A German heavy tank battalion (german: "schwere Panzer

abteilung ''Abteilung'' (; abbrv. ''Abt.'') is a German word that is often used for German or Swiss military formations and depending on its usage could mean detachment, department or battalion; it can also refer to a military division. In German, it ...

", short: "s PzAbt") was a

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...

-sized World War II tank unit of the

German Army (1935–1945) The German Army (german: Heer, ; ) was the land forces component of the ''Wehrmacht'', the regular German Armed Forces, from 1935 until it effectively ceased to exist in 1945 and then was formally dissolved in August 1946. During World War II ...

, equipped with

Tiger I The Tiger I () was a German heavy tank of World War II that operated beginning in 1942 in Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent heavy tank battalions. It gave the German Army its first armoured fighting vehicle that mounted ...

, and later

Tiger II The Tiger II is a German heavy tank of the Second World War. The final official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' Tiger ''Ausf''. B,''Panzerkampfwagen'' – abbr: ''Pz.'' or ''Pz.Kfw.'' (English: " armoured fighting vehicle"), ''Ausf.' ...

heavy tanks Heavy tank is a term used to define a class of tanks produced from World War I through the end of the Cold War. These tanks generally sacrificed mobility and maneuverability for better armour protection and equal or greater firepower than tanks ...

. Originally intended to fight on the offensive during breakthrough operations, the German late-war realities required it to be used in a defensive posture by providing heavy

fire support Fire support is defined by the United States Department of Defense as " Fires that directly support land, maritime, amphibious, and special operations forces to engage enemy forces, combat formations, and facilities in pursuit of tactical and ope ...

and counter-attacking enemy armored breakthroughs, often organised into ''ad hoc''

Kampfgruppen In military history, the German term (pl. ; abbrev. KG, or KGr in usage during World War II, literally "fighting group" or "battle group") can refer to a combat formation of any kind, but most usually to that employed by the of Nazi Germ ...

. The German heavy tank battalions destroyed a total of 9,850 enemy tanks for the loss of only 1,715 of their own, a kill/loss ratio of 5.74. The 1,715 German losses also include non-combat tank write-offs. Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-299-1805-12, Nordfrankreich, Panzer VI (Tiger I)

Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-299-1805-12, Nordfrankreich, Panzer VI (Tiger I)

Formation

Early formation units experimented to find the correct combination of heavy Tiger tanks supported by either medium

Panzer III The ''Panzerkampfwagen III'', commonly known as the Panzer III, was a medium tank developed in the 1930s by Germany, and was used extensively in World War II. The official German ordnance designation was Sd.Kfz. 141. It was intended to fight ot ...

tanks or

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

elements. In 1942 this consisted of 20 Tigers and 16 Panzer IIIs, composed of two companies, each with four platoons of two Tigers and two Panzer IIIs. Each company commander would have an additional Tiger, and battalion command would have another two.Schneider 2000, pp. 3–4. Later formations had a standard organization of 45 Tiger Tanks, composed of three companies of 14 Tigers each, plus three command vehicles. Maintenance troubles and the mechanical unreliability of the Tigers posed a continuous problem, so often the units would field a smaller number of combat-ready tanks. The limited number of these heavy tanks, plus their specialized role in either offensive or defensive missions, meant they were rarely permanently assigned to a single division or corps, but shuffled around according to war circumstances.

Organisation structure

The organisation structure of a German ''heavy Panzer battalion'' in 1943, on example of the ''schwere Panzerabteilung 508'', was as follows. *staff / german: Stab *staff company (three tanks) / ''Stabskompanie'' **

communications Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

platoon / Nachrichtenzug **

armoured reconnaissance Armoured reconnaissance is the combination of terrestrial reconnaissance with armoured warfare by soldiers using tanks and wheeled or tracked armoured reconnaissance vehicles. While the mission of reconnaissance is to gather intelligence about ...

platoon (on IFV) / gepanzerter Aufklärungszug **area reconnaissance platoon / Erkundungszug (ErkdZug) **

