Jagdtiger tank destroyer VI

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Jagdtiger tank destroyer VI
A camouflaged Jagdtiger in the US Army Ordnance Museum in Aberdeen, Maryland

A camouflaged Jagdtiger in the US Army Ordnance Museum in Aberdeen, Maryland

General properties
crew 6th
length 10.37-10.654 m
width 3.59-3.625 m
height 2.92-2.945 m
Dimensions 69.9-71.7 t
Armor and armament
Armor 40-250 mm
Main armament 12.8 cm PjK 44 L / 55
Secondary armament 1 × 7.92mm MG 34
agility
drive Maybach HL 230 P 30
515 kW (700 PS)
Top speed 38 km / h
Power / weight 10-9.7 hp / t
Range 170 km
"Jagdtiger" tank destroyer (model)

The German Jagdpanzer VI Jagdtiger (Sd.Kfz. 186) was a heavy tank destroyer that was developed as a modification of the Tiger II and was used by the Wehrmacht during the Second World War . The Jagdtiger is the world's heaviest tank ever mass-produced .

history

The Jagdtiger was developed after the troops demanded a super-heavy tank destroyer, which should be armed with a 12.8 cm cannon . On February 22nd, 1943, the companies Krupp , Artillery Construction Department in Essen and Henschel & Sohn in Kassel were entrusted with the development by the Army High Command . Krupp took over the provision of the 12.8 cm KwK L / 55 and Henschel took over the development of the body and the chassis . On April 12, 1943, Henschel presented two drafts - one with a rear engine and one with a forward engine. In order to avoid expensive new designs and to manufacture them as cheaply as possible, the Army Weapons Office decided on May 5, 1943 to use the chassis of the Tiger II , which was the ideal basis for Henschel's design with the rear engine. The first true-to-scale wooden model with the designation “Schwerer Panzerjäger with 12.8 cm KwK L / 55 on Tiger II chassis” was presented to Adolf Hitler on October 12, 1943 at the Arys military training area ; the first two prototypes were delivered to the Heereswaffenamt in Kummersdorf in February 1944 for testing . One vehicle received a undercarriage from Porsche with eight 700 mm wheels and the other a undercarriage from Henschel with nine 800 mm wheels. The Porsche undercarriage was more space-saving, easier and cheaper to produce, and the tank was almost 2000 kg lighter. However, it was not as robust as Henschel's, so only eleven vehicles were built with Porsche chassis.

With a total weight of 70 to 72 t, a 12.8 cm cannon and massive armor of up to 250 mm, this tank was a real giant. The Jagdtiger was equipped with the twelve-cylinder Maybach HL 230  P30 gasoline engine known from the Tiger II and was therefore considerably underpowered. Nevertheless, it reached a maximum speed of 38 km / h on the road and 17 km / h off-road. The fuel consumption was very high - the 865 l tank capacity was sufficient for about 170 km on the road and about 120 km off-road at cruising speed.

Intended as a tank destroyer , it did not have a rotating turret, the cannon could be swiveled 10 ° to the right and left and the entire tank therefore had to be aimed at the target. There are no reports that the front armor was ever penetrated by an enemy shell during a war effort, mostly the Jagdtigers were knocked out by aircraft or infantrymen or had to be abandoned by the crews.

When the Jagdtiger went into series production in the fall of 1944, it was able to penetrate the armor of an M4 Sherman at any angle over three kilometers away. Its front armor of 250 mm was practically impenetrable and the 12.8 cm cannon was outstanding in its performance. But the weaknesses, such as the enormous weight, the poor cross-country mobility and the size, hindered the tank considerably. The rate of fire also left a lot to be desired, as the 12.8 cm grenades were so heavy that the projectile and propellant charge had to be loaded separately.

production

Between February 1944 and the end of the war, a total of 88 Jagdtigers (including prototypes) were produced in the Nibelungen factory near St. Valentin . The armor plates for this were supplied by the Oberdonau ironworks . Eleven of these vehicles (chassis numbers 305001 and 305003 to 305012) received the Porsche chassis, the rest the Henschel chassis. Of the 14 vehicles produced in the last three months of the war, some vehicles were equipped with the 8.8 cm PaK 43/3 L / 71 ; this variant received the designation Panzerjäger Tiger for 8.8 cm PaK 43/3 (Sf) (Sd.Kfz. 185). The exact number is not known, but it was probably the last four from May 1945 with the chassis numbers 305085 to 305088. Due to the war situation in the last two months, it is possible that not all vehicles produced were fully equipped and ready for use.

