German heavy tank battalion

German heavy tank battalions (German: schwere Panzerabteilungen), were elite battalion-sized World War II tank units, equipped with Tiger I, and later Tiger II, heavy tanks. Originally intended to fight on the offensive during breakthrough operations, the German late-war realities required them to be used in a defensive posture by providing heavy fire support and counter-attacking enemy armored breakthroughs, often organised into ad hoc Kampfgruppen.

Tiger I in France.

Formation

Early formation units experimented to find the correct combination of heavy Tiger tanks supported by either medium Panzer III tanks or scout 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.^[1]

Later formations had a standard organization of 45 Tiger Tanks, composed of 3 companies of 14 Tigers each, plus 3 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.^[1]

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.

In addition to tanks, each battalion planned to include the following:^[2]

Description	vehicle type	1 July 1943	1 January 1945
Flakpanzer IV	Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun	0	8
Sd.Kfz. 7/1 8 ton 4 x 2 cm Flak	Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun	6	3
Sd.Kfz. 251 Schützenpanzerwagen	Armoured half-track	10	11
Bergepanther	Armoured recovery vehicle	0	5
Sd.Kfz. 9 18 ton Zugkraftwagen	Half-track prime mover	8	7
Sd.Kfz. 10 1 ton Zugkraftwagen	Light half-track	8	13
Sd.Kfz. 2 Kettenkrad	Gun tractor	0	14
Beiwagenkrad	Motorcycle with sidecar, e.g. BMW R75	25	0
Solokrad	Motorcycle	17	6
Kübelwagen Personenkraftwagen	Staff car	64	38
Personenkraftwagen, zivil	Civilian car	2	1
Lastkraftwagen	Truck, e.g. Opel Blitz	111	84
Lastkraftwagen, zivil	Civilian truck	24	34
Maultier	Half-track	0	6
Kran-Kraftfahrzeug	Mobile crane	3	3
Total		278	233

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 (Heer) were:

• 501st Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 502nd Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 504th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 505th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 506th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 507th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 508th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 509th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 510th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 511th Heavy Panzer Battalion
• 301st Heavy Panzer Battalion (radio control)^[3][4]

The only battalion permanently attached to a division:

• 3rd Battalion, Grossdeutschland Division

SS units

Units attached to the Waffen-SS were:

• 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion renamed in 1944, as SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 501, part of I SS Panzer Corps
• 102nd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion renamed in 1944, as SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 502, part of II SS Panzer Corps
• 103rd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion renamed in 1944, as SS Heavy Panzer Battalion 503, part of III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps
• 104th SS Heavy Panzer Battalion was planned 22 October 1943, for IV SS Panzer Corps, but was never formed

Combat performance

Kill and Loss Ratio of the Tiger Battalions (1942–1945):^[5]

Unit	Losses	Destroyed	Ratio
501st Heavy Panzer Battalion	120	450	3.75
502nd Heavy Panzer Battalion	107	1,400	13.08
503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion	252	1,700	6.75
504th Heavy Panzer Battalion	109	250	2.29
505th Heavy Panzer Battalion	126	900	7.14
506th Heavy Panzer Battalion	179	400	2.23
507th Heavy Panzer Battalion	104	600	5.77
508th Heavy Panzer Battalion	78	100	1.28
509th Heavy Panzer Battalion	120	500	4.17
510th Heavy Panzer Battalion	65	200	3.08
13./Panzer-Regiment Großdeutschland	6	100	16.67
III./Panzer-Regiment Großdeutschland	98	500	5.10
13./SS-Panzer-Regiment 1	42	400	9.52
8./SS-Panzer-Regiment 2	31	250	8.06
9./SS-Panzer-Regiment 3	56	500	8.93
101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion	107	500	4.67
102nd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion	76	600	7.89
103rd SS Heavy Panzer Battalion	39	500	12.82
TOTAL:	1,715	9,850	5.74

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.

See also

• List of Knight's Cross recipients of the SS Heavy Panzer Battalions

Notes

1. Schneider 2000, pp. 3–4.
2. Schneider 2000, p. 2.
3. Jentz, pp. 195, 265
4. Olsson, Thorleif. "Borgward IV- SdKfz. 301". Achtung Panzer!.
5. "Tiger Tank Battalions during WWII - Page 2". The Armor Site!. citing http://www.alanhamby.com/tiger.html which itself cites Tigers in Combat I by Wolfgang Schneider, Tigers in Combat II by Wolfgang Schneider, Red Army Handbook by Steven Zaloga

References

• Jentz, Thomas (1996). Panzertruppen 2: The Complete Guide to the Creation & Combat Employment of Germany's Tank Force 1943-1945. Schiffer. ISBN 978-0-7643-0080-6.
• Schneider, Wolfgang (2000). Tigers in Combat I. Mechanicsburg: Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-3171-3.
• Wilbeck, Christopher (2004). Sledgehammers: Strengths and Flaws of Tiger Tank Battalions in World War II. Bedford: Aberjona Press. OCLC 200489614.