E-100 – Panzerkampfwagen
This E-100 looks so much similar to the Maus. But when it comes to the practicability, E-100 was a thousand steps ahead. There is a cool fact about this E-100. It has smoke grenades. When the tank is under attack, the tank can create a smokescreen in front of the vehicle.
E-100
What is this E-100?
The Panzerkampfwagen E-100 was a German super-heavy tank designed at the end of WWII. And this truck was manufactured by the Henschel’s. The origin of this heavy tank was Nazi Germany.
Evolution
The largest of the tank designs of the Entwicklung series, which aimed to enhance German armored vehicle production by standardizing on cheaper, easier-to-build vehicles. The prototype E-100’s chassis had been largely finished by the end of the war; it was transferred to the United Kingdom for trials but was later scrapped.
Growth
Waffenamt ordered the basic design as a parallel development to the Porsche Maus in June 1943. But it turned so much greater than the Maus. It was the biggest of the Entwicklung (E) series of vehicles in the 100-ton weight class, designed to standardize as many components as feasible.
Other designs of the E-series
- E-10
- E-25
- E-50
- E-75
What happened after the tank was proposed?
After the tank was proposed in April 1943 along with the other Entwicklung series vehicles, the Adler firm in Frankfurt filed blueprint 021A38300 for a super-heavy tank designated E-100 in March 1944.
What was that tank capable of?
The tank would be armed with a 150 mm and a 75 mm cannon, according to the designs. The first featured a 700-horsepower Maybach HL230 engine with a transmission and turning system adapted from the Tiger II.
Design of the tank
It has a very rare design. Even though all the heavy tanks look alike, they created this E-100 with a unique look. The reason for this was the side armor. It was curved and also the turret was at the center of the hull. This caused the revealing engines and added a unique look to the tank.
E-100
Speed
The top speed was estimated to be 23 km/h (14 mph). The second variant would use a new 1200-horsepower Maybach engine with a top speed of 40 km/h (25 mph).
Rail transition
To make rail transit more viable, the design included removable side skirts and small transport rails. This concept was quite similar to the initial ‘Tiger-Maus’ proposal but with larger 900 mm (35 in) diameter road wheels and a new coil-spring suspension in place of the stock torsion bars.
Turret
A new turret was created, one that was simpler and lighter than the Maus turret. However, numerous sources indicate that a Maus turret could be fitted.
What happened to the E-100 super tank?
Hitler paused the creation of super-heavy tanks in July 1944. And made works of E-100 a priority. He did that with only three Adler employees available to assemble the prototype.
E-100
Evolution of the final
The prototype was never built and was discovered in April 1945 by the 751st Field Artillery Battalion of the American forces. The British Army took the nearly constructed vehicle for assessment before scrapping it in the 1950s.
Comparable tanks with the E-100
Several tanks can be compared with the E-100. They can be compared according to the role, the era, and the performance.
Specifications of the tank
| Dimensions | 11.073 x 4.48 x 3.375 (mm) |
| The total weight (when ready to battle) | 123.5 tonnes |
| Propulsion | Maybach HL 230 P30 V-12 Petrol delivering 700 hp
Maybach HL 234 V-12 Petrol delivering up to 1,200 hp |
| Main armament | 12.8 cm Kw.K. 44 L/55 interchangeable with 15 cm |
| Secondary armament | 7.5 cm Kw.K. 44 L/24
7.92 mm M.G.34 or M.G. 42 machine gun |
Built
Built of the tank E-100 was like this.
E-100
Crew
The crew was consisting of 6 members.
- Commander
- Gunner
- 2 loaders
- Driver
- Radio operator
Armor
The armor consisted of two parts.
The turret armor and the hull armor.
Turret armor
| Front | 200 mm @ 30 deg. |
| Sides | 80 mm @ 29/30 deg |
| Rear | 150 mm @ 15 deg. |
| Roof | 40 mm @ 90 deg. |
Armor of the hull
| 200 mm / 60deg | Front glacis |
| 150 mm / 50deg | Lower front |
| 30mm / 89deg | Sponson floor |
| 120mm / 0deg | Side |
| 150mm / 30deg | Rear |
| 80mm / 90deg | Floor front |
| 40mm / 90deg | Floor middle and rear |
| 40mm / 90deg | Roof |
Mobility
The mobility of the E100 was at its peak. The maximum speed was 30 km/h. and the reverse speed was 15km/h. there were three levels of effective top speed. It was respectively 30km/h, 30km/h, and 17.71km/h for the hard, medium, and soft speeds.
Health
The overall health of the tank was at a good rate.
| Engine health | 360 |
| Track health | 300 |
| Ammo rack health | 280 |
| Fuel tank health | 200 |
