History, technical details and pictures

History of the Ferdinand "Elephant" tank

At the beginning of the Second World War in Europe, the German army draws the first lessons of battle it had delivered in France and Poland. Conscious of its weakness in the field of armored vehicles, Germany wanted to have a heavy tank, called "tank hunter".

After the work done by German armament engineers, the 184 SdkfZ prototype was built in 1942. In July of that year, production began, and this huge tank was nicknamed "Ferdinand" (in memory of Dr Ferdinand Porsche), and also "Elephant" in connection with its imposing mass.

Built in haste in anticipation of the German offensive into the Soviet Union, the first models faced many technical problems that engineers were unable to resolve.

However, the "Ferdinand" (or "Elephant") tank was sent on the eastern front and it was particularly effective against Soviet tanks. Despite these successes, it was at this time a defensive weapon and many Soviet soldiers managed to destroy some SdkfZ 184 tanks, especially during the Battle of Kursk, where the "Elephant" were engaged for the first time.

The following versions of this "tank hunter" were equipped with two heavy MG 34 machine guns. Toutefois son prix exorbitant et sa lenteur pousseront l'Armée allemande à ne produire qu'une très faible quantité de ce char SdkfZ 184 : quatre exemplaires seulement seront encore disponibles à la fin de la guerre en 1945. However, its exorbitant price and slow speed pushed the German army to produce only a very small amount of 184 SdkfZ tanks: only four will be available at the end of the war in 1945.

Ferdinand "Elephant" tank sheet

Country creator/user: Germany
Name: Ferdinand / Elephant - SdkfZ 184

Lenght: 8,14 m
Width: 3,38 m
Height: 2,97 m
Weigth: 65 000 kg
Maximum speed: 30 km/h
Range: 114 km

Main gun: un canon de 88mm Pak 43 L/71
Secondary armament: deux mitrailleuses de 7,92 mm MG 34

Engine: two Maybach HL 120 TRM, 600 hp
Consumption: 833 L for 100 km

Crew: 5 (1 tank commander, 1 pilote, 1 co-pilote and gunner, 1 radio operator and loader)

Front shield: 200 mm
Back shield: 30 mm