Help Identifying a Couple Tanks?

[Ssteve]

Hello,
I have a couple photos of two tanks from WWII that I picked up from a veteran. I was wondering if someone might be able to identify them for me. Thanks for your time.

Regards,
Steve

[Ssteve]

..

[Greg]

Hi Steve,

Photo 1 is something made on the chassis of the Panzerkampfwagen IV (PzKw IV) chassis; probably a Sturmgeschütz IV assault gun. This was a 75mm gun mounted with limited traverse and elevation in a lower-profile tank-like vehicle. It was made on a tank chassis, but without the turret.

Photo 2 is a Panther tank (PzKw V).

Regards,
Greg

[rangey]

Identifying the two tanks

Hi Steve - picture two shows a Panther (PzKpfw V ) ausf. G.
I believe the photo number one shows a Berge Panzer or recovery tank based on the chassis of a PzKpfw IV. The superstructure where the turret should be seems too low profile to be a Stug IV and no main gun appears present at the front so my deduction is the recovery version, indeed looking at this very unclear photo I can just about make out ditching beams.

[Andrew Hall]

It's a StuG IV. Not an uneducated guess as there's another earlier shot of it out there Do you know where these were taken Steve, Italy or NW Europe?

Thanks - Andrew

[Andrew Hall]

Hi Steve - picture two shows a Panther (PzKpfw V ) ausf. G.

Rangey, it's a Ausf. A. Check the drivers hatch in the glacis and the rear hull side armour.

Steve, another Q on that Panther photo. There's a shadow across the rear of the engine deck, is it the barrel cleaning rod tube (a tube about a six feet long) laying transversely across the rear of the engine deck? It may seem a daft question but if the Panther's in NW Europe and that is the cleaning tube we could narrow it down to a regiment.

Regards - Andrew

[Ssteve]

Hello Andrew,
I know this much about the photos. The veteran was in the Army 1012 Co. Corp of Engineers and was station in Furth. The veteran also took photos of Hiter's Berchtesgaden (not sure were Berchtesgaden is located/also see my other thread). He was late war 43,44,45. As for the tank there is definantly a 6ft+ rod sticking out the back of the tank. Thanks, Steve

[Andrew Hall]

Hello Andrew,
I know this much about the photos. The veteran was in the Army 1012 Co. Corp of Engineers and was station in Furth. The veteran also took photos of Hiter's Berchtesgaden (not sure were Berchtesgaden is located/also see my other thread). He was late war 43,44,45. As for the tank there is definantly a 6ft+ rod sticking out the back of the tank. Thanks, Steve

Thanks for the info Steve. One vehicle I thought of that has a lot of similarities to your Panther is this one I've linked below - though apparently they were able to move those mountains in the background in between photos Very similar though, might just be the exposure or something on the photo I linked??. I'll ask around some friends for you and see if anything else turns up

http://www.acuity4u.net/ED/A/ED_TANK.html

Berchtesgaden is a town in the Bavarian Alps, SE of Munich. Hmmmm, looks scenic enough to persuade even my missus to go for a holiday.

www.berchtesgaden.de

Regards _ Andrew

[Ssteve]

Wow Andrew my tank and your tank look identical!!! If they are one in the same that is pretty coooool!! The only difference appears to be the mountains, but it maybe in the exposure! Steve