The most famous German self-propelled gun of the Second World War Ferdinand owes its birth, on the one hand, to intrigues around the heavy tank VK 4501 (P), and on the other, to the appearance of the 88 mm Pak 43 anti-tank gun. Tank VK 4501 (P) - to put it simply, "Tiger" designed by Dr. Porsche - was shown to Hitler on April 20, 1942, simultaneously with his competitor VK 4501 (1-1) - "Tiger" from Henschel. According to Hitler, both machines were to be launched into mass production, which was opposed in every possible way by the Armaments Directorate, whose workers could not stand the obstinate favorite of the Fuhrer - Dr. Porsche. The tests did not reveal the obvious advantages of one vehicle over another, but Porsche's readiness for production of the Tiger was higher - by June 6, 1942, the first 16 VK 4501 (P) tanks were ready for delivery to the troops, for which Krupp was finishing assembling the turrets. … Henschel could have delivered only one car by this date, and that one without a turret. The first battalion, equipped with Porsche Tigers, was supposed to be formed by August 1942 and sent to Stalingrad, but suddenly the Armaments Directorate stopped all work on the tank for a month.
"Tigers" Porsche during the show to the top leaders of the Third Reich. April 20, 1942
VK4501 (P) in the courtyard of the Nibelungenwerk. The gentleman in the hat - F. Porsche
Self-propelled gun "Ferdinand" during testing. Ferdinand Porsche sits on the left wing
The managers took advantage of Hitler's instructions to create an assault gun based on the PZ. IV and VK 4501 tanks, armed with the newest 88 mm Pak 43/2 anti-tank gun with a barrel length of 71 caliber. At the suggestion of the Armaments Directorate, it was decided to convert all 92 ready-made and assembled VK 4501 (P) chassis in the workshops of the Nibelungenwerke plant into assault guns.
In September 1942, work began. The design was carried out by Porsche together with the designers of the Berlin plant Alkett. Since the armored wheelhouse was supposed to be located aft, the chassis layout had to be changed by placing engines and generators in the middle of the hull. Initially, it was planned to assemble new ACS in Berlin, but this had to be abandoned due to the difficulties associated with transportation by rail, and due to the reluctance to suspend the production of the StuG III assault guns - the main product of the Alkett plant. As a result, the SPG assembly, which received the official designation 8, 8 cm Pak 43/2 Sfl L / 71 Panzerjager Tiger (P) Sd. Kfz. 184 and the name Ferdinand (personally assigned by Hitler in February 1943 in homage to Dr. Ferdinand Porsche), was produced at the Nibelungenwerke plant.
The frontal 100-mm plates of the Tiger (P) tank hull were also reinforced with 100-mm armor plates, fixed to the hull with bullet-proof bolts. Thus, the frontal armor of the hull was brought to 200 mm. The frontal deckhouse had a similar thickness. The thickness of the side and stern sheets reached 80 mm (according to other sources, 85 mm). The armored plates of the cabin were connected "into a thorn" and reinforced with dowels, and then scalded. The deckhouse was attached to the hull with brackets and bolts with a bullet-proof head.
In front of the hull there were seats for the driver and radio operator. Behind them, in the center of the car, two 12-cylinder carburetor V-shaped liquid-cooled Maybach HL 120TRM engines with a capacity of 265 hp were installed parallel to each other. (at 2600 rpm) each. The engines rotated the rotors of two Siemens Tur aGV generators, which, in turn, supplied electricity to two Siemens D1495aAC traction motors with a power of 230 kW each, installed in the rear of the vehicle under the fighting compartment. The torque from the electric motors with the help of electromechanical final drives was transmitted to the driving wheels of the stern arrangement. In emergency mode or in the event of combat damage to one of the power supply branches, its duplication was envisaged.
The Ferdinand's undercarriage in relation to one side consisted of six road wheels with internal shock absorption, interlocked in pairs in three bogies with an original, very complex, but highly efficient Porsche suspension scheme with longitudinal torsion bars, tested on the experimental VK 3001 (P) chassis. The drive wheel had removable toothed rims with 19 teeth each. The idler wheel also had toothed rims, which excluded idle rewinding of the tracks.
Each track consisted of 109 tracks 640 mm wide.
Manning the Ferdinands
"Ferdinand" during tests at the Kummersdorf test site, spring 1943
The last serial Ferdinand, delivered ahead of schedule
In the wheelhouse, in the pins of a special machine, an 88-mm Pak 43/2 cannon (in the self-propelled version - StuK 43) with a barrel length of 71 caliber, developed on the basis of the Flak 41 anti-aircraft gun, was installed. The horizontal aiming angle did not exceed 28 ° sector. Elevation angle + 14 °, declination -8 °. The mass of the gun is 2200 kg. The embrasure in the frontal leaf of the cabin was covered with a massive molded pear-shaped mask connected to the machine. However, the design of the mask was not very successful and did not provide full protection against bullet lead splashes and small fragments penetrating into the body through the gaps between the mask and the frontal sheet. Therefore, on the masks of most of the "Ferdinands" armored shields were reinforced. The gun ammunition consisted of 50 unitary rounds placed on the walls of the wheelhouse. In the aft part of the cabin there was a round hatch for dismantling the gun.
