VK 45.01 (P)

VK 45.01 (P)
Type	Prototype heavy tank
Place of origin	Nazi Germany
Production history
Manufacturer	Porsche
No.built	10 + 90 hulls, hulls converted toFerdinand tank destroyers,1 Tiger (P) served as command vehicle
Specifications
Mass	60t(59long tons;66short tons)
Length	9.54 m (31 ft 4 in)
Width	3.40 m (11 ft 2 in)
Height	2.90 m (9 ft 6 in)
Crew	5
Armor	20–100 mm (0.79–3.94 in)
Main armament	8.8 cm KwK 36 L/56
Secondary armament	2 x 7.92 mm MG 34
Engine	2 x 10 cylinder Porsche Type 101 310 PS (306 hp, 288 kW) each
Suspension	Longitudinal torsion-bar
Operational range	105 km (65 mi) road
Maximum speed	35 km/h (22 mph)

TheVK 45.01 (P),also informally known asTiger (P)orPorsche Tiger,was aheavy tankprototype designed byPorscheinGermany.With a dual enginegasoline-electric drivethat was complex and requiring significant amounts of copper, it lost out to itsHenschelcompetitor on trials, it was not selected for mass production and the Henschel design was produced as theTiger I.Most of the already produced chassis were rebuilt asElefantPanzerjagertank destroyers.

Development

On 26 May 1941,HenschelandPorschewere asked to submit designs for a 45-ton heavy tank capable of mounting the high velocity8.8 cm Kwk 36 L/56gun which was derived from the German88 mm Flak 37 antiaircraft gun.Both the Henschel and Porsche tanks were to be fitted with the same turret supplied byKrupp.The Porsche company worked on updating theVK 30.01 (P)medium tank, Porsche's medium tank prototype, and adapted parts used on it for the new tank.

The new Porsche tank, designated the VK 45.01 (P) was to be powered by twinV-10air cooledPorsche Type 101gasolineengines which were mounted to the rear of the tank. Each of the twin engines would thendrive a separate generator,one for either side of the tank, which would then power each of twoelectric motors,one powering each track from the rear drive sprocket. But the engines and drive train were generally new and unorthodox designs for a tank (other thansome brief experimentsin the very early years), and due to being underdeveloped were prone to break down or require frequent maintenance. It was also difficult for the Third Reich to obtain additional amounts of quality copper to build whole new fleets of vehicles with electric drives in addition to the increasing demands of theU-boatfleet (which used very similardiesel-electric transmissions,which worked perfectly well); while it was easy enough to obtain quality copper to build a single prototype, once series production began, this became more difficult. These problems, and the fact that trials proved the tank to be less maneuverable than its competitor, were the reason why Henschel's identically armed and more conventional VK 45.01 (H) H1 prototype, which became theTiger I,was adopted for production instead.

The VK 45.01 (P) chassis was later chosen to be the basis of a new heavyJagdpanzer(although designated aPanzerjäger) which would eventually be called theFerdinandand mount the new, longer, 88 mmPak 43/2.

Only one tank went into service as a command tank in the Ferdinand (Elefant) unit, and served in Panzerjäger Abteilung 653.It was deployed in April 1944 and lost that subsequent July.

The VK 45.01 (P)'s chassis and many of the Elefant's components were later used in developing theVK 45.02 (P)prototype heavy tank.

Design

Model reconstruction of Porsche VK 45.01(P)

Elefant,showing the suspension it shared with the VK 45.01(P) chassis

Ferdinand Porsche developed the spring rod roller carriage; there were 6 road wheels, each road wheel formed of an inner and outer paired wheel per axle. The six paired road wheels were divided into three 2-axlebogiesper side, for a total of 12 individual wheels, 6 road wheels/axles, in 3 bogies. The wheels were not 'interleaved' like those of the Tiger I. The 57 to 59 tons combat weight in combination with 640 mm wide "slack-tracks" (KGS 62/640/130) using no return rollers, produced a ground pressure of about 1.06 kg / cm².

Thegasoline-electric drivespecially developed byFerdinand Porscheentered "uncharted territory" for road vehicles; this led to numerous development issues with the drive system. The two air-cooled 15-litreV-10 enginesdesignatedPorsche Type 101,which were each coupled with a Siemens-Schuckert 500 kVAgenerator,generated the necessary electric power to operate each of the two Siemens 230 kW (312.7PS) individual-outputelectric motorsdriving the rear sprockets. In this drive system, amechanical power transmissionsystem andgearboxcould be omitted, since now a 3-step speed switch took over the work. The electric motors transferred their power to afinal drivewith a ratio of 15: 1 directly to thedrive wheelslocated at the rear. The fuel tanks carried 520 litres of petrol and allowed a driving range of 105 kilometers. Two compressed air tanks in the front crew compartment area assisted the driver during braking maneuvers.

Unlike the Henschel design's mid-hull mounting for the turret, the VK 45.01 (P) had its Krupp-designed turret mounted at the front. The turret, which mounted the8.8 cm KwK 36and a7.92 mmMG 34coaxial machine gun,was essentially the sameKruppdesign also used for Henschel's contract-winning VK45.01(H) prototype design. The first eight turrets produced had lower sides and a flat roof with raised centre section to allow the gun to be depressed through a larger arc.

Variants

• VK 45.01 (P) Test prototype

VK45.01 chassis fitted with a concrete turret mockup to simulate the weight of the Krupp turret for testing purposes. Only 100 chassis were built.

• VK 45.01 (P) (Porsche Tiger)

10 VK45.01 tanks with the Krupp turrets and8.8 cm KwK 36guns were produced. Only one completed Tiger (P) with chassis number 150013 saw combat service as a command tank.

• Panzerjäger Tiger (P) "Ferdinand"

91 existing VK 4501 chassis were converted intoFerdinandjagdpanzers.The work was completed in just a few months from March to May 1943.

• Panzerjäger Tiger (P) "Elefant"

In September 1943 all surviving Ferdinands were recalled to be modified. 48 of the 50 surviving vehicles were modified with additional armour, a new commanders cupola (fromStuG III) and a new ball mounted frontal machine gun for self defense.

• Bergepanzer Tiger(P)

A conversion of the VK 45.01 (P) chassis into recovery vehicles designatedBergepanzerTiger (P). Only 3 were built.

• VK 45.01 "RammTiger"

A proposed conversion of the VK 45.01 (P) chassis in a heavily armoured ramming vehicle armed with machine guns. 3 superstructures were completed but their fate is unknown as the project was cancelled in 1943.

Bibliography

• Jentz, Thomas; Doyle, Hilary (1997).Panzerkampfwagen VI (P) (Sd. Kfz. 181) The History of the Porsche Type 100 and 101 also known as the Leopard and Tiger (P).Darlington: Darlington Productions.ISBN978-1-8928-4803-1.
• Jentz, Thomas L. & Doyle, Hilary L. (2000).Germany's Tiger Tanks: D.W. to Tiger I.Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing.ISBN978-0-7643-1038-6.
• Spielberger, Walter J. (2007).Tigers I and II and Their Variants.Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Military History.ISBN978-0-76432-780-3.