The Russian T-34 is the most the most famous tanks of the Second world war and also the continuing step. The greatest legends of the margins, but the Tiger I – the panzerkampfwagen VI car – he is considered to be the most feared tank of the war. This is surprising, because the development history of the Tiger I was more than a little clumsy, and his basic design can be described as thrown together.

Tiger I with a variant of the 8,8 Flak, armed

His reputation was based on the main gun of the Tanks: The Tiger I had a cannon in caliber of 88 mm. A shorter variant of the Eight-eight-Flak in the Form of the 8.8 cm KwK 36 L/56. Together with the German objective lens and the guide means of the tiger the Eight-Eight was a devastating weapon. His cannon was able to shoot at 2000 meters and more every allied tank. They penetrated even the thick front armour at this distance. Conversely, the allied tanks had to approach to within a few Hundred meters to the front armor of a tiger to break through. This Superiority in the open field, forced the enemy tanks to suicidal attacks that were only numerically superior forces. Some tanks had to try to tie a Tiger with fire, so that others could avoid.

Panzerkampfwagen VI: Tiger I – this tank feared all of the opponent Fullscreen

a column of German Tiger tank – from the magazine “Signal”.

©akg-images/ Picture-Alliance

The Tiger I was used from the year 1943 in significant numbers. Its Design with towering armor plates was already outdated at the time of the first front insert. The T-34 had sloping armor were able to achieve a far better balance of protection and weight. The Tiger, the problems that should be plaguing the German Panzerbau in the second half of the war were: The tanks were generally too heavy. This made the transportation by rail of large problems, in the use of the Tiger suffered from problems with the engine and transmission. For the weight of 57 tonnes, both components were undersized.

Technically groundbreaking – but-prone

Paradoxically, it was the heavy and slow tanks in combat, is extremely agile because he worked if very precise control, and move left. A point that Otto Carius stressed after the war, in several Interviews. The Tiger commander Carius is one of the most skilled tactician of tank weapon. The mobility was due to innovations such as a steering Wheel controlled steering gear and the semi-automatic gearbox. Both parts worked, but also reliable.

click here to read: “Tiger I – commander Otto Carius talks about the art of the tank”

Panzerkampfwagen VI

Tiger I – commander Otto Carius talks about the technology of the tank

Gernot Kramper

figures were in addition to the technical defects, the small number of pieces, where the Tiger produced the biggest Problem with the heavy tank could be. Unlike the Soviets and Americans in their models, had not paid the German developer is to choose a design that was later easy to produce. Throughout the war a total of only 1354 tiger tanks were produced. Thus, it was clear that the heavy tanks could not replace its predecessors – the Panzer III and IV. The German military wanted to make up for this glaring deficiency by the fact that you took all the heavy Tanks in it’s own heavy tank divisions. These units also have been the best and most crews know shares. The national socialist Propaganda did the Rest: they represented the Tiger as an insurmountable Rock, against the enemy “hordes” in vain anstürmten.

No decisive effect on the Tiger I

in fact, were feared the Tiger by the opponents, but because of the small number they had no decisive effect. To the front of the Asses of the Germans, the Tiger had no share. He arrived to the fronts, as the Power of the third Empire had passed its Zenith already. Then the heavy tank divisions were fighting mostly in Retreat or regional shocks. Their occasional successes were able to stabilize the collapsing fronts only in the short term. The force of this fire led inserts to become a legendary reputation. Through the use of the tank other associations was able to make an orderly retreat rather than be overrun.

in 1944, it was over with the invincibility of the tiger. All the allies mounted now cannons on their tanks, which could be the Tiger is dangerous. In the West, the 17-pounder was mounted in racks – an anti – tank gun on the Sherman. In the East, the Tiger met the T-34 were equipped with a 85 mm cannon and heavy tanks like the Stalin II, the even had a 122-Millimeter cannon. Add to that the absolute air superiority of the allies. In a battle of large tanks, organisations at great distance, the Tiger I has able to rely on the dangerousness of his cannon. However, when visibility is good the German tanks were not able to venture in the face of the enemy air force on the open field.

most of The steel giants were already up by a direct attack. They were attacked in the Transport and relocation from the air. Another tactic was to take a recognized position of tiger tanks, massive artillery under attack. So that you could destroy a tank, but you could damage them massively. The Germans had to pull back, abandoned the damaged giants and of their own people blown up.

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Second world war

The Nazis killed her husband, since these angry wife bought a T-34 and drove to the Front

As Mariya Oktyabrskaya learned that her beloved husband had fallen, grabbed it an indescribable anger. She scraped together the money for a T-34, and asked Stalin personally to the German fight. The Woschd said: Sure!

Gernot Kramper