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

platoon / Pionierzug (PiZug) **

anti-aircraft Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

platoon / Fliegerabwehrzug (FlakZug) *1st – 3rd Panzer company (14 tanks each) / ''1. – 3. Panzerkompanie'' **company detachment (two tanks) / Kompanietrupp **1st – 3rd Panzer platoon (four tanks each) / 1. – 3. Panzerzug **medical service / Sanitätsdienst **vehicle repair detachment / Kfz. Instandsetzungstrupp **combat train I / Gefechtstross I **combat train II / Gefechtstross II **baggage train / Gepäcktross *workshop company / ''Werkstattkompanie'' **1st and 2nd workshop platoon / 1. and 2. Werkstattzug **recovery platoon / Bergezug **

armorer Historically, an armourer is a person who makes personal armour, especially plate armour. In modern terms, an armourer is a member of a military or police force who works in an armoury and maintains and repairs small arms and weapons systems, ...

detachment / Waffenmeisterei **communications detachment / Funkmeisterei **spare part detachment / Ersatzteiltrupp

Army units

By the end of the war, the following heavy panzer detachments had been created. Early units were re-built several times by the end of the war. Independent units attached to the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

(''Heer'') were: *

501st Heavy Panzer Battalion The 501st Heavy Panzer Battalion (german: "schwere Panzerabteilung 501"; abbreviated: "s PzAbt 501") was a German heavy Panzer ''Abteilung'' (an independent battalion-sized unit) equipped with heavy tanks. The battalion was the second unit to r ...

* 502nd Heavy Panzer Battalion *

503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion The 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion (german: schwere Panzerabteilung 503; abbreviated: "s.Pz.Abt. 503") was a German heavy Panzer ''Abteilung'' (independent battalion-sized unit) equipped with Tiger I and Panzer III tanks. In 1944, it was re-equipp ...

* 504th Heavy Panzer Battalion * 505th Heavy Panzer Battalion * 506th Heavy Panzer Battalion * 507th Heavy Panzer Battalion * 508th Heavy Panzer Battalion *

509th Heavy Panzer Battalion The 509th Heavy Panzer Battalion (german: "schwere Panzerabteilung 509"; abbreviated: "s PzAbt 509") was a German heavy Panzer ''Abteilung'' (an independent battalion-sized unit), equipped with heavy tanks, during the Second World War. History T ...

* 510th Heavy Panzer Battalion * 511th Heavy Panzer Battalion * 301st Heavy Panzer Battalion (radio control)

SS units

Units attached to the

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

were: * 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion renamed in 1944, as SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 501 (german: schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 501), part of

I SS Panzer Corps The I SS Panzer Corps (german: I.SS-Panzerkorps) was a German armoured corps of the Waffen-SS. It saw action on both the Western and Eastern Fronts during World War II. Formation and training The corps was raised on 26 July 1943 in Berlin-L ...

* 102nd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion renamed in 1944, as SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 502 (''schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 502''), part of

II SS Panzer Corps The II SS Panzer Corps was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on both the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern and Western Front (World War II), Western Fronts during World War II. It was commanded by Paul Hausser during the Thir ...

103rd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 103rd Heavy SS Panzer Battalion (german: "schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 103) was a German heavy tank battalion of the Waffen-SS during World War II. Operational history The unit was originally formed on 1 July 1943 as the II Battalion, 11th SS P ...

renamed in 1944, as SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 503 (''schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 503''), part of

III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps The III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps (''III. (germanisches) SS-Panzerkorps'') was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on the Eastern Front during World War II. The ''(germanische)'' (lit. Germanic) part of its designation was granted ...

*104th SS Heavy Panzer Battalion (''schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 104'') was planned 22 October 1943, for

IV SS Panzer Corps The IV SS Panzer Corps was a panzer corps of the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany which saw action on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans during World War II. History The Panzerkorps was formed in August 1943 in Poitiers, France. The formation was o ...

, but was never formed

Combat performance

Tank losses include losses inflicted other than by enemy tanks. Also, many tanks were abandoned by their crews due to a lack of fuel, ammunition or breakdown, especially at the end of war.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:German Heavy Tank Battalion *