;
• Climbability – 35 degrees;
• The wall to be overcome is 0.8 meters;
• The ditch to be overcome is 2.3 meters;
• The ford that can be overcome is 1.2 meters.

Modifications

• Pz.VI Ausf E(F) - a machine for work in the tropics, with large air filters;
• Pz.VI Ausf E with an anti-aircraft machine gun, was actively used on western front;
• Panzerbefehlswagen Tiger (Sd.Kfz. 267/268) - two command vehicles.

Pz.VI Ausf E(F), model

Vehicles based on the Tiger tank

Several quite famous special vehicles were created on the basis of the Tiger:

• The Sturmtiger is a heavy self-propelled gun with a 380-mm rocket-propelled anti-submarine bomb launcher placed in a fixed armored wheelhouse. Damaged Tigers were converted into Sturmtigers - a total of 18 vehicles were created;
• Bergetiger - a repair and recovery vehicle, without weapons, but with a crane;
• The Ladungsliger Tiger is a heavy engineering vehicle, the only one of its kind, converted from one damaged tiger. It used to be mistakenly called a "Bergetiger with a tap", but in fact it was a completely different machine.

Sturmtiger in Kubinka

Combat use of Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausf. H1

On August 29, 1942, several “Tigers” were unloaded in the Leningrad region at the Mga station and began to move to their original positions. Several tanks were damaged simply during the movement, but they were quickly restored, and within a month they clashed several times with the second shock army of the Volkhov Front. At first, the Tigers were often knocked out, but later they began to operate more successfully, effectively dealing with enemy tanks.

Eastern front

Tiger tanks were most widely used on the Eastern Front - it was on them that Hitler made his main bet in the 1943 campaign. "Tigers" were included in all elite motorized rifle divisions and in many other units. They participated especially en masse in Operation Citadel, Battle of Kursk. During the fighting, the Germans lost several vehicles. In general, on the Eastern Front by the end of 1943, the Germans lost 274 Pz. VI, of which only 19 vehicles were repaired.

West

When the Allies landed in Normandy, the Germans had 102 Tigers on that front. However, due to the special terrain and Allied air support, tanks were not very effective here. The only exception is the battle on July 13, 1944 in Villers-Bocage, where Michael Wittmann destroyed (in his own words) 26 enemy tanks. This, however, has not been documented, but in general a lot of enemy tanks, vehicles and armored personnel carriers were damaged and destroyed.

End of the war

In November 1944, Germany had 317 Tigers on the Eastern Front, 84 on the Western Front, and 36 in Italy. By the first of March 1945, a total of 322 combat-ready vehicles remained. The small number made them no longer so dangerous, although when meeting him, many tankers, including Soviet ones, preferred to retreat if possible, since he “instilled horror with his whole appearance” and was often inaccessible to enemy shells.

In the Ardennes operation of 1945, the German command relied on the Tigers and their successors.

At the end of the war, many vehicles were destroyed by their own crews due to the fact that Allied aircraft destroyed bridges where the Wehrmacht was retreating.

Tank in culture

The Tiger tank is quite widely represented in various games dedicated to the Second World War. It can be found in online games about tank battles “World of Tanks” and “”.

"Tigers" also plays an important role in many Soviet and Russian films about the Great Patriotic War. True, other equipment, often more modern, was often “camouflaged” as “tigers”.

“Tigers” can be found in many foreign films. For example, in the films “Saving Private Ryan”, “Fury”, etc.

The tank is also found in bench modeling - the companies Taigen and Heng Long, and the Russian company Zvezda have models.

Memory of a tank

Despite the popularity of the tank, not many of it have been preserved in museums. One vehicle capable of moving independently is in the UK, at the Bovington Tank Museum. In Russia you can see the Tiger in Kubinka. We have another tank in the village of Snegiri near Moscow, but the quality is very poor, the car is full of dents and holes. In the USA, at the Aberdeen Proving Ground, the tank is cut off on the left to gain access to the inside. And in Germany, in the Munster Tank Museum, a tank assembled from various parts of wrecked vehicles is exhibited.

Tiger at Bovington

Photo and video

Bergetiger, model
Tiger in Kubinka

Type "S" (principle of operation - the mine was fired to a height of 5-7 meters and exploded, hitting enemy infantry trying to destroy the tank in close combat with shrapnel)

Mobility engine's type the first 250 Maybach HL210P30 cars; on the remaining Maybachs HL230P45 V-shaped 12‑cylinder carburetor liquid cooling Highway speed, km/h 38 Speed ​​over rough terrain, km/h 20-25 Highway range, km 100 Cruising range over rough terrain, km 60 Specific power, l. s./t 11,4 Suspension type individual torsion bar Specific ground pressure, kg/cm² 1,05 Climbability, degrees. 35° Wall to be overcome, m 0,8 Ditch to be overcome, m 2,3 Fordability, m 1,2

Panzerkampfwagen VI "Tiger I" Ausf E, "Tiger"- German heavy tank from the Second World War, the prototype of which was the VK4501 (H) tank, developed in 1942 by the Henschel company under the leadership of Erwin Aders. In the departmental end-to-end classification of armored vehicles of Nazi Germany, the tank was initially designated Pz.Kpfw.VI (Sd.Kfz.181) Tiger Ausf.H1, but after the adoption of the new heavy tank of the same name PzKpfw VI Ausf. B had the Roman numeral "I" added to its name to distinguish it from the later machine, which in turn was called the "Tiger II". Although minor changes were made to the design of the tank, there was only one modification to the tank. In Soviet documents, the Tiger tank was designated as T-6 or T-VI.

Along with the prototype of the Henschel company, the Porsche project, VK4501 (P), was also presented to the Reich leadership, but the choice of the military commission fell on the Henschel version, although Hitler was more favorable to the Porsche product.

For the first time, Tiger I tanks went into battle on August 29, 1942 at the Mga station near Leningrad, began to be used on a massive scale from the Battle of Kursk, and were used by the Wehrmacht and SS troops until the end of World War II. The total number of cars produced is 1354 units. The cost of producing one Tiger I tank is 1 million Reichsmarks (twice as expensive as any tank of that time).

History of creation

The first work on the creation of the Tiger tank began in 1937. By this time, the Wehrmacht did not have any heavy breakthrough tanks in service, similar in purpose to the Soviet T-35 or French Char B1. On the other hand, in the planned military doctrine (tested later in Poland and France) there was practically no place for heavy, sedentary vehicles, so the military’s requirements for this kind of tank were rather vague. However, Erwin Aders, one of the leading designers of the Henschel company ( Henschel) began development of a 30-ton “breakthrough tank” ( Durchbruchwagen). During 1939-1941 Henschel built two prototypes, known as DW1 and DW2. The first of the prototypes was without a turret, the second one was equipped with a turret from the production PzKpfw IV. The thickness of the armor protection of the prototypes did not exceed 50 mm.

