Forces of Valor German Late Production Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E Heavy Tank - "Black 300", schwere Panzerabteilung 505, Kowel, Eastern Front, Summer 1944 [Bonus Maybach HL 230 TRM P45 Engine] (1:32 Scale)

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German Late Production Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E Heavy Tank - "Black 300", schwere Panzerabteilung 505, Kowel, Eastern Front, Summer 1944 [Bonus Maybach HL 230 TRM P45 Engine] (1:32 Scale)

Forces of Valor German Late Production Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E Heavy Tank - "Black 300", schwere Panzerabteilung 505, Kowel, Eastern Front, Summer 1944 [Bonus Maybach HL 230 TRM P45 Engine]

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* Note: Includes a bonus Maybach HL 230 TRM P45 engine enclosed in the packaging

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Product Code: FOV801061A

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Forces of Valor FOV801061A German Late Production Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E Heavy Tank - "300", schwere Panzerabteilung 505, Kowel, Eastern Front, Summer 1944 [Bonus Maybach HL 230 TRM P45 Engine] (1:32 Scale) "The gun and armor of the Tiger were superb, making it in many ways the most formidable tank in service. Even so, it was poor in maneuver, it was slow, and its turret was a slow traverser in action. It was a tank which was, at its best, immobile in ambush, when its killing power was very frightening."
- Douglas Orgill, "German Armor"

The German Waffenamt issued an order to design the VK4501(H) (as the PzKpfw VI Ausf. E was then known) in May 1941, just one month prior to the commencement of Operation Barbarossa. Interestingly, Henschel und Sohn of Kassel was charged with building the heavily armored chassis while Krupp, by far the largest munitionwerks in Germany, was given the task of developing the turret. The PzKpfw VI Ausfuhrung E (type E) was one of the first German tanks to feature a torsion bar with eight interleaved wheels, which was designed to support the weight of the mammoth 57-ton tank. The Ausf. E mounted a huge 8.8cm KwK36 L/56 cannon and featured two MG34 machine guns for close support against enemy infantry. By war's end, 1,354 vehicles had been produced, some rolling off the Wegmann assembly line.

The Tiger differed from earlier German tanks principally in its design philosophy. Its predecessors balanced mobility, armor and firepower and were sometimes outgunned by their opponents.

While heavy, this tank was not slower than the best of its opponents. However, at over 50 tonnes dead weight, the suspension, gearboxes, and other such items had clearly reached their design limits and breakdowns were frequent if regular maintenance was not undertaken.

Although the general design and layout were broadly similar to the previous medium tank, the Panzer IV, the Tiger weighed more than twice as much. This was due to its substantially thicker armor, the larger main gun, greater volume of fuel and ammunition storage, larger engine, and a more solidly built transmission and suspension.

Pictured here is a 1:32 scale replica of a late production German Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E heavy tank that was attached to schwere Panzerabteilung 505, then deployed to Kowel, Eastern Front, during the summer of 1944. Comes with bonus Maybach HL 230 TRM P45 engine. Pre-order! Price and ship date to be determined.

Dimensions:
Length: 10-1/4-inches
Width: 4-1/2-inches

Release Date: ?

Historical Account: "Last of a Breed" - A German heavy tank battalion (German: "schwere Panzerabteilung", short: "s PzAbt") was a battalion-sized World War II tank unit of the German Army (1935-1945), equipped with Tiger I, and later Tiger II, heavy tanks. Originally intended to fight on the offensive during breakthrough operations, the German late-war realities required it to be used in a defensive posture by providing heavy fire support and counter-attacking enemy armored breakthroughs, often organised into ad hoc Kampfgruppen.

The German heavy tank battalions destroyed a total of 9,850 enemy tanks for the loss of only 1,715 of their own, a kill/loss ratio of 5.74. The 1,715 German losses also include non-combat tank write-offs. Tiger I in France.

Early formation units experimented to find the correct combination of heavy Tiger tanks supported by either medium Panzer III tanks or reconnaissance elements. In 1942 this consisted of 20 Tigers and 16 Panzer IIIs,[verification needed] composed of two companies, each with four platoons of two Tigers and two Panzer IIIs. Each company commander would have an additional Tiger, and battalion command would have another two.

Later formations had a standard organization of 45 Tiger Tanks, composed of three companies of 14 Tigers each, plus three command vehicles. Maintenance troubles and the mechanical unreliability of the Tigers posed a continuous problem, so often the units would field a smaller number of combat-ready tanks.

The limited number of these heavy tanks, plus their specialized role in either offensive or defensive missions, meant they were rarely permanently assigned to a single division or corps, but shuffled around according to war circumstances.

Schwere Panzerabteilung 505 was formed in January 1943. Thereafter, it was assigned to 9.Armee which fought at Kursk that summer. After Kursk it was later attached to Heeresgruppe Mitte which was tasked with fighting a delaying action at Smolensk. In September, the unit was refitted with Tiger II (Koningstiger) tanks then tasked with defending East Prussia alongside the 24.Panzer and 25.Panzer Divisions. It was eventually destroyed by overwhelming odds in yet another Soviet assault.