The Tiger I-Possibly the most feared tank of WWII
By most contemporary accounts when Allied and Soviet tank crews encountered a Tiger I in the field, they usually found a reason to leave. Those who faced them were brave men indeed.
Weighing in at 56.9 tonnes and with gun forward length of 8.45 m, the Tiger I with its five man crew was an awesome sight.
A Tiger I on the roll somewhere in Russia
Armed with the formidable 8.8 cm KwK 36 L/56 main gun with 92 rounds, and backed up with two 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 34 with 4,800 rounds, Tiger I was well defended and well protected. Frontal hull armour measured 100 mm thick and frontal turret armour of 110 mm, as opposed to the 80 mm frontal hull and 50 mm frontal turret armour of contemporary models of the Panzer IV. It also had 80 mm thick armour on the sides and rear.
A rear view of the formidable Tiger I
Tigers were capable of destroying the American Sherman or British Churchill IV at ranges exceeding 1,600 m. In contrast, the Soviet T-34 equipped with the 76.2 mm gun could not penetrate the Tiger frontally at any range, but could achieve a side penetration at approximately 500 m firing the BR-350P APCR ammunition. The T34-85's 85 mm gun could penetrate the Tiger from the side at over 1,000 m. The IS-2's 122 mm gun could destroy the Tiger at ranges exceeding 1,000 m from any aspect.
The M4 Sherman's 75 mm gun could not penetrate the Tiger frontally at any range, and needed to be within 500 m to achieve a side penetration. The British 17-pounder as used on the Sherman Firefly, if firing its APDS round, could penetrate frontally at over 1,500 m. The US 76 mm gun, if firing the most common APCBC ammunition, could not penetrate the Tiger frontally at any range, and needed to be within 1,000 m to get a side kill. However, if the 76 mm was firing HVAP ammunition (usually in short supply), frontal penetrations were possible at 1,000 m.
Tigers were reported to have knocked out enemy tanks at ranges greater than a mile, or 1,600 m.
Tiger Ace Michael Wittmann and crew
The Tiger I however was not without its problems and critics. Like many German tanks late in the war it was rushed into service and plagued with mechanical breakdowns. Its heavy armor, although offering protection, sacrificed maneuverability and it lacked effective slopped armor so aptly employed by both the T-34 and Panther tanks. For these reasons Tiger I detractors state the tank's almost mythical abilities are overrated.
The Tiger I's record, however, speaks for itself.
On 7 July 1943, a single Tiger I tank commanded by SS-Oberscharführer Franz Staudegger from the 2nd Platoon of 13th Panzer Company of 1st SS Division Leibstandarte Division engaged a group of about 50 T-34s around Psyolknee during the the Battle of Kursk. Staudegger used all his ammunition in destroying 22 Soviet tanks, while the rest retreated.
On 8 August 1944, a single Tiger I commanded by SS-Unterscharführer Willi Fey from the 1st Company of sSSPzAbt 102, engaged a British tank column, destroying some 14 out of 15 Shermans, followed by one more later in the day using his last two rounds of ammunition. sSSPzAbt 102 lost all of its Tigers during fighting in Normandy, but reported 227 Allied tanks destroyed in six weeks.
The Tiger I is particularly associated with the name of SS-Haupsturmführer Michael Wittmann of schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 101. In the Battle of Villers-Bocage, he destroyed over two dozen Allied vehicles including several tanks; and single-handedly held up the advance of the entire 7th armoured Division until his tank was knocked out and abandoned.
Over 10 Tiger tank commanders had over 100 tank kills on their account, including: Kurt Knispel with 168 kills, Otto Carius with 150+ kills, Johannes Bölter with 139+ kills, and Michael Wittmann with 138 kills.