The Henschel prototype was designated VK4501 (H). Ferdinand Porsche, better known at the time for his pioneering work in the automotive (including sports) field, tried to transfer his approach to a new area. Its prototype implemented solutions such as highly efficient longitudinal torsion bars in the suspension system and electric transmission. However, compared to the Henschel prototype, F. Porsche's car was structurally more complex and required more scarce materials, in particular copper (used in generators necessary for electric transmission).
Dr. F. Porsche's prototype was tested under the designation VK4501 (P). Knowing the Fuhrer’s attitude towards him and without doubting the victory of his brainchild, F. Porsche, without waiting for the commission’s decision, ordered the launch of production of the chassis for his own new tank without testing, with Nibelungenwerk starting deliveries in July 1942. However, when displayed at the Kummersdorf training ground, a Henschel tank was chosen due to the greater reliability of the chassis and better cross-country ability, partly due to smaller financial costs. The turret was borrowed from a Porsche tank, since the turrets ordered for the Henschel tank were in the process of being modified or were in the prototype stage. In addition, turrets with a KWK L/70 7.5 cm gun were designed for the above combat vehicle, the caliber of which (75 mm) in 1942 no longer met the needs of the Wehrmacht. As a result, this hybrid with a Henschel & Son chassis and a Porsche turret became famous throughout the world under the designation Pz VI “Tiger” Ausf E, and Porsche “Tigers” were produced in the amount of 5 vehicles, but from the 90 chassis produced, 89 heavy ones were created assault guns, which received the name of its “father”, F. Porsche - “Ferdinand”.

Design

The tank was controlled using a steering wheel (similar to a car). At the same time, the control itself was quite simple and did not require special skills.

Armored hull and turret

The turret rotated using a hydraulic transmission (the capacity of the turret mechanism system is 5 liters of oil). Rotating the tower 360 degrees by pressing a special pedal took from 60 seconds to maximum speed up to 60 minutes on minimum; it was also possible to rotate the turret using a manual drive.

Engine and transmission

Engine cooling is a 120-liter water radiator and four fans. Fan motor lubrication - 7 liters of oil.

Modifications

• Pz.VI Ausf E (tropical version). Additionally, it was equipped with larger-volume Feifel air filters.
• Pz.VI Ausf E (with MG 42 anti-aircraft machine gun). Used on the Western Front.

Vehicles based on the Tiger I

• 38 cm RW61 auf Sturmmörser Tiger, Sturmpanzer VI, “Sturmtiger” is a heavy self-propelled gun, armed with a converted 380-mm rocket-propelled anti-submarine bomb launcher, not adopted by the Kriegsmarine, located in a fixed armored wheelhouse. “Sturmtigers” were converted from linear “Tigers” damaged in battles; a total of 18 vehicles were converted.

• "Bergetiger" is an armored repair and recovery vehicle, without weapons, but equipped with a recovery crane.

Photo gallery

Combat use

Tactical role

According to a number of Western historians, the main task of the Tiger tank was to fight enemy tanks, and its design corresponded to the solution of precisely this task:

If in the initial period of World War II the German military doctrine had a mainly offensive orientation, then later, when the strategic situation changed to the opposite, tanks began to be assigned the role of a means of eliminating breakthroughs in the German defense.

Thus, the Tiger tank was conceived primarily as a means of combating enemy tanks, be it on the defensive or offensive. Taking this fact into account is necessary to understand the design features and tactics of using the Tigers.

...Taking into account the strength of the armor and the strength of the weapon, the Tiger should be used mainly against enemy tanks and anti-tank weapons, and only secondarily - as an exception - against infantry units.

As combat experience has shown, the Tiger's weapons allow it to fight enemy tanks at distances of 2000 meters or more, which especially affects the enemy's morale. Durable armor allows the Tiger to approach the enemy without the risk of serious damage from hits. However, you should try to engage enemy tanks at distances greater than 1000 meters.

Staff organization

The main tactical unit of the Wehrmacht tank forces was the tank battalion, which consisted first of two and then of three companies. The 3-company battalion had 45 tanks. As a rule, 2 or 3 battalions formed a tank regiment, usually assigned to the corps command for reinforcement (however, cases of the formation of entire regiments from just “Tigers” are unknown).

• 1st SS Division-Leibstandarte “Adolf Hitler” (“Adolf Hitler”)
• 2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich" ("Reich")
• 3rd SS Panzer Division "Totenkopf" (Totenkopf)

The training of all Tiger crews was carried out by the 500th training tank battalion.

First fight

The next battle of the Tigers was more successful for them: on January 12, 1943, four Tigers, which came to the aid of the 96th Wehrmacht Infantry Division, knocked out 12 Soviet T-34s. However, during the battles to break the blockade of Leningrad on January 17, 1943, Soviet troops captured one virtually intact Tiger. The crew left it without destroying even a brand new technical passport, instruments, and weapons.

The Tigers made their full debut during the battles near Kharkov in February - March 1943. In particular, the motorized division “Great Germany” had 9 Tiger tanks at the beginning of the battles, which made up the 13th company of the tank regiment, etc. SS Adolf Hitler had 10 Tigers (1st Panzer Regiment), etc. SS "Reich" - 7, etc. SS "Death's Head" - 9.

Battle of Kursk

Soviet propaganda poster against the "German Tiger"

IN German troops There were 148 Tiger tanks that took part in Operation Citadel. Tigers were used to break through Soviet defenses, often leading groups of other tanks. The powerful armament and armor of the PzKpfw VI allowed them to effectively destroy any type of enemy armored vehicle, which led to very large scores for the German crews who fought on the Tigers on the Kursk Bulge.

African theater of operations

At the end of the war, most of the Tigers were destroyed by their crews due to the actions of Allied aircraft, which destroyed bridges on the Wehrmacht’s retreat routes.

Captured tanks in the Red Army and Allied forces

Tank aces who fought on the Tigers

Project evaluation

Heavy tank PzKpfw VI Ausf. H "Tiger I", without a doubt, was one of the most successful designs adopted by the Wehrmacht. Until the end of 1943, based on the totality of its combat properties, it was the strongest tank in the world, thus having a decisive influence on the further evolution of both the class of heavy tanks and anti-tank weapons. The advantages of the vehicle include powerful weapons and armor, well-thought-out ergonomics, and high-quality surveillance and communication devices. After the elimination of “childhood diseases” by the summer of 1943, the reliability of the Tiger I generally did not raise any complaints; the tank was popular in the Wehrmacht and had a good reputation among its crews. This was largely a consequence of the significant developments of the Henschel company's designers on experimental machines that did not go into production. From a technical point of view, the tank was a typical representative of the German school of tank building with a number of original solutions used in its design (for example, a non-standard ratio of the length and width of the armored hull, which led to the overweight of the structure). On the other hand (and as the flip side of its advantages), “Tiger I” also had disadvantages, which included high difficulty and production cost, low maintainability of the vehicle chassis.

Firepower

The main weapon of the Tiger I, the 88-mm KwK 36 L/56 cannon, until the appearance of the Soviet IS-1 on the battlefield, did not have any significant problems in hitting any armored vehicle of the anti-Hitler coalition countries at any combat distances and angles, and only the appearance The IS-2 and later modified Churchills made these problems really serious. The 75-mm armor of the Soviet KV-1 tanks, under certain conditions, could withstand an 88-mm projectile, but given the weakness of the KV-1’s armament against the armor of the Tiger I, this, in a situation of open battle at long range, generally did not give the first any damage. any significant chance of survival - “Tiger I” could quite easily hit the KV with the second, and if necessary, then with subsequent hits. Not too many KV-85 tanks, better able to withstand the Tiger I, produced in the fall of 1943, were produced. And only the IS series tanks (IS-1 and IS-2) had armor that could withstand fire from the KwK 36 from frontal angles and medium distances. The upper frontal part of the IS-2 tank with improved armor protection of the hull mod. 1944 was not penetrated by the 88-mm cannon of the Tiger I, even when fired at point-blank range (data for armor-piercing caliber projectiles).

