654. Schwere PanzerJager Battalion

Schwerer PanzerJager "Ferdinand". The Ferdinand was a heavy tank destroyer with 200mm of frontal armor and an 88mm KWK 43/2 L/71 gun. A total of 87 were built in 1942/43 under a rather bazaar circumstance and became one of the most controversial vehicles of WWII.

in 1942 the firms of Henschel and Porsche were developing their prototypes for the VK45.01 heavy tank project which would become the PzKw VI Tiger I. Ferdinand Porsche was very enthusiastic about his Tiger VK45.01(P) as was Hitler. The design was mechanically innovative and rather complicated with petrol motors powering 2 electric generators to apply power to the drive sprockets. An overconfident Porsche prematurely ordered his factory to lay down 90 hulls before trials were completed. When trials were conducted the Porche Tiger was found to overheat easily and the Henschel Tiger was selected production. What to do with those 90 Porsche Tiger hulls? Seemed such a waste to scrap them so several ideas were tabled as to self-propelled artillery before the 88mm tank destroyer was decided upon.

3 Hulls were finished as recovery tanks (Bergepanzer) and the rest as tank destroyers. All were ready for the Kursk Offensive in July 1943, Operationally, the Ferdinand was still inherent to overheating as trials revealed but a greater flaw in design was the lack of a bow MG for local defense against assaulting infantry. This would prove deadly for many of these tank destroyers once they outran their own infantry support. Land mines proved the greatest threat during the Kursk battle.
Despite all the negative attributes attached to the new tank destroyers, there was nothing wrong with their main gun (apart from some faulty ammo issues) and the 2 battalions racked up over 500 tank kills by December 1943.  

Schwerer PanzerJager "Ferdinand". The Ferdinand was a heavy tank destroyer with 200mm of frontal armor and an 88mm KWK 43/2 L/71 gun. A total of 87 were built in 1942/43 under a rather bazaar circumstance and became one of the most controversial vehicles of WWII.

in 1942 the firms of Henschel and Porsche were developing their prototypes for the VK45.01 heavy tank project which would become the PzKw VI Tiger I. Ferdinand Porsche was very enthusiastic about his Tiger VK45.01(P) as was Hitler. The design was mechanically innovative and rather complicated with petrol motors powering 2 electric generators to apply power to the drive sprockets. An overconfident Porsche prematurely ordered his factory to lay down 90 hulls before trials were completed. When trials were conducted the Porche Tiger was found to overheat easily and the Henschel Tiger was selected production. What to do with those 90 Porsche Tiger hulls? Seemed such a waste to scrap them so several ideas were tabled as to self-propelled artillery before the 88mm tank destroyer was decided upon.

3 Hulls were finished as recovery tanks (Bergepanzer) and the rest as tank destroyers. All were ready for the Kursk Offensive in July 1943, Operationally, the Ferdinand was still inherent to overheating as trials revealed but a greater flaw in design was the lack of a bow MG for local defense against assaulting infantry. This would prove deadly for many of these tank destroyers once they outran their own infantry support. Land mines proved the greatest threat during the Kursk battle.
Despite all the negative attributes attached to the new tank destroyers, there was nothing wrong with their main gun (apart from some faulty ammo issues) and the 2 battalions racked up over 500 tank kills by December 1943.  

Schwerer PanzerJager "Ferdinand". The Ferdinand was a heavy tank destroyer with 200mm of frontal armor and an 88mm KWK 43/2 L/71 gun. A total of 87 were built in 1942/43 under a rather bazaar circumstance and became one of the most controversial vehicles of WWII.

in 1942 the firms of Henschel and Porsche were developing their prototypes for the VK45.01 heavy tank project which would become the PzKw VI Tiger I. Ferdinand Porsche was very enthusiastic about his Tiger VK45.01(P) as was Hitler. The design was mechanically innovative and rather complicated with petrol motors powering 2 electric generators to apply power to the drive sprockets. An overconfident Porsche prematurely ordered his factory to lay down 90 hulls before trials were completed. When trials were conducted the Porche Tiger was found to overheat easily and the Henschel Tiger was selected production. What to do with those 90 Porsche Tiger hulls? Seemed such a waste to scrap them so several ideas were tabled as to self-propelled artillery before the 88mm tank destroyer was decided upon.

3 Hulls were finished as recovery tanks (Bergepanzer) and the rest as tank destroyers. All were ready for the Kursk Offensive in July 1943, Operationally, the Ferdinand was still inherent to overheating as trials revealed but a greater flaw in design was the lack of a bow MG for local defense against assaulting infantry. This would prove deadly for many of these tank destroyers once they outran their own infantry support. Land mines proved the greatest threat during the Kursk battle.
Despite all the negative attributes attached to the new tank destroyers, there was nothing wrong with their main gun (apart from some faulty ammo issues) and the 2 battalions racked up over 500 tank kills by December 1943.  

Schwerer PanzerJager "Ferdinand". The Ferdinand was a heavy tank destroyer with 200mm of frontal armor and an 88mm KWK 43/2 L/71 gun. A total of 87 were built in 1942/43 under a rather bazaar circumstance and became one of the most controversial vehicles of WWII.

in 1942 the firms of Henschel and Porsche were developing their prototypes for the VK45.01 heavy tank project which would become the PzKw VI Tiger I. Ferdinand Porsche was very enthusiastic about his Tiger VK45.01(P) as was Hitler. The design was mechanically innovative and rather complicated with petrol motors powering 2 electric generators to apply power to the drive sprockets. An overconfident Porsche prematurely ordered his factory to lay down 90 hulls before trials were completed. When trials were conducted the Porche Tiger was found to overheat easily and the Henschel Tiger was selected production. What to do with those 90 Porsche Tiger hulls? Seemed such a waste to scrap them so several ideas were tabled as to self-propelled artillery before the 88mm tank destroyer was decided upon.

3 Hulls were finished as recovery tanks (Bergepanzer) and the rest as tank destroyers. All were ready for the Kursk Offensive in July 1943, Operationally, the Ferdinand was still inherent to overheating as trials revealed but a greater flaw in design was the lack of a bow MG for local defense against assaulting infantry. This would prove deadly for many of these tank destroyers once they outran their own infantry support. Land mines proved the greatest threat during the Kursk battle.
Despite all the negative attributes attached to the new tank destroyers, there was nothing wrong with their main gun (apart from some faulty ammo issues) and the 2 battalions racked up over 500 tank kills by December 1943.