Main | Wargames Section: | Tiger Tanks Section: | Main Battle Tanks Section: | Main Battle Tank Prototypes: | Links Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf.B (Tiger II) Introduction The Tiger I had hardly entered service before the German general staff requested a bigger and better successor, superior in armor protection and firepower to anything the Soviets were likely to produce. Once again Porsche and Henschel were asked for designs which were to incorporate the latest sloped armor and the installation of the longer Rheinmetall 88 mm Flak 41. However, there was the sensitive question, for Krupp, of mounting an arch rival's gun in their turret. Anyway, on 5 February 1943, Krupp was awarded the contract for the development of the 88 mm KwK 43 L/71, a new gun specifically designed to the successor of the Tiger I. The only similarity between this gun designed by Krupp and the Rheinmetall Flak 41 was that the same penetration values were achieved when the same shell was fired with the same initial muzzle velocity. All other characteristics of the two guns were different. Following the main specification to achieve equivalent armor penetration, Krupp completely redesigned the gun for mounting in a tank turret. As compared to the Flak 41 L/74, the KwK 43 L/71 was shorter with different rifling and had a muzzle brake to retard recoil. In addition it had shorter, fatter recoil cylinders to fit inside a turret, had an air blast system fitted to evacuate fumes from the gun directly after firing and chambered a shorter (but fatter) cartridge case for easier loading inside a turret. This Tiger II from the 2.Kompanie/schwere Panzer Abteilung 506 was captured by American troops and restored to running condition by Company B, 129 th Ordnance Battalion by 15 December 1944. Page 1 of 11 Pzkpfw VI TIGER II 8/22/2008 file://C:\Documents and Settings\Owner\Desktop\tiger2.htm
This is the history behind the development of the Tiger 2 tank.
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Main | Wargames Section: | Tiger Tanks Section: | Main Battle Tanks Section: | Main Battle Tank Prototypes: | Links
Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf.B (Tiger II)
Introduction
The Tiger I had hardly entered service before the German general staff requested a bigger and better
successor, superior in armor protection and firepower to anything the Soviets were likely to produce. Once
again Porsche and Henschel were asked for designs which were to incorporate the latest sloped armor and
the installation of the longer Rheinmetall 88 mm Flak 41. However, there was the sensitive question, for
Krupp, of mounting an arch rival's gun in their turret. Anyway, on 5 February 1943, Krupp was awarded the
contract for the development of the 88 mm KwK 43 L/71, a new gun specifically designed to the successor of
the Tiger I. The only similarity between this gun designed by Krupp and the Rheinmetall Flak 41 was that the
same penetration values were achieved when the same shell was fired with the same initial muzzle velocity.
All other characteristics of the two guns were different. Following the main specification to achieve equivalent
armor penetration, Krupp completely redesigned the gun for mounting in a tank turret. As compared to the
Flak 41 L/74, the KwK 43 L/71 was shorter with different rifling and had a muzzle brake to retard recoil. In
addition it had shorter, fatter recoil cylinders to fit inside a turret, had an air blast system fitted to evacuate
fumes from the gun directly after firing and chambered a shorter (but fatter) cartridge case for easier loading
inside a turret.
This Tiger II from the 2.Kompanie/schwere Panzer Abteilung 506 was captured by American troops and restored to running condition by Company B, 129 th Ordnance Battalion by 15 December 1944.
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Porsche updated its Tiger I design and this time was so sure of winning the contract, that it ordered a
first batch of 50 turrets from Krupp. Unfortunately, the Porsche ideas of electric transmission were once again
rejected, as the supplies of copper were too small, and the contract went one again to Henschel. However,
since 50 early-style turrets had already been made, they were fitted to the first units produced. The curved
front plate created a serious shot trap which deflected incoming rounds down into the driver's compartment.
The bulge for the cupola also was a weak area in the turret side armor. Krupp then modified the turret, and
the new design eliminated those deficiencies, was simpler and offered better protection while providing room
for 6 more rounds of ammunition. The new Serien-Turm (series production turret) designed for the Tiger H3
had a 180 mm thick front plate, 80 mm sidewalls, and 40 mm roof. The gun mantlet was specifically designed
to be immune to attack or being jammed. This new design did not create high explosive blast pockets and
prevented defections of projectiles down to the deck. The early-style turret is commonly referred to as the
'Porsche Turret'; and the series production turret, as the 'Henschel turret'. However, both turrets were
designed and built by Krupp, and this classification leads to misunderstandings. It is best to call the fist 50
turrets "early-production turrets", and from the 51st on as "series production turrets".
