A Tiger I deployed in Tunisia. Note the bemused locals to the right.
Besides Russia, the Tiger was also deployed in Tunisia as it was this theatre which gave the western allies their first glimpse of the tank in the field. Prior to the arrival of the Tiger in Tunisia allied intelligence had been forced to rely on carefully placed German newspaper stories and limited intelligence provided by the Soviets. The first widely circulated intelligence report (see page 17) appeared in the US army intelligence publication entitled Tactical and Technical Trends No. 18 which was published on 11th February 1943 some five months after the Tiger had first appeared in combat in Russia. It is interesting to note that the name Tiger had not yet come to be associated with the tank.
As the Tunisian campaign developed, Tiger tanks began appear more frequently on the battlefield albeit in limited numbers. However, their heavy armour and powerful armament allowed them dominate the initial tank battles fought in the open terrain of North Africa, but their mechanical unreliability and lack of numbers meant that they were never to be massed in great numbers and that they served in a primarily supporting role.
The following pages feature a further U.S. intelligence report describing the German Tiger tank originally appeared in Tactical and Technical Trends, No. 20 on 11th March 1943. By this time, accurate information on the Tiger tank was starting to be received from destroyed remnants of Tigers captured by the British forces in Tunisia. This is the second glimpse of how allied intelligence reported the arrival of the Tiger on the battlefield. At this stage the name Tiger was still not in use and the Americans did not use the Roman numerals with the new machine being simply refereed to as the PZ.KW. 6
The Tiger was deployed late in August 1942 but first saw action on 22nd September 1942. The machines were operating in the Army Group North sector near Lenningrad where the terrain was marshy and entirely unsuited to a colossus such as the Tiger I. This rare photograph gives a vivid impression of the type of terrain which the first Tigers were expected to traverse.
GERMAN HEAVY TANK IN ACTION IN TUNISIA
As reported in the press and as previously indicated in Tactical and Technical Trends (No. 18, p.6) a German heavy tank has been in action in Tunisia. So far as can be definitely determined, this is the first time the Germans have used a heavy tank in combat. Whether or not it is the Pz.Kw. 6 cannot be definitely stated. At least one heavy tank has been captured, and while complete details are not yet available, there is sufficient reasonably confirmed data to warrant at least a partial tentative description at this time.
The chief features of this tank are the 88mm gun, 4-inch frontal armour, heavy weight, and lack of spaced armour. The accompanying sketch roughly indicates the appearance of the tank, but should not be accepted as wholly accurate.
The tank has a crew of 5. It is about 20 feet long, 12 feet wide, and 9 1/2 feet high. The gun overhangs the nose by almost 7 feet. It is reported that the weight is 56 tons or, with modifications, as much as 62 tons.
The power unit is a single 12-cylinder engine. A speed of at least 20 mph can be achieved. Two types of track are thought to exist: an operational track 2 feet 4.5 inches wide, and a loading track which is just under 2 feet. The suspension system consists of a front driving sprocket, a small rear idler, and 24 Christie-type wheels on each side giving it an appearance similar to the familiar German half-track suspension system. There are 8 axles.
There is no armour skirting for protection of the suspension. The armour plating is as follows:
The turret front and mantlet range in thickness between a minimum of 97mm (3.8 in) to a (possible) maximum of 200mm (7.9 in). It appears that the armour is not face-hardened.
The armament of the tank consists of an 88mm gun and two 7.92mm (.315-in) machine guns. The 88mm has a double-baffle muzzle brake and fires the same fixed ammunition as the usual 88mm AA/AT gun. As already indicated, the gun overhangs the nose of the tank by almost 7 feet. The turret rotates through 360 degrees and is probably power-operated. Three smoke-generator dischargers are located on each side of the turret.
Comment
From the above characteristics, it is apparent that the Pz.Kw. 6 is designed to be larger and more powerful than the Pz.Kw. 4. As far as known, a Pz.Kw. 5 tank has not been used in combat. The noteworthy differences between the Pz.Kw. 4 and Pz.Kw. 6 are as follows:
A 360-degree rotating turret is used in both the Pz.Kw. 6 and Pz.Kw. 4.
The appearance of the Pz.Kw. 6 indicates that the Germans continue to see the need for a fully armoured vehicle equipped with a weapon capable of dealing with hostile tanks as well as with other targets that might hold up the advance of attacking elements.
This tank is undoubtedly an effective weapon, but not necessarily formidable. In the first place, a vehicle weighing from 56 to 62 tons presents many difficult logistical problems. Also, it is reported that one heavy tank was destroyed by a British six-pounder (57mm) antitank gun at a range of about 500 yards; out of 20 rounds fired, 5 penetrated the tank, 1 piercing the side of the turret and coming out the other side, and another penetrating an upper side plate at an angle of impact of about 15 degrees.
*Attained by attaching extra armour plate to protect critical points on the tank.
**Basic armour plate. The turret front and mantlet may possibly be 200mm thick.
A Tiger I deployed to supplement the Afrika Korps operating in Tunisia, January 1943.