Tiger Heat: German Panzers on the Eastern Front

Hanomag – The Sd.Kfz. 251 was a half-track armoured fighting vehicle designed and first built by the Hanomag company in 1939 nd was used throughout World War II, and based on their earlier, unarmored Sd.Kfz. 11 vehicle. The Sd.Kfz. 251 was designed to transport the panzergrenadiers – German mechanized infantry corps into battle. Sd.Kfz. 251s was the most widely produced German half-track of the war, with at least 15,252 vehicles and variants produced by various manufacturers, and were commonly referred to simply as “Hanomags” by both German and Allied soldiers. he initial idea was for a vehicle that could be used to transport a single squad of 10 panzergrenadiers to the battlefield protected from enemy small arms fire, and with some protection from artillery fire. In addition, the standard mounting of at least one MG 34 or later a MG 42 machine gun allowed the vehicle to provide support by fire for the infantry squad once they had disembarked in battle. Later in the war, doctrine changed as they found they could fight the battle from inside the vehicle, and greater weaponry was added to increase firepower.

Jagdpanther – The Jagdpanther was based on the chassis of the Panther tank. It entered service late in 1944 and saw service on the Eastern and Western Fronts. The Jagdpanther combined the very powerful 8.8 cm PaK 43 cannon of the Tiger II and the characteristically excellent armour and suspension of the Panther chassis. A total of 415 Jagdpanthers were produced from January 1944 until the end of the War in Europe. The Jagdpanther had a good power-to-weight ratio and a powerful main gun, which enabled it to destroy any type of Allied tank. Based on the existing Panther Ausf G chassis, the vehicle did not suffer too many mechanical problems. It had an upgraded transmission (the ZF AK 7-400 heavy duty) – which had been planned for the Panther II – and final drive to counter the Panther’s main weakness. It was manned by a crew of five: a driver, radio-operator, commander, gunner and a loader.

Jeep – The Willys MB U.S. Army Jeep (formally the Truck, 1/4 ton, 4x4) and the Ford GPW were manufactured from 1941 to 1945. These small four-wheel drive utility vehicles are considered the iconic World War II Jeep, and inspired many similar light utility vehicles such as the original Land Rover. With a simple three speed gearbox coupled to a Willys L134 2.2L engine producing 60hp and lightweight construction the Jeep weighed just 1040kg.

Junkers Ju 87 – The Ju 87 or Stuka (from Sturzkampfflugzeug, “dive bomber”) was a two-man (pilot and rear gunner) single engine, fixed undercarriage and inverted gull wings. It was designed as a very accurate dive bomber and ground-attack aircraft. Designed by Hermann Pohlmann, the Stuka first flew in 1935 and made its combat debut in 1936 as part of the Luftwaffe’s Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War. The Stuka’s design included several new at the time features, including automatic pull-up dive brakes under both wings to ensure that the aircraft recovered from its attack dive even if the pilot blacked out from the high acceleration. The Ju 87 was an easy target for modern fighters of the time and suffered heavy losses during the Battle of Britain due to its poor manoeuvrability and speed.

Junkers Ju-52 – The Ju 52 was a German trimotor transport aircraft manufactured from 1932 to 1945. It saw both civilian and military service during the 1930s and 1940s. Its first flight was in October 1930 and continued in service with civilian airlines until 1952.

Messerschmitt Bf 109 – The Bf 109 was a single engine German fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid-1930s. It was one of the first truly modern fighters of the era, including such features as all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, a retractable landing gear, and was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. It first flew in May 1935 and was powered by a Daimler-Benz DB 605A-1 liquid-cooled inverted V12, developing 1,455 HP. It was still being used by the Spanish Air Force up to 1965. The Bf 109 has the accolade in scoring more aerial kills than any other aircraft during World War Two.

Messerschmitt Bf 110 – The Bf 110 was a twin-engine heavy fighter (Zerstörer—German for “Destroyer”) in the service of the Luftwaffe during World War II. Hermann Göring was a proponent of the Bf 110, and nicknamed it his Eisenseiten (“Ironsides”). It made its first flight in 1936 and was introduced to the Luftwaffe in 1937. The Bf 110 soldiered on until the end of the war in various roles.