Was Berlin King Tiger Black 314 a late production (18 sprocket late mantlet and fenders) King Tiger or a 1944 production King Tiger?
Just wondering since I can’t find any actual photos of the tank that knocked out 39 soviet tanks.
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It’s not clear whether the caption for the photo is correct, as it’s from deep winter, and there’s snow and/or white paint obscuring all the markings, but the caption says it’s King Tiger tank of the schwere Panzer Abteilung 503. Tank number 314, which is the correct unit.
The Tiger II in question is from sSS Pz.Abt. 103 (503) commanded by Oberscharführer Diers. This vehicle was lost on May 2nd, 1945 after breaking a track from a German anti-tank mine and being abandoned. The last deliveries to sSS Pz.Abt. 103 (503) was on Jan.25th, 1945, so it would not have had ribbed tract guards or single-link tracks. It had 9-tooth sprockets. The image posted above is from sPz.Abt. 503 (Heer, not SS), while it is “314,” (the well-known “Anneliese”), it was a “Porsche” turreted vehicle, lost in Dec. '44 in Hungary and did not participate in the Battle of Berlin.
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The tank in your photo is “Annelise”, a very early tank with the “Porsche” pre-production turret. It belonged to the 503 of the Heer, not the SS.
Ken