Description
This Befehlstiger was delivered to s.Pz.Abt.505 in the field on 20 June 1943. It was an 'Early' with the standard turret bin and a flat mantlet. It was immediately made the battalion commander's tank, taking over the identifier 'I' from his previous tank. But photos of a Tiger 'I' from the following winter show a very peculiar feature : an S-mine launcher where we expect the Fu 7 antenna base. The best explanation is that this Tiger got a replacement hull after suffering damage. That hull would have come from one of the battalion's standard Tigers. We can see that it was modified to mount the Fu 8 radio, but internally it may have lacked a generator. The turret retained its number 'I', but photos show the battalion commander using a different Command Tiger at this time. Other modifications to this tank include brackets to carry two unditching logs, and tool racks on the superstructure front.
Photos
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