Another requirement of the specification was to coordinate production with MAN in order to standardize
as many parts as possible with the Panther II, which never went into production, and the subsequent delays
caused the production to never reach the planned levels until December 1943. The Tiger II was a massive
and formidable vehicle, designed to dominate the battlefield. The new hull design for the VK 45.03 (H)
consisted of sloping plates for increased protection. The front glacis plate was 150 mm at 50°, front nose
plate 100 mm at 50°, superstructure side plates 80 mm at 0° vertical, tail plate 80 mm at 30°, deck plates
40 mm at 90° horizontal, and rear belly plate 25 mm horizontal. Forty-eight rounds of ammunition for the
main gun were stored horizontally in panniers on each side of the hull. The rounds were stowed in three
groups, on both sides. Each group was separated by sliding metal panels. An additional ten to 16 rounds were
Tiger II number 312, 3. Kompanie - schwere SS Panzer A.bteilung 501, in the springtime of 1945. This Tiger took two hits on the 150 mm thick glacis plate. None penetrated.
The early-style turret. The series production turret.
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stacked loose on the turret floor. The drive train consisted of a high performance Maybach HL 230 P30,
a 12-cylinder motor delivering 750 metric hp at 3000 rpm, through an 8-speed Maybach transmission,
designed to provide a maximum speed of 41.5 km/h. The combat weight of 68.5 metric tons was distributed
over nine sets of overlapping 800 mm diameter steel-tyred, rubber cushioned road wheels per side. The
combat tracks were 800 mm wide thus providing an acceptable ground pressure (when the tracks sunk to 20
cm) of 0.76 kilograms per square centimeter.
Official Designation
Thomas L. Jentz, in "Germany's Tiger Tanks: Vol.2 - VK 45.02 to Tiger II" (Schiffer, 1998), presents a
list of official names given to the Tiger II, ordered by date, from 1942 to 1943:
The official designations were Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B and Panzerbefehlswagen Tiger
Ausf. B (for the command version), which originated in a WaPrüf 6 (Waffenprüfamter 6 - Weapons
Development and Testing Department - "6" being the number that corresponded to "Tanks and other
Vehicles") order dated 2 June 1943. The official designation was frequently shortened to Tiger B. The full
titles Panzerkampfwagen Tiger (8,8 cm Kw.K. L/71) (Sd.Kfz. 182), and Panzerbefehlswagen Tiger (Sd.Kfz.
267 und 268) Ausf. B were specified by the Inspecteur der Panzertruppen (In6) for use in training and
maintenance manuals, as well as in the K.St.N. (organization and equipment tables). The suggestive name
Königstiger (King Tiger) was an unofficial designation first used by the Reichsministerium für Bewaffnung
und Munition, in 11 December 1944. This was never an officially accepted designation during the war by
either the Panzertruppen or the Waffenamt.
Armor Protection
Tiger II, number 104, of schwere SS PzAbt. 501 was abandoned by it's crew due to a final drive failure. France, 1944.
Wa Prüf 6 Designations:
VK 45.02 (H) 15 April 1942
Tiger II for the VK 45.02 (H) 18 September 1942
Tiger III (VK 45.03) 12 October 1942
Henschel Tiger B 08 January 1943
Tiger II for the VK 45.03 03 March 1943
Pz.Kpfw. Tiger Ausf B 02 June 1943
Pz.Bef.Wg.Tiger Ausf.B 02 June 1943
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The frontal armor of the Tiger II provided the best protection possible - the front turret was 180 mm
inclined at 10 degrees from the vertical, compounded with a special designed mantlet, which was immune to
penetration and being jammed. The glacis plate was a 150 mm thick plate inclined at 50 degrees from
vertical. There is no proof that this frontal armor was ever penetrated in combat, even tough the British 17
Pounder, when using a special APDS ammunition, could theoretically penetrate the Tiger II front armor (front
turret and lower front hull, only - the 17 Pounder could not penetrate the Tiger II glacis plate), but those
APDS rounds were terribly inaccurate and had a tendency of ricochet off inclined armor such as was the lower
front hull (100 mm inclined at 50 degrees from the vertical) of the Tiger II. Even the side and rear armor
protection was sufficient to eliminate any serious threat from the American 75 mm or the Russian 76 mm
tanks guns. The hull was welded, as was that of the Tiger I, but the armor was better sloped, using the
experience of the T-34. Hull layout was similar to that of the Panther, and the large turret was roomy
although the gun came right back to the rear wall and made a complete partition longitudinally. The thickness
and angles of the armor protection are shown in the Table below :
Tiger II, s.PzAbt. 507, abandoned - March 1945. Note the massive, 150 mm inclined at 50° glacis plate.
Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf.B Armor
(slope in degrees from the vertical)
Turret
Gun mantlett: 150 mm @ 13°
Front: 110 mm @ 10°
After 51st Turret: 180 mm @ 10°
Side: 80 mm @ 21°
Rear: 80 mm @ 20°
Roof: 25/40/25 mm @ 50°
After 51st Turret: 40 mm
Hull and Superstructure
Driver's Front Plate (Glacis): 150 mm @ 50°
Lower Hull Front: 100 mm @ 50°
Side: 80 mm @ 25°
Rear: 80 mm @ 30°
Roof: 40 mm
Belly; Forward: 40 mm
Belly, Aft: 25 mm
Source: JENTZ, Thomas L.; Germany's Tiger Tanks - VK 45.02 to Tiger II ISBN 0-7643-0224-8
Armor Scheme - Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf.B (slope in degrees from the horizontal)
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Fried Krupp A.G. was the primary fabricator of armor components for the Tiger II. Two additional steel
firms, DHHV and Skoda, also fabricated armor hulls and armor turret bodies for the Tiger II (Source: JENTZ,
Thomas L.; Germany's Tiger Tanks - VK 45.02 to Tiger II; ISBN 0-7643-0224-8).
Firepower
Source: SPIELBERGER, Walther J., DOYLE, Hilary L., Tigers I and II and their Variants. ISBN: 978-0-7643-2780-3
A Tiger II Ausf. B, from s-SS-PzAbt.503, captured by American troops during the Battle of the Bulge. An interesting size-comparison with a 76 mm Sherman, parked behind the Tiger.
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Penetration Tables for the 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71.
The long and powerful 88 mm KwK 43 L/71 gun could outrange and outshoot the main armament of
nearly all Allied tanks, and this allowed the Tiger II to stand off and engage targets as it choose. Besides that,
the 88 mm KwK 43 L/71 was a very accurate gun, being capable of first round hits at well over 1000 meters.
Given its high muzzle velocity, the barrel wear was a difficulty with this gun, but this was solved by building
the barrel in two sections, so it was possible to change the faster wearing part easily.
The tables below represent the penetration capability of penetrating armor at an angle of 30 degrees from the
vertical, and the probability of hitting a target representing the front of a tank.
During World War II, the Armor Piercing (AP) round relied on its own weight to penetrate the enemy's
armor. The higher the muzzle velocity, the more penetration any kind of AP round would have, all other
variables remaining constant. The Armor Piercing Capped, Ballistic Capped (APCBC) round relied not only on
its own weight to penetrate the enemy's armor, but was also filled with high explosive that caused great
internal damage. The Armor Piercing Composite Rigid (APCR) round was made with a tungsten core. For flight
performance effects and to aid the shot from shattering against armor plating, the APCR round was
surrounded by a ballistic cap. The HEAT round, which was based on the hollow charge principle, used a
directed explosion, rather than mass or weight, to penetrate armor. The explosion is channeled forward into a
stream, which cuts through armor, melting it along the way and including it in the stream.
