Leopard's Guide The Tiger I Tank

404 Pages·2013·9.82 MB·English

by  Durden

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Marcus Durden All pictures courtesy of the US Army
All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or
mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without
permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who
may quote short excerpts in a review.

Printed in the United States of America First Printing: July 2013

ISBN: 978-0-9838082-3-7
Preface

The Tiger tank was not just another tank; it was the end
result of decades of tank doctrine development,
manufacturing process refinement, and fortunately for the
free world; a prime example of the deficiencies of the
socialist economy as compared to capitalism.

This book sets out to document not just the Tiger I as a weapons platform, but
the Tiger I as an expression of German tank doctrine and industrial base (as
hobbled as it was by the dual anchors of Socialism and Hitler’s madness).
Though the Tiger was impressive in many ways, it was not the right weapon for
a total war; unlike the Sherman (or to a lesser extent, the T-34 though it had
severe flaws of it’s own that the Soviets hid by simply accepting huge losses).
While the individual Sherman may have been inferior to the Tiger; they could be
made by the dozen for each Tiger which is what you need when fighting a total
war across the world.

So with that goal in mind; this book will chart the development of German
tank doctrine from World War I till the end of World War II. The doctrines of
other nations; particularly the Soviets, will also be touched upon to illustrate the
differences between the opponents as they influenced each other’s doctrinal
growth during the course of the war.

To a lesser extent, the German manufacturing process will also be examined
to show how the Tiger I tank could have been a better weapons platform if it was
simply made in a more efficient manner. While the process that the Germans
used resulted in well made tanks, they simply could not be made in large enough
numbers to change the outcome of the war.

Finally and perhaps most importantly, the Tiger I tank will be examined as
weapons platform. It’s effect on the strategic and tactical level will be examined
over the course of the war with key case studies elaborated upon; such as the
battle at Villers-Bocage or the numerous pockets that Tiger units were trapped in
on the Eastern Front. A number of the more notable Tiger battalions and Tiger
aces will also be illustrated to give more concrete examples of the capabilities of
the Tiger.

Though no work can completely encompass all that went into the Tiger I
tank; it is the hope that this book will touch upon the most important points and
prove this author’s point that the Tiger was the wrong weapon for World War II.
Given Germany’s position; investment in more air superiority fighters or even
other ground platforms like the Panther or Stug III would have been much more
efficient. Though at the most basic level, Germany would have been best served
by not having an insane megalomanic in charge or going to war with the world...

1: Tiger I Stats

A Tiger I somewhere in Sicily, 1943, with replacement
treads mounted on the glacis to bolster the armor (as well
as serving as replacement treads); Useful against high
tech armor piercing rounds deployed later in the war by
the Allies (though even those had a hard time piercing the
front glacis). The commander and the loader are standing
out of their respective hatches, probably to help guide the
large tank through narrow Italian streets. The barrel is
shrouded to keep dust from clogging the breech of the 88
mm cannon; or from drifting further into the fighting
compartment. Dust and mud were a constant threat to the
Tiger’s mechanicals in every theater of the war as they
only worsened the Tiger’s infamous unreliability in the
field, though it was undeserved in some respects.

G I
ENERAL NFO

•Official Name: Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. E

•Unofficial Name: Tiger

•Type of Vehicle: German Heavy Tank

•Service Years: 1942-1945
A colorized photo of a Tiger I moving at full speed in
France during the Allied Normandy Invasion. As the war
progressed, Tigers would not risk being in an open field
in the Western front during the daylight due to constant
Allied air patrols. It was such a threat that the roof armor
was upgraded in later Tiger models to counter the armor
piercing shells used in Allied fighter’s automatic cannons
(as well as the stupendous amount of heavy artillery fire
that the Russians could rain down on the Eastern Front in
addition to attacks from a fully rebuilt Red Air Force).
This angle aptly shows the massive muzzle brake on the
88 mm Kwk cannon; necessary to control the recoil of the
high velocity rounds. This photo also shows how
extensive the camouflage paint was applied all over the
Tiger to help conceal it. Camouflage paint was largely a
German skill in the beginning of the war as other nations
resorted to just color matching their hull paint to the
surrounding environment without attempting to break-up
the outline; though this differed greatly in the field with
crews from all sides attaching foliage as ad-hoc
camouflage.

•Designer: Henschel and Sons (Porsche for limited run
prototype hulls that were adapted into Tiger variants)

•Manufacturer: Henschel and various subcontractors

•Cost per Unit: 1,280,000 US Dollars ( in 2013 FY $)

•Units Produced: 1347; including Porsche prototypes

D
IMENSIONS

•Weight: 63 tons

•Ground Pressure; Combat: 15 psi with combat
tracks
•Ground Pressure; Travel: 20 psi with travel tracks

•Length with Barrel Backward: 20 ft 8.7 in (for
transport)

•Length with Barrel Forward: 27 ft 9 in

•Width: 12 ft 2 (wider if crews attached bolt-on armor)

•Track width: 2.36 ft with combat tracks

•Height: 9 ft 10 in (not counting aerials)