It should also be noted that the 88-mm KwK 36 gun provided better damage to the IS-2 than the 75-mm long-barreled Panther KwK 42 gun, despite the latter’s greater stated armor penetration. Of the British tanks, only the heavy Churchill tank of later modifications could withstand the fire of the KwK 36 on the frontal corners (although its armament was completely insufficient to effectively defeat the Tiger I); in the US Army they were the small M4A3E2 Sherman Jumbo and M26 Pershing. Thus, the Tiger I's armament allowed it to dominate the battlefield in 1943 and the early period of 1944, and after the appearance of the IS-2, it was in practice far from poor in effectiveness against it either.

However, one should take into account the fact that the enemy of a heavy tank was more often anti-tank artillery, infantry and various fortifications, as well as numerical superiority in all types of military equipment, rather than the enemy’s heavy tanks, so a direct comparison of these vehicles often says little about their effectiveness in plan for solving the main problem.

Security

Two German non-commissioned officers inspect a hole caused by a shell hitting the Tiger's armor.

In accordance with its purpose as a heavy breakthrough tank, the Tiger I had powerful armor on all sides. It was this that created his aura of invincibility in 1943. Soviet 45-mm, British 40-mm and American 37-mm armor-piercing shells did not penetrate it even at extremely close combat range, thereby causing shock among the soldiers and commanders of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. The situation with the 76-mm tank and divisional artillery of the USSR was little better - 76-mm armor-piercing shells could only penetrate the side armor of the Tiger I from distances not exceeding 300 m, and even then with very great difficulty (the probability of penetration was no more than 30 %), which, however, was quite in agreement with the declared armor penetration of 75 mm at 500 m normal. Therefore, it was the armor of the Tiger I that ensured the latter’s total dominance on the battlefield in 1943. On the other hand, the “Tiger I” was not completely impenetrable - against them, the American command used 90-mm M2 anti-aircraft guns and crews of Bazooka anti-tank grenade launchers, and the Soviet command used 85-mm 52-K anti-aircraft guns and RVGK artillery represented by 122 -mm A-19 guns and 152mm ML-20 howitzer guns. However, it should be noted that all these weapons (except for American armor-piercing vehicles with Bazookas) were low-mobility, expensive, difficult to replace and highly vulnerable to the Tiger I. As a rule, they were subordinate to high levels of the army hierarchy, and therefore could not be quickly allocated to the threatened sector of the front. However, all this did not cancel the vulnerability of the chassis in relation to almost all anti-tank weapons, not to mention its vulnerability in relation to mines, etc. It did not cancel some of the disadvantages (for example, heavy weight, pressure on the ground), to some extent limiting tactics of use. In 1944, the T-34-85 also began to appear, whose chances against the “Tiger I” cannot be called equal on average, but which in certain situations could be dangerous for it, in addition having an advantage in mobility. The KV-1, as well as self-propelled guns, should not be completely discounted when it comes to mobile opponents, although the advantage that the Tiger I had over all of them during this period was very great. The KV-85 and IS-1, which had an 85-mm cannon and posed a noticeable danger to the armor of the Tiger I, at least under certain conditions, appeared only in the fall of 1943.

It is often stated that the disadvantage of the Tiger I was the lack of a rational angle of inclination of the armor plates, but the design and layout solutions of the vehicle simply did not allow this to be realized. In addition, as of 1942-1943. this was not necessary, the armor protection worked very well against the vast majority of enemy anti-tank weapons, and the ergonomics of the Tiger I only benefited from the lack of armor slope.

This state of affairs caused the strengthening of tank and anti-tank artillery of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. In 1943 and 1944, active development of new guns and shells was carried out. As a result, closer to the second half of 1944, British 17-pound guns appeared on the battlefield in a towed version and on Sherman Firefly tanks, long-barreled 76-mm guns on American Sherman tanks, the T-34-85 tank and the SU-85 self-propelled artillery mount with 85 mm cannons, and in addition, the SU-100 with a 100 mm cannon and the IS-2 with a 122 mm cannon began to appear. The British 17-pounder had high armor penetration, which had no particular problems in damaging the frontal armor of the Tiger I; Soviet 85 mm and American long-barreled 75 mm guns were weaker, but could penetrate the front of the Tiger I at a distance of up to 1 km. Infantry and specialized anti-tank weapons of the armies of the USSR, USA and Great Britain were also updated. The 57-mm ZiS-2 anti-tank gun was again adopted into service with the Red Army, which reliably hit the frontal armor of the Tiger I at a distance of up to 1.3 km; the 45-mm guns received sub-caliber shells, which made it possible to hit the Tiger I on the side at distances up to 300 m. To the regimental 76 mm (later to the divisional) Soviet artillery started shipping cumulative shells, capable of penetrating the side armor of the Tiger I. As a personal weapon against heavy enemy tanks, the soldiers of the rifle units received new cumulative grenades RPG-43 and later RPG-6. American and British 57-mm anti-tank guns increased their armor penetration by introducing sub-caliber shells(including one with a detachable tray), British infantrymen also received their own version of a hand-held anti-tank grenade launcher - PIAT. As a result, the fight against Tiger I without the use of heavy weapons (90 mm, 122 mm, 152 mm guns) became less difficult. By the end of the war, the saturation of the armies of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition with self-propelled guns with heavy guns (M36 Jackson, Archer, SU-100, ISU-122 and ISU-152) and IS-2 tanks made it possible to effectively fight all German heavy tanks, including with the Tiger I, its frontal armor (the side armor remained quite adequate) became insufficient for a heavy breakthrough tank.

Mobility

The Tiger's mobility may well be regarded as extremely ambiguous. The “classic German layout” (with a front-mounted transmission and a rear-mounted engine), a short, wide body and a chassis with staggered rollers led to a number of consequences, both positive and negative. TO positive aspects(together with the design of the transmission) included easy control of a very heavy vehicle and the ability to quickly turn the tank on the spot. The torsion bar suspension with a “checkerboard” arrangement of the road wheels ensured sufficient smoothness of movement and high accuracy by the standards of that time when firing on the move. However, these undoubted advantages had to be paid for in another area: the non-standard ratio of the hull dimensions and the German “classic” version of the layout led to both a high height of the entire tank as a whole and a greater mass due to an increase in the specific share of heavy frontal armor compared to other vehicles layout diagrams. The large mass significantly limited the scope of use of the Tiger, since off-road the vehicle’s transmission was overloaded and quickly failed. Although the reliability of the uprated Maybach HL 230 engine was considered satisfactory, in difficult operating conditions it (like the 700 hp power) was no longer sufficient. Despite the wide tracks, the specific ground pressure of the Tiger was high, which made it even more difficult to operate the vehicle on soils with weak bearing capacity.

The Tiger turned out to be so wide that it exceeded the limitations of railway dimensions and its designers were forced to consider switching to so-called transport tracks. The restriction for cargo transported on platforms is necessary due to the need to ensure traffic safety so that cargo protruding beyond the dimensions of the platform does not get caught on various poles, station buildings, oncoming trains, walls of narrow tunnels, etc. To ensure traffic safety under normal conditions transportation Tigers were “re-shoeed” into transport tracks, combat tracks were transported on the same platform, under the bottom of the tank. But when the situation required it and the available section of the route allowed, the Tigers were transported without changing shoes, as photographs from the war show.