Production figures of the Jagdpanzer VI Jagdtiger
month Feb. 44 Jul. 44 Aug. 44 Sep 44 Oct. 44 Nov. 44 Dec. 44 Jan. 45 Feb. 45 March 45 Apr. 45 May 45
number of pieces 2 3 3 8th 9 6th 20th 10 13 3 7th 4th

Technical specifications

Jagdtiger engine
Jagdtiger tank destroyer VI
0 General characteristics
Weight 69.9 t (Henschel 71.7 t)
Length over all with cannon forward 10.370 m (Henschel 10.654 m)
Width with terrain chains 3.590 m (Henschel 3.6225 m)
height 2.92 m (Henschel 2.945 m)
Cannon protrusion in front 305 cm
Fire height 2.172 m
Ground clearance 56 cm (Henschel 48 cm)
0 armament
Main armament 12.8 cm PjK 44 L / 55
Pipe length 7,040 mm
Secondary armament 1 × 7.92 mm MG 34 in the bow
0 mileage
engine Maybach HL 230 P 30, twelve-cylinder - Otto engine ( V-engine with a 60 ° bank angle )
cooling water
Displacement 23 l
Bore / stroke 130/145 mm
power 515 kW (700 hp) at 3000 −1
Liter output 30.4 hp / l
Weight related performance 10 hp / t
transmission 8 forward gears / one reverse gear
Speed ​​limit road 38 km / h
Top speed terrain 17 km / h
Fuel supply 865 l
Range road 170 km
Range terrain 120 km
Climbing ability 88 cm
Climbing ability up to 35 °
Fording depth 175 cm
Trench crossing capability 250 cm
0 armor
Carrycot / driver's front incline 40 ° 150 mm
Tub bend 40 ° 100 mm
Tub sides 65 ° 80 mm
60 ° tub rear 80 mm
Tub ceiling 40 mm
Tower cover 250 mm
Tower front 75 ° 250 mm
Tower side 65 ° 80 mm
Tower stern 80 ° 80 mm
Tower ceiling 0 ° 45 mm

ammunition

The Jagdtiger could carry 38 to 40 projectiles for the main armament. There were 2925 rounds in the tank for the machine guns.

Ammunition and penetration performance of the 12.8 cm PjK 44 L / 55
Ammunition nomenclature 39/43 APC tank shell Tank shell 40 /43 APBC ballistic hood HE grenade
Bullet weight 28.3 kg 28.0 kg
Explosive charge 0.55 kg 3.6 kg
Propellant charge 15 kg 12.2 kg
Length of the grenade 49.65 cm 62.3 cm
Muzzle velocity 930 m / s 750 m / s
Penetration performance of the projectiles at a 30 ° angle of impact
500 meters 166 mm 178 mm -
1000 meters 143 mm 167 mm -
2000 meters 117 mm 148 mm -

In comparison, the penetration performance of the 8.8 cm PjK 43 L / 71, with which a few Jagdtigers were equipped, was 185 mm of armor steel with the Panzer Grenade 39 (Pz.Gr. 39 / 43 APCBC-HE), but 217 mm with the rarer 40/43 tank shell (Pz.Gr. 40/43 APCR). From a firing range of 1000 m, the 12.8 cm PjK 44 was clearly superior to the 8.8 cm PjK 43 with L / 71 despite the L / 55 with the APBC 40/43 bullet . In any case, no expensive hard core projectiles (tungsten hard core ) were provided for the 12.8 cm cannons due to their enormous penetration power .

commitment

Jagdtiger destroyed by the US Army, January 1945
A side view of the Jagdtiger on display at the United States Army Ordnance Museum

The heavy tank destroyer divisions 512 and 653 were equipped with Jagdtigers. These units fought on the western front : During the Ardennes offensive they were in the reserve and in the area around Saarbrücken ; Department 653 was involved in the North Wind Company . Parts of the sPzJägAbt 512 are also said to have fought on the Eastern Front in the Hungary area. On April 1, 1945, there were still 23 operational Jagdtigers left, all of which were probably destroyed or captured in the last weeks of the war.

Preserved copies

At least three Jagdtigers survived the war and can now be viewed in museums:

  1. Chassis number 305004 with Porsche drive in the Bovington Tank Museum in Great Britain
  2. Chassis number 305020 with Henschel drive in the US Army Ordnance Museum on the grounds of the Aberdeen Proving Ground , Aberdeen , United States
  3. Chassis number 305083 with Henschel drive in the Kubinka tank museum in Russia

literature

  • Walter J. Spielberger: Military vehicles. The Tiger armored car and its variants. Volume 7, Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-87943-456-5 .
  • Walter J. Spielberger: Military vehicles. Heavy tank destroyers. Volume 15, Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-613-01517-X .
  • Ian Baxter: The German Tank War. Kaiser-Verlag, Klagenfurt 2004, ISBN 3-7043-5035-4 .
  • S. + R. Hart: German tanks in World War II. Gondrom Verlag, Bindlach, ISBN 3-8112-1667-8 .
  • Robert Jackson: tanks. Models from around the world from 1915 to today. Parragon Books Ltd, ISBN 978-1-4075-7742-5 .

Web links

Commons : Jagdpanzer VI Jagdtiger  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. According to the bulletin of the tank troops of the General Inspector of the tank troops of November 17, 1944 renamed from "s. Pz. Jg. VI " in " Jagdtiger " .
  2. Andrew Devey: Jagdtiger The Strongest King. Podzun-Pallas Verlag, 2001, ISBN 3-7909-0722-7 ; Differences to other sources possible.