- Yes
- No
Tiger 114 (hull number 251114) was produced in Kassel, Germany in May 1944 and was assigned to Panzerabteilung 102 and would quickly see combat against the Allied invasion of France. By August the Germans had been pushed back to Falaise and Tiger 114, along with two other Tigers, were given orders to retreat south-east to Brieux. Along the road to Brieux, the platoon encountered a British anti-tank emplacement which proceeded to knock out the middle tank of the formation. Tiger 114, being last, accidentally rammed the rear of the knocked. This impact caused the iconic dent in Tiger 114’s frontal armor and more importantly resulted in 114’s gun getting stuck in the knocked out tank’s turret stowage bin. The crews of both tanks then abandoned their vehicles and were captured by the British.
“Now thats cool and all but why are you suggesting this random tiger tank and why are you suggesting it for the French of all people” I hear you think because I can hear everything you think. Thats where the story gets interesting.
The tank was acquired by one Captain Guy Besnier, leader of the Escadron Autonome de Chars Besnier’ (Besnier independent tank squadron), and after being repaired and given the name “Bretagne”, was pressed into service with the FFI where it was dispatched to join the forces encircling the German troops still holding out at Saint-Nazaire. After the German surrender, Tiger “Bretagne” famously took part in victory parades
Bretagne was then attached to 6e Régiment de Cuirassiers to officially serve in the French army. “Bretagne” was renamed to “Colmar” and ironically was dispatched to Germany’s Rhineland as part of the French Army of Occupation where it served for several months, possibly as late as 1947, before the unit was re-equipped and “Colmar” was placed into long term storage.
It sat in storage until 1977 where it was handed over to the Musée des Blindés in Saumur where it was repainted in a German paint scheme and displayed until late 2022. Since then it has been undergoing automotive restoration and is planned to be put back on display some time soon in its Besnier squadron paint scheme, as it would have appeared in 1945.
In game Tiger 114 would appear as a normal late production tiger, practically identical to the Tiger E currently in game at 6.0. While France isnt exactly lacking a 6.0 lineup this vehicle along side Panther “Dauphine” to demonstrate this unique time period in the history of French armored forces.
Personally I think this vehicle would make an excellent premium as it is definitely French enough to be a justified inclusion to the game while not quite being French enough to be justified as a tech tree inclusion. Like I said, an example of the unique time period of French armor immediately post war. It is also an opportunity to add camos for both Bretagne and Colmar to represent both late ww2 and immediately post war
Specifications: (its just a tiger E)
Frontal armor: 100mm angled at 9 degrees
Side armor: 80mm upper, 60mm lower
Main gun: 88mm KwK36 (7.4s reload)
PzGr. 39 (APCBC): 165mm at 10m 0 degrees
Sprgr. L/4.5 (HE)
PzGr. (APCBC): 153mm at 10m 0 degrees
Hl.Gr 39 (HEAT): 110mm at 10m 0 degrees
PzGr 40 (APCR): 211mm at 10m 0 degrees
Additional weapons:
Roof mounted smoke mortar
Co-axial mg34
Turret Traverse speed: 14 degrees/sec
Elevation limits: -8/16 degrees
Forwards speed: 45 km/h
Reverse speed: 8 km/h
Gunners optics: 2.5-10x 30-15 degrees
Sources:
http.://tank-photographs.s3-website-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/tiger-I-heavy-tank-Panzerkampfwagen-VI-ausf-e-sdkfz-181.html (not secure copy and paste at your own risk)