Additional difficulties for repairmen and crews were caused by the “chessboard” design of the chassis in winter and off-road conditions: the dirt that accumulated between the rollers sometimes froze overnight so that it immobilized the entire vehicle. This nuance in the operation of the Tiger was quickly noticed and used by Soviet tankers, who in winter tried to launch their attacks early in the morning.

Replacing rollers from the inner rows damaged by mine explosions or artillery fire was a tedious and lengthy procedure. Also, to dismantle or replace a damaged transmission, the turret had to be removed. In this regard, the Tiger was noticeably inferior to the Soviet IS-2, which, after eliminating “childhood diseases” during operations in late 1944 - early 1945, made marches over 1000 km long, fulfilling the warranty period without fail. It is known that a significant number of "Tigers" were abandoned during combat operations in all European theaters of war, when the situation forced the Germans to abandon the "Tigers" during long and exhausting marches.

Crew protection

The high degree of armor protection of the Tiger-I tank ensured a high chance for the crew to survive in battle, even if the tank failed. The crews of damaged tanks, as a rule, returned to duty, which contributed to the retention of experienced tank crews. The staggered arrangement of the rollers provided additional protection for the lower part of the tank hull.

Production

In monetary terms, the cost of 1 Tiger-I tank was over 800,000 Reichsmarks (the monthly salary of approximately 7,000 workers). The labor intensity of producing one tank is about 300,000 man-hours, which is equivalent to the weekly work of 6,000 workers. To increase the responsibility of the crews, these data were given in the technical manual for the tank.

Production PzKpfw. VI Tiger
	Jan.	Feb.	March	Apr.	May	June	July	Aug.	Sep.	Oct.	But I.	Dec.	Total
1942				1				8	3	11	25	30	78
1943	35	32	41	46	50	60	65	60	85	50	60	65	649
1944	93	95	86	104	100	75	64	6					623

In total, during the period from August 1942 to August 1944, 1350 (according to other sources 1354 vehicles) Tiger-I tanks were produced.

Comparison with analogues

The Tiger tank itself is quite difficult to compare with analogues, since the Tiger is a tank of high-quality reinforcement of linear units. In the same weight category, the IS-2 is a breakthrough tank, and the M26 Pershing is more of an attempt to create a “single tank.” Among foreign heavy breakthrough tanks, only Soviet tanks of the KV and IS families correspond to the Tiger I, despite their slightly lower mass (45-47 tons versus 55 tons for the Tiger I). The American medium (during the war classified as heavy) tank M26 Pershing was even lighter and in tactical use was more comparable to the Panther than to the Tiger I. "Tiger I" was superior to the Soviet KV-1 and KV-1S tanks in all respects (armament, armor and better or equivalent mobility), making them obsolete in an instant. The transitional Soviet heavy tanks of the KV-85 and IS-1 types were also significantly inferior to the Tiger I, although their 85-mm cannon already made it possible to hit the Tiger I head-on at distances of up to 1 km. The thickness of the IS-1's armor protection has already surpassed that of the Tiger I, but the cast stepped upper frontal part was penetrated by 88-mm KwK 36 cannon shells from a distance of about 1.2-1.5 km, which again put the Soviet tank at a disadvantage . At the end of 1943, the IS-2 heavy tank was adopted by the Red Army, which became an equivalent analogue of the Tiger I in the Soviet armed forces. Big firepower The 122-mm D-25T cannon made it possible to fight the Tiger at any real combat distance, but initially the armor protection remained the same as that of the IS-1. In the second half of 1944, after the introduction of the straightened frontal armor of the IS-2, its upper frontal part had a more than serious chance of withstanding an 88-mm projectile. In general, although somewhat inferior to the IS-2 in terms of protection and fire power (especially against unarmored targets), the Tiger I greatly outperformed it in rate of fire (5-7 rounds per minute versus 3 at the most better conditions) and had significantly better aiming devices (the IS-2 was equipped with a “breakable” TSh-17 sight, copied on the principle of operation from a German analogue, but the quality of the optics did not reach the German one). With such a correlation between the characteristics of the equipment, the determining factor in the outcome of the battle became the skill of the crews of the opposing sides and the specific conditions of the battle.

An interesting question is the position of the Tiger I among German heavy tanks (according to Soviet classification). Compared to the “Panther” and “Tiger II”, the “Tiger I” was the most balanced machine - the former significantly gravitated towards the role of “ anti-tank tanks", seriously inferior to the "Tiger I" either in mobility ("Tiger II") or in overall security ("Panther"). Both the Panther and Tiger II suffered from mechanical problems until the very end of the war, while the Tiger I, when properly operated, had good reliability. There were cases when some German crews preferred the old Tiger to the new one, despite the latter’s more powerful weapons and armor.

Tiger in computer games

The PzKpfw VI "Tiger" is present in the vast majority of games set during the Second World War. It also appears in the following games:

• "Sudden Strike: The Last Stand";
• In the tank simulator “T-34 vs Tiger”;
• In FPS "Battlefield 1942";
• In the flight simulator "IL-2: Sturmovik" as a ground target;

It is worth noting that the reflection of the tactical and technical characteristics of armored vehicles and the features of their use in battle in many computer games often far from reality.

Surviving copies

As of 2009, at least six examples of the tank have survived:

1. Tank Museum at Bovington Camp Bovington Tank Museum ), Dorset, UK (aircraft number 131, captured by the Allies in the spring of 1943 in Tunisia). The only specimen that has the ability to move independently.
2. Museum tank troops(fr. Musée des Blindes) in Saumur, France. Good condition, stored indoors.
3. Vimoutier (fr. Vimoutiers), France. IN poor condition, stored outdoors.
4. Armored Museum in Kubinka. Good condition, stored indoors.
5. Lenino-Snegirevsky Military History Museum, Snegiri village near Moscow
   Condition is bad. It is heavily damaged because it was used as a target at the training ground. It has numerous dents and holes, part of the bottom, several road wheels, and track elements are missing. The gun barrel was replaced with a piece of pipe. The tank is in an open area.
6. US Army Weapons Museum, Aberdeen Proving Ground. The condition is good. On the left side, the hull and turret have a cut for access to the inside of the tank. Currently under restoration.
7. In 1994, the body of the Tiger was found at a training ground in Russia (Nakhabino): chassis, tracks and a bathtub. It was transported to St. Petersburg from where it was sold to Germany (Frankfurt am Main) to a private person in the mid-1990s; on this moment not restored [ source?] .

see also

• VK 3601(H)

Literature

• Otto Carius, “Tigers in the mud. Memoirs of a German tankman." , M.: Tsentropoligraf, 2004. - 367 p.
• Baryatinsky M."Tigers" in battle. - M.: Yauza, Eksmo, 2007. - 320 p.
• Tim Ripley. History of the SS troops 1925 - 1945. - M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2009. - 351 p.

Links

• Heavy tank Pz VI Ausf. H "Tiger I". Armor website of Chobitka Vasily. Archived
• List of Tiger commanders/gunners with the most victories
• The program “Tiger Tank: the fate of a man and the fate of a machine” from the series “The Price of Victory”, radio “Echo of Moscow”
• Tigrophobia (Retrieved April 25, 2009)
• Headquarters and headquarters company of the heavy tank battalion "Tiger" // ANATOMY OF THE ARMY
• Panzerkampfwagen VI: The legendary Tiger I (English). Tiger I Information Center.

