Author: Melcher Stikkelorum
19 December: Terminus Stoumont
Peiper’s options to reach the Meuse were now rapidly dwindling, and so were his supplies – especially fuel. In the early morning the attack was launched on Stoutmont, a village just west of La Gleize. A rearguard still defended Cheneux and some troops plus Westerhagen’s Tigers remained behind in and around La Gleize.
18 December: Bridges
At dawn, Peiper finally launched his attack on Stavelot. The aim was to secure the ascent to the bridge and cross it. In the meantime, American reinforcements arrived in the small hours by means of a company of the 526th Armoured Infantry Battalion, along with anti-tank guns and tank destroyers of the 825th Tank Destroyer…
17 December: Breakthrough
Early in the morning, around 4 o’clock, Peiper, together with 1./FJR 9, launched the attack on Honsfeld, with Panther and M4 Sherman tanks. The latter were part of operation “Greif” in which German soldiers disguised as Americans tried to cause confusion. Although the day before the Fallschirmjäger still objected because of the many fortified positions,…
16 December: At a Snail’s Pace
It is 5:20 in the morning when artillery fire from the 6th Army begins on the forward US positions, 10 minutes before H hour. Infantry of the 3rd Fallschirmjäger-Division and 12th Volksgrenadier-Division precede the Kampfgruppe to break US resistance along the main line of attack. To this end, they would advance through the ‘Losheim Gap’,…
15 December: The Eve of Battle
78 years ago today, marks the eve of Germany’s last major offensive in the west; the Ardennes Offensive. Initially planned as a “Wacht am Rhein” for November, the offensive was postponed until mid-December. By this time, it was renamed Herbstnebel. Now that poor terrain condition on the Eastern front had forced a pause in the…
Leopard 2 Prototype (PT 10 / T 17). The Mystery Solved.
In this post, we’ll have a look at yet another Leopard 2 prototype. This vehicle can be found in the collection of the Musée de Blindés in Saumur, France. In contract to the prototypes discussed earlier, this one wields the 120 mm gun. During the design and trial period for the Leopard 2 tank, two…
Luftfaust B Blueprint
Chefsache! When browsing the archives, you will certainly stumble upon one or more documents prominently featuring this stamp. Besides the ever present “Nur für Dienstgebrauch” (n.f.D.) or “Geheime Kommandosache” (gKdos.), Chefsache was one of the military confidentiality levels used within the Wehrmacht. Material marked with “Chefsache” was of the highest importance and classified top secret,…
Tiger II Fgst.Nr. 280 009 or 280 012 Revisited
When Henschel’s tank proving ground at Haustenbeck became part of the British zone, a number of interesting armoured fighting vehicles fell right into their lap, some of which were transported back to the UK for detailed study. Prime examples are the second built Tiger II ‘V2’ and a Porsche suspension Jagdtiger, which are now in…
Haustenbeck’s Heritage: Journey of Tiger II V2
For the past two years, I have been working on a series of articles on Henschel’s test site at Haustenbeck. So far, I have covered the origin and use of the site, as well as most of the vehicles that were present during and after the war. All these articles have paved the way for…
The Loss of a TOS
After the start of the unjust invasion of Ukraine last Thursday, we have already seen large numbers of Russian armoured vehicles pouring into the country. Alarm was raised again last Saturday when a CNN crew captured the transport of a TOS-1A flamethrower south of Belgorod en route to Ukraine. This Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS)…
![[Video] Tiger II V2 Extra: On the Move](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHdpZHRoPSI2MDE2IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjQwMDAiIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA2MDE2IDQwMDAiPjxyZWN0IHdpZHRoPSIxMDAlIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjEwMCUiIHN0eWxlPSJmaWxsOiNjZmQ0ZGI7ZmlsbC1vcGFjaXR5OiAwLjE7Ii8+PC9zdmc+)
[Video] Tiger II V2 Extra: On the Move
On January 14, 2020, Tiger II V2 was placed in the Nationaal Militar Museum, the Netherlands. The plan was for it to stay till September 2021. Due to the COVID-19 situation, plans changed, however, and the loan was extended several times, until January 2022. Tiger II V2 served as one of the highlights of the…
![[Book] Sturmtiger: The Combat History of Sturmmörser Kompanies 1000-1002 by Archer and Haasler](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHdpZHRoPSI1NDcyIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjM2NDgiIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA1NDcyIDM2NDgiPjxyZWN0IHdpZHRoPSIxMDAlIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjEwMCUiIHN0eWxlPSJmaWxsOiNjZmQ0ZGI7ZmlsbC1vcGFjaXR5OiAwLjE7Ii8+PC9zdmc+)
[Book] Sturmtiger: The Combat History of Sturmmörser Kompanies 1000-1002 by Archer and Haasler
The Sturmtiger, although only produced and employed in small numbers, easily rivals the Tiger’s fame. This vehicle was used in three specially created units, Sturmmörser-Kompanien 1000, 1001 and 1002. In their new book “Sturmtiger: The Combat History of Sturmmörser Kompanies 1000-1002” Lee Archer and Timm Haasler aim to tell the story of these units. From…
![[Video] Tiger II V2 Extra: On the Move](https://panzerplace.eu/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/IMGP9835.jpg)
![[Book] Sturmtiger: The Combat History of Sturmmörser Kompanies 1000-1002 by Archer and Haasler](https://panzerplace.eu/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/P1040032.jpg)