>Type Heavy tank
>Place of origin Nazi Germany
>In service 1944–1945
>Wars World War II
>Designer Henschel & Son / Krupp (turret)
>Designed 1943
>Manufacturer Henschel & Son / Krupp (turret)
>Produced 1943–1945
>Number built 492
>Weight 68.5 tonnes (67.4 long tons; 75.5 short tons) (early turret) 69.8 tonnes (68.7 long tons; 76.9 short tons) (production turret)
>Length 6.4 metres (21 ft 0 in) (hull) 10.286 metres (33 ft 9 in) with gun forward
>Width 3.755 metres (12 ft 4 in)
>Height 3.09 metres (10 ft 2 in)
>Crew Five (commander, gunner, loader, radio operator, driver)
>Armor 25–180 mm (1–7 in)
>Main armament 1× 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71 "Porsche" turret: 80 rounds Production turret: 86 rounds
>Secondary armament 2× 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 34 5,850 rounds
>Engine V-12 Maybach HL 230 P30 gasoline 700 PS (690 hp, 515 kW)
>Power/weight 10 PS/tonne (8.97 hp/ton)
>Transmission Maybach OLVAR EG 40 12 16 B (8 forward and 4 reverse)
>Suspension torsion-bar
>Ground clearance 500 mm (1 ft 8 in)
>Fuel capacity 860 litres (190 imp gal)
>range Road: 170 km (110 mi)
Cross country: 120 km (75 mi)
>Speed Maximum, road: 41.5 km/h (25.8 mph)[5] Sustained, road: 38 km/h (24 mph)
Tiger II is the common name of a German heavy tank of the Second World War. The final official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B, often shortened to Tiger B. The ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 182. It is also known under the informal name Königstiger (the German name for the "Bengal tiger"), often mistranslated as King Tiger or Royal Tiger by Allied soldiers.
The design followed the same concept as the Tiger I, but was intended to be even more formidable. The Tiger II combined the thick armor of the Tiger I with the sloped armor used on the Panther medium tank. The tank weighed almost seventy metric tons, was protected by 100 to 180 mm (3.9 to 7.1 in) of armor to the front, and was armed with the long barrelled 8.8 cm Kampfwagenkanone 43 L/71 gun. The chassis was also the basis for the Jagdtiger turretless tank destroyer.
The Tiger II was issued to heavy tank battalions of the Army (Schwere Heerespanzerabteilung - abbreviated s.H.Pz.Abt) and the Waffen-SS (s.SS.Pz.Abt). It was first used in combat with s.H.Pz.Abt. 503 during the Normandy campaign on 11 July 1944;on the Eastern Front the first unit to be outfitted with Tiger IIs was s.H.Pz.Abt. 501 which by 1 September 1944 listed 25 Tiger IIs operational.
The design followed the same concept as the Tiger I, but was intended to be even more formidable. The Tiger II combined the thick armor of the Tiger I with the sloped armor used on the Panther medium tank. The tank weighed almost seventy metric tons, was protected by 100 to 180 mm (3.9 to 7.1 in) of armor to the front, and was armed with the long barrelled 8.8 cm Kampfwagenkanone 43 L/71 gun. The chassis was also the basis for the Jagdtiger turretless tank destroyer.
The Tiger II was issued to heavy tank battalions of the Army (Schwere Heerespanzerabteilung - abbreviated s.H.Pz.Abt) and the Waffen-SS (s.SS.Pz.Abt). It was first used in combat with s.H.Pz.Abt. 503 during the Normandy campaign on 11 July 1944;on the Eastern Front the first unit to be outfitted with Tiger IIs was s.H.Pz.Abt. 501 which by 1 September 1944 listed 25 Tiger IIs operational.
The Tiger II "Königstiger" (Royal Tiger), is the most powerful battle tank that the Germans have aligned during the Second World War. Experts agree to consider as the best heavy tank of the conflict. The power of his weapons, his armor and his drive allowed him to outperform all its opponents and engage in combat at much greater distances, whether Soviet tanks JS-2 and JS-3 or U.S. M26 Pershing tank. This enhanced and optimized version of the Tiger I, designed primarily for large areas of the Eastern Front, was engaged in both Western Europe and the East. But it became too late and was hired too few to influence the course of the war, especially in the west where the narrow and compartmentalized terrain did not allow him to take advantage of extraordinary ballistic qualities of his gun.
Development of a heavy tank design had been initiated in 1937; the initial design contract was awarded to Henschel. Another contract followed in 1939, and was given to Porsche. Both prototype series used the same turret design from Krupp; the main differences were in the hull, transmission, suspension and automotive features.
The Henschel version used a conventional hull design with sloped armor resembling the layout of the Panther tank. It had a rear mounted engine and used nine steel-tired overlapping road wheels with internal springing per side, mounted on transverse torsion bars, in a similar manner to the original Tiger. To simplify maintenance, however, the wheels were overlapping rather than interleaved as in the Tiger I.
The Porsche hull designs included a rear-mounted turret and a mid-mounted engine. The suspension was the same as on the Elefant tank destroyer. This had six road wheels per side mounted in paired bogies sprung with short longitudinal torsion bars that were integral to the wheel pair; this saved internal space and facilitated repairs. One Porsche version had a gasoline-electric drive, similar to a gasoline-electric hybrid but without a storage battery; two separate drive trains in parallel, one per side of the tank, each consisting of a hybrid drive train; gasoline engine – electric generator – electric motor – drive sprocket. This method of propulsion had been attempted before on the Tiger (P) (later Elefant prototypes) and in some U.S. designs, but had never been put into production. The Porsche suspension were later used on a few of the later Jagdtiger tank hunters. Another proposal was to use hydraulic drives. Dr. Porsche's unorthodox designs gathered little favor.
The Henschel version used a conventional hull design with sloped armor resembling the layout of the Panther tank. It had a rear mounted engine and used nine steel-tired overlapping road wheels with internal springing per side, mounted on transverse torsion bars, in a similar manner to the original Tiger. To simplify maintenance, however, the wheels were overlapping rather than interleaved as in the Tiger I.
The Porsche hull designs included a rear-mounted turret and a mid-mounted engine. The suspension was the same as on the Elefant tank destroyer. This had six road wheels per side mounted in paired bogies sprung with short longitudinal torsion bars that were integral to the wheel pair; this saved internal space and facilitated repairs. One Porsche version had a gasoline-electric drive, similar to a gasoline-electric hybrid but without a storage battery; two separate drive trains in parallel, one per side of the tank, each consisting of a hybrid drive train; gasoline engine – electric generator – electric motor – drive sprocket. This method of propulsion had been attempted before on the Tiger (P) (later Elefant prototypes) and in some U.S. designs, but had never been put into production. The Porsche suspension were later used on a few of the later Jagdtiger tank hunters. Another proposal was to use hydraulic drives. Dr. Porsche's unorthodox designs gathered little favor.