The designation 88 mm KwK 43 L/71 means that the diameter of the bore (caliber) of this gun is 88
mm; this is a Tank Gun (Kampfwagenkanone); that the year the development of this gun was finalized was
1943; and that the length of the gun equals 71 times the diameter of the bore (caliber) of the same gun. This
was the main gun installed on the Tiger II. Of the total ammunition load of 86 rounds (80 for the Tiger II with
"early-style" turrets), the recommended ratio was 50% Pzgr.39/43 (APCBC) and 50% Sprgr. (high-explosive
shells). The Gr 39/3 HL (HEAT) were rarely used. When available, but very rarely due to a severe shortage, a
few Pzgr.40/43 (APCR) rounds were carried for use against the heaviest armored Russian tanks and tank
destroyers.
A Prototype Tiger II (with the early-style turret), during firing tests with the new 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71 gun.
Source: JENTZ, Thomas L.; Kingtiger Heavy Tank: 1942 - 1945; ISBN 185532 282 X
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The sights for most of the Tigers II that actually saw combat was the articulated, monocular
Turmzielfernrohr 9d mounted parallel and on the same axis as the main gun. The gunner could select two
magnifications, 2.5x and 5x. The lower magnification provided a wider field of view for target identification.
The higher magnification assisted in precise aiming at long ranges. Two adjustable range scales allowed the
gunner to register the exact range to the target. The range scale for the Pzgr.39/43 was graduated at 100
m intervals out to a range of 4000 m and the second range scale for the Sprgr.43 was graduated out to a
range of 6000 m.
Mobility
Numerous statements have been made that the Tiger II was too heavy, too big, too slow, "a
casemate", etc. One is left with the impression that it was lucky to move at all. These banal generalities,
stated as incontrovertible facts, are never substantiated by actual specifications, test reports or after-action
accounts from the units that used the Tiger II. In spite of these frequently repeated remarks, the capability of
the Tiger II to negotiate obstacles and cross terrain was equivalent to or better than most German and allied
Tiger II of Panzer Ersatz und Ausbildungs Abt. 500 (Replacement and Training Battalion 500) on the firing range. These Tigers are part of the first 47 units produced, which had the early-style turret.
Engine: Maybach HL 230 P 30 / 12-cylinder / 700 hp
Speed: Road: 35-38 km/h; Cross-Country: 17 km/h
Range: Road: 170-120 km; Cross-Country: 80 km
Fuel Capacity: 860 litres
Length: 7.26 m (w/o the gun); 10.28 m (with the gun)
Width: 3.65 m (w/o aprons); 3.75 m (with aprons)
Height: 3.09 m
Armament: 88 mm KwK 43 L/71 and 3 x 7.92 mm MG 34/42; (1 x MG - hull); (1 x MG - coaxial); (1 x MG - cupola)
Ammo: 88 mm - 80 (early-style turret) / 86 (Serien-Turm) rounds; 7.92 mm - 5850 rounds
Armor: 40 mm(Top); 80 mm(Side and Rear); 150-180 mm(Front)
1. Germany's Tiger Tanks: Vol. 2 - VK 45.02 to Tiger II ; Thomas L. Jentz & Hilary L. Doyle, ISBN0-7643-0224-8
2. Germany's Tiger Tanks - Tiger I & II: Combat Tactics ; Thomas L Jentz; ISBN 0-7643-0225-6 3. An Illustrated Guide to World War II Tanks and Fighting Vehicles ; Salamander Books Ltd. ISBN 0-
86101-083-3 4. King Tiger Heavy Tank 1942-1945 ; Thomas L Jentz, Hilary Doyle and Peter Sarson; ISBN 185532 282
X 5. TIGER in action - Armor Number 27; Squadron/Signal Publications; ISBN 0-89747-230-6 6. The TIGER Tank; Roger Ford; Motorbooks International Publishers and Wholesalers; ISBN 0-7603-
0524-2 7. The King Tiger Tank; Horst Scheibert; Schiffer Publishing; ISBN 0-88740-185-6 8. The "King Tiger" Vol. II - Development - Units - Operations; Wolfgang Schneider; Schiffer Publishing;
ISBN 0-88740-287-9 9. Germany's Panther Tank - The Quest for Combat Supremacy, Thomas L Jentz., 1995, Schiffer
Publishing Ltd, ISBN 0-88740-812-5 10. Tigers I and II and their Variants, Walther J. Spielberger and Hilary L.Doyle. ISBN 978-0-7643-2780-3
Every bit of information on www.fprado.com/armorsite is for the purpose of information, criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and/or research.
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