SdKfz 186 Jagdtiger (Hunting Tiger)

The Jagdtiger was an optimistic - yet powerful - design that ultimately was a limited battlefield component.

Designation: SdKfz 186 Jagdtiger (Hunting Tiger)
Classification Type: Tank Destroyer
Contractor: Nibelungen Works / Porsche / Henschel - Germany
Country of Origin: Nazi Germany
Initial Year of Service: 1944
Number Built: 74

The SdKfz 186 Jagdtiger was a further development of the mammoth and powerful Tiger II heavy tank and was an optimistic - yet effective - design at best. Though blessed with a powerful main armament and thick frontal armor, the Jagdtiger brought along with it the same deficiencies present in the Tiger II design, the most notable of them being the sheer weight of the system, high fuel consumption and unreliable engine.

The Jagdtiger first appeared as two prototypes design by Porsche and Henschel respectively with the major difference bring in the number of road wheels used. These were designated as Jagdtiger VI but later renamed to the more common designation of SdKfz 186. The tank destroyer featured the most powerful anti-tank gun of the war in the 128mm PaK L/55 - an armament that could quite literally shoot and defeat enemy armor before they were ever in range to fire back - and was fixed into position in the upper hull. Frontal armor took precedence and was nearly 10 inches thick. A crew of five to 6 personnel was needed to man the machine.

Unfortunately for its designers, the Jagdtiger suffered from some serious battlefield setbacks. The heavy armor - particularly in front - made the vehicle very heavy and unwieldy while exposing the thin side and rear armor to well placed enemy fire. The weight of the vehicle (some sources state 79.4 tons) forced the structure to take on a tremendous amount of stress in movement and recoil while forcing the gasoline engine to use up an inordinate amount of fuel. The main gun, as powerful as it was, required the charge and munition to be loaded individually each and every time the gun was fired and only 40 of the large projectiles could be carried.

In the end, the Jagdtiger was anything but the tank hunter that it was advertised to be. The system ended up fairing better as a stationary artillery platform, offering up infantry support or holding ground as a sort of armored and mobile bunker, than it was at chasing down and destroying the faster-moving American, British and Soviet designs. Though no Allied armor could withstand the might of the 128mm projectile of the Jagdtiger's main gun, the Allies still held the advantage of being on the offensive by the time the Jagdtiger was ready for action.

Variants:
SdKfz 182 Tiger II - Basis used for the development of the Jagdtiger tank destroyer.
Jagdpanzer VI - Initial Development Designation based in the Tiger II.
SdKfz 186 Jagdpanzer - Base Production Model Series Designation.
Panzerjager Tiger mit 88mm PaK 43/3 (SF)
SdKfz 185 - Proposed Jagdoanzer mounting the 88mm main gun; four prototypes produced.

Specifications: SdKfz 186 Jagdtiger (Hunting Tiger)
Dimensions:
Length: 34.91ft (10.64m)
Width: 9.32ft (2.84m)
Height: 7.61ft (2.32m)
Performance:
Speed: 22mph (35.4km/h)
Range: 75miles (121km)
Structure:
Accommodation: 5
Weight: 79.4 US Short Tons (72,030kg)
Systems:
NBC Protection: None
Nightvision: None
Power: Engine(s): 1 x Maybach HL 230 P30 V-12 liquid-cooled gasoline engine delivering 700hp.
Armament: 1 x 128mm PaK 44 L/55 main gun; 2 x 7.92mm machine guns
Ammunition: 40 x 128mm projectiles; 1,500 x 7.92mm ammunition