• Photos in the "Tiger" category. War album. Archived from the original on February 16, 2012.
• Tank "Tiger I" in the Museum of Armored Forces, Kubinka (photo gallery)

• German tanks / Tiger & Royal Tiger(video)
• Driving a Tiger I at the tank museum Bovington(video, 4 min.)

Notes

1. Wartime Allied literature used thicknesses of 82 mm (hull side (top)) and 102 mm (hull front) instead of 80 and 100 mm, see, for example, United States War Department. Handbook on German military forces. Reprinted by LSU Press, Aug 1, 1995, p. 390.
2. There was even a saying in the Panzerwaffe about this: “Well, you’re a shoemaker! You only have to control the Tiger."
3. Carius Otto."Tigers" in the mud. Memoirs of a German tankman - M.: Tsentropoligraf, 2004.
4. Wilbeck, Christopher W. Sledgehammers: Strengths and Flaws of Tiger Heavy Tank Battalions in World War II. - 262 p. - ISBN 0971765022
5. Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. E (Tiger I) (English) . The Armor Site!. Archived from the original on February 16, 2012.
6. G. Guderian. Tanks - forward! - Smolensk: Rusich. - ISBN 5-88590-994-6
7. Isaev A.V. Fire magic // . - 2006.
8. WW2 tanks
9. "Version" - Hunting for the "Tiger". Adolf Hitler's favorite tank, worth tens of millions of dollars, is rusting and being torn apart piece by piece.
10. Panzer Division - Armored vehicles
11. Isaev A.V.“Leap” to nowhere // When there was no surprise anymore. The history of the Second World War that we did not know. - 2006.
12. Ripley, page 117
13. Ripley, page 341
14. Military Historical Museum of Armored Weapons and Equipment
15. Along the Volokolamsk Highway: the village of Snegiri and New Jerusalem
16. Alexander Minkin: Battle for the Tank - Museum.ru

Armored vehicles of the Third Reich
Light tanks	Leichttraktor ·

DESIGN DESCRIPTION

LAYOUT The Pz.Kpfw.VI "Tiger" tank was a classic version with a front-mounted transmission.

In the front part there was a control compartment. It housed a gearbox, a turning mechanism, controls, a radio station, a forward machine gun, part of the ammunition and workstations for the driver (left) and the gunner-radio operator (right).

The fighting compartment occupied the middle part of the tank. The turret was equipped with a cannon and a coaxial machine gun, observation and aiming devices, aiming mechanisms and seats for the tank commander, gunner and loader. Ammunition was located in the hull in niches, along the walls and under the turret floor. On the bottom of the tank there is a hydraulic drive for turning the turret.

The engine compartment housed the engine and all its systems, as well as fuel tanks. The engine compartment was separated from the combat compartment by a partition.

Body layout (longitudinal section):

1 - instrument panel; 2 - cardan shafts; 3 - oil filter; 4 - air filters; 5 - magneto; 6 - exhaust manifold; 7 - generator; 8 - oil radiator; 9 - fuel pumps; 10 - air blower; 11 - water pump; 12 - drive of the turret rotation mechanism; 13 - air supply pipe; 14 - gearbox; 15 - main clutch pedal; 16 - rotation mechanism; 17 - gear shift lever.

Hull layout (plan):

1 - power take-off shaft to the turret rotation mechanism and the bilge pump; 2 - radiator; 3 - fans; 4 - magneto; 5 - fire-resistant partition; 6 - air filters; 7 - gearbox; 8 - brakes; 9 - rotation mechanism.

FRAME The tank was assembled from armor plates connected into a spike and welded with a double seam. The armor is rolled, chrome-molybdenum, with surface cementation.

The frontal sheet of the turret box was located at an angle of 8° to the vertical, the upper frontal sheet of the hull was at an angle of 77°, and the lower one was at an angle of 27°. The side sheets are vertical, the rear sheet is inclined at an angle of 8°.

In the front part of the roof of the turret box there were manholes for the driver and gunner-radio operator. The hatches were closed with round lids that hinged on hinges. A periscope observation device was mounted in each cover. Between the hatches there was a ventilation hole covered with an armored cap.

The aft part of the hull was divided into three compartments by internal waterproof partitions. The two outer compartments could be filled with water when wading through water barriers; the central one, in which the engine was located, was sealed. The outer compartments were closed from above with massive cast gratings. The two front grilles served to supply air to cool the radiators, and the rear grilles served to remove it.

The above-engine part was closed with a lid with a ventilation hole covered by an armored cap.

At the bottom of the tank, hatches were provided for access to the generator and fuel pump, to the drain valves of the power supply, cooling and lubrication systems of the engine and the drain plug of the gearbox housing.

"Tigers" of the 502nd heavy tank battalion in an ambush. Narva area, February 1944

TOWER horseshoe-shaped - welded, with sheets joined into a tenon and vertical walls made from a single bent sheet. In front of the turret, a cannon, a coaxial machine gun and a sight were installed in a cast mantlet. The tower was driven by a hydraulic turning mechanism with a power of 4 kW. The turning speed depended on the crankshaft speed. Power was taken off from the gearbox using a special driveshaft. At 1500 rpm of the crankshaft, the turret rotated 360° in 1 minute. When the engine was not running, the turret was turned manually. The turret, due to the long reach of the gun and the heavy armored mantlet, was unbalanced, which made it impossible to turn it manually at a roll of 5°. A commander's turret with six and then seven observation devices was installed on its roof.

Armor scheme for the Tiger heavy tank.

WEAPONS. The main armament of the Tiger is the 8.8 cm KwK 36 cannon of 88 mm caliber, produced by the Wolf plant in Magdeburg. The gun barrel had a length of 56 calibers - 4928 mm; together with the muzzle brake - 5316 mm. Gun weight - 1310 kg. Vertical aiming - ranging from -6.5° to +17°. The maximum rollback length is 580 mm.

The gun was balanced using a special hydraulic device located under its breech.

A 7.92 mm MG 34 machine gun was paired with the cannon. The forward machine gun was located in the front plate of the turret box in a ball mount. On the commander's cupola of the later type, on a special device Fliegerbeschutzger?t 42, it was possible to install an MG 34 anti-aircraft machine gun.

NOTE. The table is compiled based on German sources.

Tiger tanks were initially equipped with the TZF 9a binocular telescopic break sight, and then the TZF 9b monocular sight. When the vertical pointing angle of the weapon changed, the position of the objective part of the sights also changed, while the ocular part remained stationary, which ensured operation of the weapon over the entire range of the vertical pointing angle without changing the position of the gunner. These sights had a 2.5x magnification and a 23° field of view. The MG 34 course machine gun had a 1.8x KZF 2 telescopic sight.

The cannon's ammunition consisted of 92 rounds, and that of the machine guns - 5,100 rounds.

Roof of the engine compartment. Noteworthy are the massive cast grilles above the air inlet (right) and air outflow (left) windows.

Housing roof:

1 - air supply pocket to the engine; 2 - armored cap above the air exhaust window; 3 - antenna; 4 - hatch above the filler neck of the right fuel tank; 5 - grilles above the windows for air supply to the radiator; 6 - hatch above the safety valve of the cooling system; 7 - grilles above the air exhaust windows; 8 - hinged cover over the hatch for installing the OPVT pipe; 9 - hatch above the filler neck of the cooling system; 10 - hatch above the filler neck of the left fuel tank.

ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION. The tank was equipped with Maubach HL 210P30 or Maybach HL 230P45 engines (from the 251st vehicle). Engines are 12-cylinder, V-shaped (cylinder camber - 60°), carburetor, four-stroke with a power of 650 hp. and 700 hp at 3000 rpm respectively. Cylinder diameter 125 and 130 mm. Piston stroke 145 mm. Compression ratio 7 (HL 210P30) and 6.8 (HL 230P45). Working volume 21,353 cm2 and 23,095 cm2. Dry weight of engines is 1200–1300 kg. It should be emphasized that the HL 230Р45 engine was almost identical to the HL 230Р30 engine of the Panther tank. To increase rigidity, the crankcase of this engine was made of gray cast iron without a connector in the plane of the crankshaft, that is, it had a so-called “tunnel” design.

Demonstration of the "Tiger" to members of the Turkish military delegation headed by the Turkish Minister of Defense. Eastern Front, June 1943. The display was carried out as part of a campaign sanctioned by Hitler to drag Turkey into the war.

Fuel - leaded gasoline with an octane rating of at least 74. The capacity of four gas tanks is 534 liters. Fuel consumption per 100 km when driving on the highway is 270 liters, off-road - 480 liters. The fuel supply is forced, using four Solex fuel pumps. There are four carburetors, Solex 52FFJIID.

The cooling system is liquid, with two radiators. There were twin fans on both sides of the engine. Due to the isolation of the engine compartment from the air flow of the cooling system, special blowing of the exhaust manifolds and generator was used on both engines.

To speed up the warming up of the coolant during engine starting in the cold season, it was possible to install thermostats with reverse bypass through a short circuit.

The transmission consisted of a cardan drive, a gearbox with a built-in main clutch, a turning mechanism, final drives and disc brakes.

Location of units and ammunition on the bottom of the fighting compartment:

1 - boxes for storing 4 shots; 2 - stacking for 16 shots; 3 - box for storing 6 shots (shown by the dotted line); 4 - equipment box (shown in dotted line); 5 - box for small parts; 6 - box for gun spare parts; 7 - fire extinguisher; 8 - laying three cans of water; 9 - hydrostatic transmission of the turret rotation mechanism; 10 - hydrostatic transmission control pedals; 11 - hydrostatic transmission drive; 12 - basket with flags; 13 - release pedal of a coaxial machine gun.

The Maybach OLVAR OG(B) 40 12 16A gearbox produced by the Zahnradfabrik plant in Friedrichshafen is shaftless, with longitudinal axles, eight-speed, with constant mesh gears, with a central synchronizer and individual brakes, with semi-automatic control. The box provided 8 forward and 4 reverse gears. Its peculiarity was the absence of common shafts for several gears; each gear was mounted on separate bearings. The box was equipped with an automatic hydraulic servo drive. To change gears, it was enough to move the lever without squeezing the main clutch pedal. The servo drive automatically, without driver intervention, turned off the main clutch and the previously engaged gear, synchronizing angular velocities engaged gear clutches, engaged a new gear, and then smoothly engaged the main clutch.

"Tigers" after transportation by rail - the tanks' external rollers were dismantled and narrow transport tracks were put on. Placing spare tracks on the sides of the turret has been practiced since the second half of 1943.

In case of damage to the hydraulic equipment, switching gears and turning off the main clutch could be done mechanically. The gear lubrication system is jet, with oil supplied to the meshing point during a dry sump.

The gearbox housing was centered and rigidly connected to the turning mechanism housing, forming a double-flow gear and turning mechanism. The latter was attached to the bow of the tank hull, and a rubber ring of the support beam, rigidly fixed in the armored hull, was pressed into the bore of the front part of the crankcase.

A multi-disc main clutch with friction of the working surfaces in oil was structurally built into the gearbox, as well as the parking brake.

A friction-gear turning mechanism with double power supply provided the tank with two fixed turning radii in each gear. In this case, the maximum radius was 165 m, the minimum - 3.44 m. Steeper turns when the gear was engaged, including around a lagging track, were not provided by the tank's transmission. With the gearbox in neutral position, it was possible to rotate around the center of gravity of the tank by moving the caterpillar running forward and lagging behind with a radius of B/2.

Final drives are double-row, combined, with a balanced driven shaft.

The mechanical disc brakes were developed by engineer Klaue and manufactured by Argus.

CHASSIS The tank, applied to one side, consisted of 24 road wheels arranged in a checkerboard pattern in four rows. The 800x95 mm track rollers of the first 799 tanks had rubber tires; all subsequent ones have internal shock absorption and steel bands. The design of the chassis was developed by the adviser to the Imperial Armaments Directorate, engineer G. Kniepkamp, ​​an active participant in the design of a number of German armored vehicles.

Diagram of the chassis and bottom of the tank:

1, 2 - support rollers; 3 - drive wheel; 4 - guide wheel; 5 - hatch for draining oil from the gearbox; 6 - hatches for draining fuel; 7 - hatch for draining water and engine oil; 8 - bottom valves; 9 - hatch for access to the generator and fuel pump.

Suspension - individual, torsion bar, single-shaft. The balancers of the front and rear road wheels were equipped with hydraulic shock absorbers located inside the body.

The front drive wheels had two removable ring gears of 20 teeth each. Pin engagement.

The guide wheels are cast, with metal bands and a crank mechanism for tensioning the tracks.

The caterpillars are steel, fine-linked, with 96 double-ridge tracks each. The track width is 725 mm, the track pitch is 130 mm.

Tower of late release.

ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT was performed using a single-wire circuit. Voltage 12 V. Sources: Bosch GULN 1000/12-1000 generator with a power of 0.7 kW, two Bosch batteries with a capacity of 150 Ah. Consumers: Bosch BPD 6/24 electric starter with a power of 4.4 kW, ignition system, tower fan, control devices, sight illumination, sound and light signaling devices, internal and external lighting equipment, sound signal, gun and machine gun releases.

MEANS OF COMMUNICATION. All Tiger tanks were equipped with a Fu 5 radio station, which had a range of 6.4 km for telephone and 9.4 km for telegraph.

Tunisia, 1943. Local population inspects one of the “tigers” of the 501st heavy tank battalion.

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT. The fire extinguishing system is automatic, with a response threshold of 120°C. The alarm was displayed on the driver's instrument panel.

After the introduction of a turret with a new type of commander's cupola, the length with the gun forward was 8455 mm, and the height was 2885 mm.

PANZERKAMPFWAGEN VI TIGER AUSF.H1

Heavy tank "Tiger":

1 - mortars for firing smoke grenades; 2 - box with the butt and bipod of a coaxial machine gun; 3 - binocular sight; 4 - side hatch; 5 - fan; 6 - fuse block; 7 - antenna; 8 - commander's seat; 9 - hatch for firing personal weapons; 10 - commander's flywheel for turning the turret; 11 - gun guard; 12 - turret rotation mechanism; 13 - laying machine gun belts; 14 - fuel tank; 15 - gunner's seat; 16 - hydraulic motor for turning the tower; 17 - turret rotation control mechanism; 18 - shock absorber; 19 - clutch pedal; 20 - brake pedal; 21 - driver's seat; 22 - rotation mechanism; 23 - disc brake; 24 - radio station.

