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Tiger 141 is being transported by train. Its entire gun/mantlet assembly has been removed, and two segments of the gun's recoil shield are sitting in the turret front opening. The cupola is absent. A tyre leans against the turret, and more are piled in front of the tank. Are they damaged tyres that detached from wheels? At the right of the photo, another Tiger is on the next wagon.
This Tiger's radio operator, Franz-Wilhelm Lochmann, wrote an account of its final battle (9 January 1943). The external fittings of the tank were stripped away by multiple HE explosions. The armour at his MG ball mount was cracked, making the Tiger unfit for further service. Tiger 121 was bady damaged in the same engagement. Both tanks were sent back to Germany, and this photo almost certainly shows that journey. The Tiger glimpsed at our right has its mudflap missing, suggesting that it is Tiger 121.
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