According to German data, the PzGr 39/43 armor-piercing projectile with a mass of 10, 16 kg and an initial speed of 1000 m / s penetrated 165 mm armor at a distance of 1000 m (at a 90 ° meeting angle), and the PzGr 40/43 subcaliber projectile weighing 7.5 kg and an initial speed of 1130 m / s - 193 mm, which ensured "Ferdinand" unconditional defeat of any of the then existing tanks.
Assembly of the first car began on February 16, and the last ninetieth "Ferdinand" left the factory shops on May 8, 1943. In April, the first production vehicle was tested at the Kummersdorf test site.
The Ferdinands were baptized by fire during Operation Citadel as part of the 656th tank destroyer regiment, which included the 653rd and 654th divisions (schwere Panzerjager Abteilung - sPz. Jager Abt.). By the beginning of the battle in the first there were 45, and in the second - 44 "Ferdinand". Both divisions were in the operational subordination of the 41st Panzer Corps, participated in heavy battles on the northern face of the Kursk Bulge near the Ponyri station (654th division) and the village of Teploe (653rd division).
Ferdinand of the 653rd Heavy Assault Guns Division. July 1943
CAU "Ferdinand" of the 5th company of the 654th tank destroyer battalion, captured at the Kursk Bulge. NIBT proving grounds, 1943
German heavy self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" and its crew
The 654th Battalion suffered especially heavy losses, mainly in minefields. Twenty-one Ferdinands remained on the battlefield. The German equipment knocked out and destroyed in the area of the Ponyri station was examined on July 15, 1943 by representatives of the GAU and the NIBT Polygon of the Red Army. Most of the "Ferdinands" were in a minefield filled with land mines from captured large-caliber shells and aerial bombs. More than half of the vehicles had damage to the undercarriage: broken tracks, destroyed road wheels, etc. In five Ferdinands, the damage to the chassis was caused by shells of 76 mm or more caliber. In two German self-propelled guns, the barrels of the guns were shot through by shells and bullets of anti-tank rifles. One vehicle was destroyed by a direct hit from an aerial bomb, and another was destroyed by a 203-mm howitzer shell hitting the roof of the wheelhouse.
Only one self-propelled gun of this type, which was fired from different directions by seven T-34 tanks and a battery of 76-mm guns, had a hole in the side, in the area of the drive wheel. Another "Ferdinand", which had no damage to the hull and chassis, was set on fire by a Molotov cocktail thrown by our infantrymen.
The only worthy opponent of heavy German self-propelled guns was the Soviet SU-152. The SU-152 regiment fired on the attacking Ferdinands of the 653rd division on July 8, 1943, knocking out four enemy vehicles. In total, in July - August 1943, the Germans lost 39 Ferdinands. The last trophies went to the Red Army on the outskirts of Orel - several damaged assault guns prepared for evacuation were captured at the railway station.
The first battles of the "Ferdinands" at the Kursk Bulge were, in fact, the last, where these self-propelled guns were used in large numbers. From a tactical point of view, their use left much to be desired. Created to destroy Soviet medium and heavy tanks at long distances, they were used as an advanced "armor shield", blindly ramming engineering barriers and anti-tank defenses, while suffering heavy losses. At the same time, the moral effect of the appearance on the Soviet-German front of largely invulnerable German self-propelled guns was very large. "Ferdinandomania" and "Ferdinandphobia" appeared. Judging by the memoir literature, there was no soldier in the Red Army who did not knock out or, in extreme cases, did not participate in the battle with the Ferdinands. They crawled into our positions on all fronts, from 1943 (and sometimes even earlier) until the end of the war. The number of "knocked out" "Ferdinands" is approaching several thousand. This phenomenon can be explained by the fact that most of the Red Army soldiers were poorly versed in all sorts of "marders", "bison" and "naskhorns" and called any German self-propelled gun "Ferdinand", which indicates how great was its "popularity" among our soldiers. And, in addition, for the knocked-out "Ferdinand" without further ado, they were given an order.
Self-propelled gun "Ferdinand" in the yard of the plant before being handed over to the troops. May 1943. Cars are painted yellow
"Ferdinand" during the shooting at the range in Putlos. May 1943. The open door for loading ammunition is clearly visible
After the inglorious completion of Operation Citadel, the remaining Ferdinands in the ranks were transferred to Zhitomir and Dnepropetrovsk, where their current repairs and replacement of guns began, caused by the strong explosion of the barrels. At the end of August, the personnel of the 654th division were sent to France for reorganization and rearmament. At the same time, he transferred his self-propelled guns to the 653rd division, which in October-November took part in defensive battles in the area of Nikopol and Dnepropetrovsk. In December, the division left the front lines and was sent to Austria.