Placement of equipment and ammunition on the right side of the hull and turret:

1 - equipment box; 2 - viewing device; 3 - flasks; 4 - box with butt and bipod of a coaxial machine gun; 5 - gas mask box; 6 - side hatch; 7 - laying machine gun belts; 8 - machine gun accessories; 9 - stacking for 16 artillery rounds; 10 - stacking for 4 artillery rounds; 11 - stacking for 6 artillery rounds; 12 - spring mechanism for balancing the gun.

Placement of equipment and ammunition on the left side of the hull and turret:

1 - tablet with maps; 2 - turret rotation flywheel; 3 - gas mask box; 4 - observation device; 5 - tower direction indicator; 6 - descent of smoke mortars; 7 - stacking for 16 artillery rounds; 8 - stacking for 4 artillery rounds; 9 - equipment box; 10 - basket for signal flags; 11 - commander's seat.

TACTICAL AND TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE TANK Tiger Ausf.E

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Background

Developed in 1942 in response to the appearance of the Russian KV-1 and T-34 tanks on the Eastern Front, the Tiger I (German: Panzerkampfwagen VI) was decided to be equipped with an 88 mm cannon as its main armament.

The choice of the developers fell on the anti-aircraft 88-mm Flak 36, which served as a prototype for the creation of a tank gun.

And to understand why the anti-aircraft gun served as the basis for the creation of a tank gun, you need to go back to the times of the Spanish Civil War of 1936-39.

To help the Spanish nationalists, the German authorities sent a military contingent known as the Condor Legion, which consisted mainly of Luftwaffe personnel and was equipped with new 88 mm anti-aircraft guns. Flak guns 18 (predecessor of Flak 36). From the beginning of 1937, "Flak" artillery was used more and more in battlefields where its accuracy, rapid fire and range were most suitable. Ultimately, this led to the use of the Flak in the last great offensive of the Spanish War, in Catalonia, in the following proportions: 7% against air targets and 93% against ground targets of the total number of rounds fired from the guns. It was at this time that the Germans saw the future potential of the 88 mm gun as an anti-tank gun.

Tank gun

To install a heavy anti-aircraft gun with strong recoil in the Tiger turret, a muzzle brake was installed on the tank version of the gun, which significantly reduced the amount of recoil. Also, to improve the ballistic characteristics of the gun, the barrel length was increased from 53 calibers to 56. The horizontal sliding bolt used on anti-aircraft guns was replaced with a vertical one, and the mechanical trigger with an electric one, as was customary for all German tanks times of the war.

The tank gun received the designation KwK 36 L/56 (German: Kampfwagenkanone 36). It was attached to the front of the cradle to a massive cast gun mantlet. The mask, in turn, had pins and rotated in a vertical plane along with the gun.

Structurally, the gun included: a barrel with a casing; two-chamber muzzle brake; breech with locking mechanism; cradle; hydraulic retractor and hydropneumatic retractor; crew protective frame with a tray for spent cartridges attached to it.

Trunk

The barrel had a fastening casing located in the place of the highest gas pressure (a section approximately 2.6 meters long from the breech). The casing, dressed with interference, created compressive stresses in the barrel, and itself experienced tensile stresses. As a result, the inner and outer layers of the barrel metal more evenly absorbed the stresses created by the pressure of the powder gases when fired, which made it possible to increase the maximum pressure in the barrel.

A retaining ring was installed at the end of the casing.

The overall length of the gun (from the muzzle brake to the breech) is 5316 mm. Barrel length - 56 calibers, i.e. L=88*56=4930 mm. Thanks to the increased barrel length, the projectiles received a high initial velocity, which provided them with a very flat flight path and greater armor penetration. The barrel was rifled to give rotation to the projectile and launch it along a more accurate trajectory. There were a total of 32 helical riflings, turned to the right side, with a depth of 1.5 mm, a width of 3.6 mm and a distance of 5.04 mm from each other. The length of the rifled part of the barrel is 4093 mm.

KwK 36 L/56 turned out to be very powerful and accurate gun. German authorities thoroughly tested the accuracy of the 8.8 cm gun. The dimensions of the target in the tests were 2.5 m wide and 2 m high. Shooting was carried out from fixed distances, for example the Pzgr 39 projectile hit the target with 100% accuracy at 1000 m, at 2000 m the accuracy decreased to 87% and to 53% at 3000 m. However, these impressive figures should be regarded as taken in a controlled “test” » environment. With variations introduced by barrel wear, quality of ammunition and human error, the accuracy percentage drops significantly at long ranges and will undoubtedly decrease in accuracy in combat conditions where there are additional factors such as terrain, atmosphere and difficult circumstances operating in combat.

There is no doubt that the cannon gave the Tiger an advantage on the battlefield. It could hit most enemy tanks, at ranges beyond which the enemy could fire back effectively.

A total of 1,514 guns were assembled and accepted by inspectors from the Army Weapons Office (German: Heereswaffenamt, abbr. HWA). The guns were produced by two main assembly companies: DHHV (short for Dortmund-Horder Huttenverein AG) and Wolf Buchau. Each barrel cost 18,000 Reichsmarks.

The guns were marked with a mark on the cut of the breech. In the lower left corner they put the year of manufacture (two digits) and the manufacturer's code. DHHV had the code "amp" and Wolf Buchau "cxp" (author's guess). In the lower right corner was the serial number of the gun, consisting of the letter R (short for German Rohr - gun) and numbers. Under the number in small print was indicated the contract number with the manufacturer, consisting directly of two letters FL (abbreviated from German Fertig Lieterant - Completed Delivery), serial number and manufacturer code.

Below is a photo of the breech of the Tiger 131. As you can see, the gun of this machine was produced in 1942 (number “42”) by DHHV (code “amp”) under contract number 79 and has the serial number R179. The stamp line "S: M: 79 FL amp" presumably indicated another contract marking.

As is known, a total of 1354 Tigers were produced, which means that only 160 “spare” barrels remained. Barrel life was estimated at 6,000 rounds and depended on the type of shells used, which wore out the barrel and made the gun slightly less accurate. For this reason, it was unlikely that most tanks would have their barrels changed during their service life.

Muzzle brake

To reduce recoil and facilitate the functioning of recoil devices, the KwK 36 was equipped with a large two-chamber muzzle brake. Muzzle brake system works by trapping expanding gases that escape from the barrel after the projectile leaves. The gases push the barrel forward from the tank and thereby counteract some of the recoil force. Tigerfibel stated that the muzzle brake fitted to the Tiger reduced recoil by 70%, and warned that the gun should not be fired if the brake was shot off or damaged.

The muzzle brake was screwed to the end of the barrel and secured with a locking ring.

Some changes were made to the muzzle brake during production, so it is worth knowing that there were also early and late versions of it.

Balancer and locking device

A heavy muzzle brake on a long barrel shifted the center of mass of the gun towards the barrel, which led to an imbalance of the gun relative to the trunnions of the gun mantlet. To eliminate this problem, on early versions of the tank, the gun was balanced by a heavy spring located in a tube along the starboard side of the turret and attached to the gun mantlet through a system of levers.

On later versions, the balancer was placed at the rear of the turret with a slight vertical tilt behind the commander's seat. Now the balancer connected the protective frame of the crew and the floor of the turret basket.

