[Hi there tankers, i have been away for 2 months now, uni work piling up and it's a thing that uni students have to deal with.
Now I am back and I bring to you a Tiger II tank review. XD]
Another Tiger tank review?????????- is what you would probably be wondering.
Yes, the Tiger tank took two completely different forms: the Ausf A which i have reviewed, and today's Ausf B- otherwise known as the Tiger II or Konigs (King) Tiger.
The Tiger II is probably the second most recognisable German tank of WW2. Its distinct angular hull and the length of its high velocity gun struck more fear and respect into Allied forces than compared to the Tiger I.
DEVELOPMENT
The Tiger II was in the making when the Tiger I just rolled off the assembly lines in 1942. The collective mindset of the German High Command was that military technology should be at least one year more advanced than the enemies'. This resulted in Adolf Hitler demanding a new Tiger which was to use the Rheinmetall Flak 41 88mm gun as well as boasting 150mm and 80mm of frontal and side armor respectively. But the problem lied within the gun and the turret. Krupp was tasked with making the turret to be installed on the new Tiger. However the company did not want to have a rival company's gun fitted in their turret. Therefore Krupp was also handed the contract to produce an equally powerful 88mm gun. This resulted in the KwK 43 L/71. This differed from Rheinmetall's Flak 41 in the length of the barrel (Krupp-71 calibre, Rheinmetall- 73 calibre). The L/71 also had a muzzle brake fitted to reduce the amount of recoil during firing.
Meanwhile, Porsche and Henschel were once again dueling for the new Tiger's production contract. This time, Porsche was so sure that it can get the contract it went ahead and ordered 50 turrets from Krupp. However, the electric transmission idea that failed to get Porsche the Tiger I contract again failed the company. The Porsche design- VK4502 (p) Ausf A and Ausf B- were prone to engine troubles thus was rejected. Hitler then gave the production order to Henschel.
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| Front profile of the Porsche turret, the front curve was extremely deadly due to the shot trap effect |
Due to the excess 50 Porsche designed turrets, the first Tiger IIs were fitted with them. However, there were some severe issues that could prove disastrous in actual combat.
Firstly the curved frontal gun mantlet was a serious shot trap which tended to deflect incoming rounds down towards the top of the driver's compartment. Secondly, the bulge from the commander's cupola was proven to be a lethal weak point where a shot from the US Sherman's 75mm gun could easily penetrate.
As a result of these faults, the turret was redesigned into what was commonly known as "produktion turm"- production turret- that had a more boxy look to it. The design removed the curved turret front as well as a brand new gun mantlet that was virtually immune to the shot trap effect.
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| The re-designed gun mantlet that was virtually immune to any shot traps effects, also note the application of Zimmerit on the turret. |
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| A knocked out Tiger II with the Produktion Turm, it seems to have been penetrated on the turret cheek, also note the blown muzzle of the 88 gun. |
Operations
The Tiger IIs were first issued to training units in February and May of 1944. Results were however disappointing, this was partially due to the inexperience of tank crews with the features of the Tiger II, the crews were training in Pz IVs before they were ordered to employ the Tiger II. The Tiger II reached frontline units around the time of the Normandy landings in June 1944. Most were issued to heavy tank battalions attached to the Army and the Waffen SS.
During its short but spectacular life in service, the Tiger IIs proved their superiority by the range at which the 88 could take out columns of advancing Shermans, Cromwells and Churchills.
However, the Tiger IIs lacked quantity. Only 489 units were manufactured throughout 1944-45. And what was lost could not be replaced due to the continued Allied air offensives on German industries.
As a result, the Tiger IIs did little to influence the tide of war. But they did manage to strike respect and fear into Allied tankers.
