| German
Tanks |
 |
|
Captured German
Pz. Kpfw. V Panther tank, Wyler,
Germany, 9 February 1945.
|
| Photo
by Michael M. Dean. Department
of National Defence / National
Archives of Canada PA-115487. |
|
After the Great War, neither Great Britain
nor the United States of America devoted
as much attention to the problems of tank
development as did the German Wehrmacht,
with a resulting lag in progressive designs.
By 1944, German tanks like the Panther and
the Tiger were technologically superior
to those of the Western Allies, especially
the Sherman tank.
Panzerkampfwagen V (Panther)
Ausf D
Development of the Panther was prompted
by the introduction of the new Russian T-34
tankin late 1941. The first Panthers saw
battle at Kursk on the Eastern front in
July 1943. The Panzer V was widely considered
to be the finest tank of its kind produced
during the Second World War, featuring sloped
armour and an excellent long 75-mm main
armament. According to one historian, "Allied
tank crews worked on the assumption that
three of their tanks would be knocked out
before a Panther could be outflanked and
destroyed." (Simon Dunstan, Great
Battle Tanks, 1979, p. 60)
|
| Panzerkampfwagen
V (Panther) Ausf D |
| Crew |
5
(driver, gunner, loader, commander,
and radio-operator) |
| Dimensions |
Length |
6.88
m |
| |
Height |
3.1
m |
| |
Width |
3.43
m |
| Weight |
46.2
tonnes |
| Armour |
Front |
up
to 100 mm |
| |
Side |
45
mm |
| Armament |
75
mm KwK (Kampfwagenkanon) 42 L/70 (79
rounds) |
| three
7.92-mm machine-guns (4200 rounds) |
| Engine |
12-cylinder
gasoline Maybach HL 230, 700 hp |
| Maximum
Speed |
45
kph |
 |
|
Pz.
Kpfw. VI Tiger II tank of
the Wehrmacht near Vimoutiers,
France, 1944.
|
| National
Archives of Canada, PA-115746. |
|
Panzerkampfwagen
VI (Tiger) Ausf E
With its heavy armour
and big 88-mm gun-the famous "88"-the
Tiger was the most feared German tank
of the Second World War. Fortunately for
the Allies, the Germans maintained relatively
few of them in the field, and the engine
was prone to breakdowns. Its reputation
compensated for these limitations, however,
thus adding a psychological dimension
to an already formidable weapon. In June
of 1944, the Tiger's potential impact
was demonstrated at Villers Bocage in
Normandy, when German tank ace Michael
Wittman single-handedly destroyed approximately
20 tanks of the British 7th Armoured Division,
stopping their advance cold.
| Panzerkampfwagen
VI (Tiger) Ausf E |
| Crew |
5
(driver, gunner, loader, commander,
and radio-operator) |
| Dimensions |
Length |
6.3
m |
| |
Height |
2.9
m |
| |
Width |
3.8
m |
| Weight |
55.8
tonnes |
| Armour |
Front |
up
to 100 mm |
| |
Side |
80
mm |
| Armament |
88
mm KwK 36 (92 rounds) |
| two
7.92-mm machine-guns (3920 rounds) |
| Engine |
Maybach
HL 230, 694 hp |
| Maximum
Speed |
38
kph |
|
| Suggested
Reading |
Chris Ellis, Tanks of World War 2
(London: Octopus, 1981).
Simon Dunstan, Great Battle Tanks
(London: Ian Allen, 1979). |
|
|
|
|
|
Canada in WWII