When the gun was not in use, it was secured with a lock located under the turret ceiling above the breech. In the stowed position, the lock-clamp clung to the studs on the sides of the breech, thereby protecting the structural elements from unwanted stress and eliminating possible movements of the barrel. The lock design changed during the Tiger's production run as crews complained about the time it took to release and fire the gun.

It should be recalled that the tiger had to stop in order to make an accurate shot. Firing on the move from an unstabilized gun was extremely inaccurate and led to a waste of ammunition.

Cradle

The cradle was intended to accommodate the barrel and recoil devices. It was attached to the gun mantlet with its front part.

The recoiler and knurler, in turn, were attached to the sides of the cradle. The barrel passed through the central pipe of the cradle and rested on two brass guide rings pressed into it.

When fired, the barrel rolled back, sliding along the rings, and was slowed down by recoil devices.

Knurl

The hydropneumatic knurler was charged with gas and liquid in direct contact and absorbed 5% of the recoil force. The liquid cylinder was located at the bottom of the outer gas cylinder. Centerlines both cylinders are parallel. The liquid cylinder was completely filled with a solution of glycerin and water, and the rest of the mechanism was filled with nitrogen to the proper pressure.

The knurl works as follows. After recoil, the knurling rod and piston stop in the rear position, and the liquid is transferred from the liquid cylinder to the gas cylinder. The gas is compressed as the volume of the cylinder decreases, thereby reducing the recoil energy. While the knurl absorbs some of the recoil energy, the recoil pad absorbs the rest of the recoil energy and further adjusts the length of the recoil. When coasting driving force is the expanding gas tending to return the liquid back to the liquid cylinder, thereby activating the knurling piston. The forward force is dampened by the recoil brake. After several shots, the gas and liquid emulsify. This condition, however, does not change the pressure-volume relationship, and the liquid is still effective for use, provided the chamber is sufficiently sealed.

The piston rod is made hollow to eliminate the vacuum that would be caused in the sealed cylinder. This passage allows air to escape from the rear of the piston head.

Recoiler

The rollback brake was completely filled with brake fluid and absorbed 25% of the rollback force.

It consists of a coaxially located outer cylinder, a spindle with a moderator and a rod with a piston. The cylinder is filled with liquid at atmospheric pressure. The spindle is connected to the cylinder motionlessly.

During recoil, the piston and spindle control the stroke of the breech. As the weapon recoils, some of the fluid is forced out through the annular gap between the piston head and the spindle. Another part of the liquid passes through the moderator valve and fills the increasing cavity of the rod behind the moderator. The compressed fluid, flowing through the narrowing channel, takes away most of the recoil force and gradually brings the gun to a complete stop. Part of the recoil force is also absorbed by the increase in nitrogen pressure in the knurl. Next, the rolling action is activated by the expanding nitrogen in the knurling. The brake fluid that is now at the front of the piston head flows back through the ring gap. The rod with the piston slides back, and the spindle with the moderator penetrates deeper into the rod, displacing liquid from it. The valve closes, the liquid is pumped and exits through the grooves in the stem and holes in the moderator. The rolling force is thus reduced and the gun comes to a resting state without impact. Below for better understanding is given general scheme similar in design to the taktnik, not from the Tiger.

Crew protective frame with shell tray, recoil indicator

A protective frame was attached to the rear of the cradle, protecting the crew from being hit by the breech when the gun rolled back.

Under the frame there was a canvas tray for spent cartridges.

A barrel recoil indicator was installed on the frame. It was a reminder of the brake fluid contained in gun hydraulics. During the rollback, the breech of the gun moved the pointer. The gun could move back up to 620 mm, but during normal operation of the recoil devices, the rollback was 580 mm, as evidenced by the inscription “Feuerpause” (German: Ceasefire) above the corresponding mark.

Breech

The breech had a square cross-section with a side of 320 mm. A vertically sliding wedge bolt slid into a bored rectangular hole in the breech, which absorbed the recoil from the barrel and bolt. Parts of the bolt mechanism and the rods of the recoil devices were attached to the breech.

Drive mechanism

The drive mechanism that opened and closed the bolt consisted of a drive rod, opening and closing coil springs, a separating plate, a trigger lever, and the left and right parts of the housing.

The springs were inserted into the left and right housings. A separating plate was installed between the housings. The assembled housing was placed on the drive rod. Next, the rod was inserted into the breech, passing through it, while the mechanism body was located to the right of the breech. On the other side of the drive rod, a slide was attached (the left side of the breech). When rolling back, the link engaged with the track; when rolling up, it moved along the track, initiating the operation of the automation.

The drive rod also passed through the trigger lever, which in turn engaged with a hole in the right side of the bolt. It was through the trigger lever that the forces from the springs were transmitted to the bolt to close and open it.

The left side of the drive mechanism housing had a handle designed to open the shutter manually. When the bolt mechanism is set to manual mode, the spring is disengaged from the actuator and the bolt can be opened and closed without the action of the spring.

Bolt mechanism

The bolt mechanism had a vertically sliding wedge gate and semi-automatic control. In semi-automatic mode, after firing, the empty cartridge case was automatically ejected from the chamber, while the bolt remained open, ready to load the next round. The bolt was held open by the ejector, contrary to the action of the closing spring. When loading the projectile, the protruding rim of the cartridge case hit the ejector, it was triggered, and allowed the bolt to close.

The ejector consisted of two vertical rectangular rods connected by a common horizontal axis. On top of the rods there were hooks that held the bolt in the open position. At the bottom of the rods there were protrusions designed to trigger the ejector when the shutter was opened. The bolt, moving down, hit the protrusions, thereby turning the ejector at a small angle, and it, in turn, knocked the cartridge case out of the chamber. After the bolt was fully opened and the cartridge was removed, the upper hooks of the ejector engaged with the bolt and held it in the open position.

Mode switch

The switch for semi-automatic and manual modes was located on the right side of the breech and had two positions.

To enable manual mode, you had to move the switch to the “Sicher” position, which means “Safe” in German. In manual mode, the loader could open and close the shutter himself. This mode was used primarily to open the bolt when loading the first shot. In addition, the electric trigger did not work in manual mode, that is, one might say, the gun was on safety. For semi-automatic mode, the switch was moved to the “Feuer”, “Fire” position. In this mode, after the shot, the shutter automatically opened and the cartridge case was thrown into the tray. Thus, after the automatic operation, the gun was immediately ready to load and fire the next shot.

Electric escapement

The KwK 36, like all Wehrmacht tanks, was equipped with an electric trigger. This means that the ignition of the ignition bushing occurred from heating when an electric current flowed through it. Electric ignition, compared to impact ignition (used on the Flak 18/36), has a shorter response time and makes it possible to fire a shot at any time at the request of the shooter by pressing just one button.

As can be seen from the circuit diagram, there were two emergency switches that opened the circuit in the event of improper operation of the recoil devices. The switches eliminated the possibility of firing a shot that would damage the gun. The first switch was electrical; it opened the circuit if, after firing, the gun did not return to its original position. The second is hydraulic, which opens the circuit when the pressure on the knurl decreases (the author’s assumption).

The shot was carried out by the gunner by pressing the release lever (which had the shape of an arc) located behind the gun's vertical aiming flywheel. As a result of pressing the lever, the electric trigger current circuit, powered by a 12-volt battery, was closed.