During the period from July 5 (the beginning of Operation Citadel) to November 5, 1943, the Ferdinands of the 656th Regiment knocked out 582 Soviet tanks, 344 anti-tank guns, 133 guns, 103 anti-tank guns, three aircraft, three armored vehicles and three self-propelled guns (J. Ledwoch. Ferdinand / Elefant. - Warszawa, 1997).
Between January and March 1944, the 47 Ferdinands that remained by that time were modernized at the Nibelungenwerke plant. In the frontal armor of the hull on the right, a ball mount of the MG 34 machine gun was mounted. A commander's cupola, borrowed from the StuG 40 assault gun, appeared on the roof of the wheelhouse. did not have. Ammunition was brought to 55 rounds. The name of the car was changed to Elefant (elephant). However, until the end of the war, the self-propelled gun was often called the familiar name "Ferdinand".
At the end of February 1944, the 1st company of the 653rd division was sent to Italy, where it took part in the battles of Anzio, and in May-June 1944 - near Rome. At the end of June, the company, which had two serviceable "Elephanta", was transferred to Austria.
In April 1944, the 653rd division, consisting of two companies, was sent to the Eastern Front, in the Ternopil region. There, during the fighting, the division lost 14 vehicles, but 11 of them were repaired and put back into operation. In July, the division, which was already retreating through Poland, had 33 serviceable self-propelled guns. However, on July 18, the 653rd division, without reconnaissance and preparation, was thrown into battle to the rescue of the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen, and within a day the number of combat vehicles in its ranks was more than halved. The Soviet troops very successfully used their heavy self-propelled guns and 57-mm anti-tank guns against the "elephants". Some of the German vehicles were only damaged and completely subject to restoration, but due to the impossibility of evacuation, they were blown up or set on fire by their own crews. The remnants of the battalion-12 combat-ready vehicles were taken to Krakow on August 3. In October 1944, the Jagdtiger self-propelled guns began to enter the battalion, and the "elephants" remaining in the ranks were reduced to the 614th heavy anti-tank company.
Until the beginning of 1945, the company was in the reserve of the 4th Panzer Army, and on February 25 it was transferred to the Wünsdorf area to strengthen the anti-tank defense. At the end of April, the Elephanta fought their last battles in Wünsdorf and Zossen as part of the so-called Ritter group (Captain Ritter was the commander of the 614th battery).
In surrounded Berlin, the last two self-propelled guns "Elephant" were knocked out in the area of Karl-August Square and the Church of the Holy Trinity.
Two self-propelled guns of this type have survived to this day. The Museum of Armored Weapons and Equipment in Kubinka exhibits "Ferdinand", captured by the Red Army during the Battle of Kursk, and in the Museum of the Aberdeen Proving Ground in the United States, the "Elephant", which went to the Americans in Italy, near Anzio.
Soldiers of the "Hermann Goering" division walk past the "Elephant (Ferdinand)" stuck in the mud. Italy, 1944
Soviet soldiers inspect the German heavy self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" destroyed during the Battle of Kursk
Padded "Elephant (Ferdinand)" on the street of Rome. Summer 1944
Loading ammunition. The impressive dimensions of the 88-mm display are noteworthy. On the eve of Operation Citadel. July 1943
Cleaning the gun barrel after firing and loading ammunition into the Ferdinand was not an easy task, requiring considerable physical effort from the crew members. 653rd tank destroyer division. Galicia, 1944
The set on fire German self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" is on fire. Kursk Bulge area
"Ferdinand" # 501 blown up by a mine, from the 654th division. The car in the list examined by the GABTU commission is listed under the number "9". It was this machine that was repaired and sent to the NIBT test site. It is currently on display at the Museum of Armored Vehicles in Kubinka. Kursk Bulge, area of the village of Goreloe
German self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" on the Kursk Bulge
Rokossovsky with officers inspecting the destroyed German self-propelled gun Ferdinand
Two killed Ferdinands from the headquarters company of the 654th battalion. Ponyri station area, July 15-16, 1943. Left headquarters "Ferdinand" No. II-03. The car was burned by bottles with a kerosene mixture after a shell damaged its chassis
German self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" from the 653rd battalion, destroyed by an internal explosion. Kursk Bulge, 70th Army defense zone, summer 1943
Heavy assault gun "Ferdinand", destroyed by a direct hit from an aerial bomb from a Soviet Pe-2 dive bomber. The tactical number is unknown. The area of the Ponyri station and the state farm "May 1"
German self-propelled gun "Ferdinand", which collapsed on a wooden bridge near Nikopol (Dnepropetrovsk region, Ukraine)
"Ferdinand" of the 653rd heavy tank destroyer battalion, captured with the crew by the soldiers of the 129th Oryol rifle division. July 1943
ACS "Ferdinand" Kubinka
