Of course the Japanese never used a Tiger in combat but they did own a Tiger tank. A group of Japanese officers were sent to Germany in 1943 to evaluate the Tiger I which they did and were very impressed with. The Japanese also purchased a Panther and two versions of the Panzer III.
After testing the Tiger and the other tanks were prepared for shipment however none of the tanks could be shipped as Japanese submarines were much too small. The only submarine that would be able to ship a Tiger would be the I-400 Class which had not finished production at the time. The tanks were put into storage in France. When the Allied invasion in Normandy happened and the Germans needed tanks. The Germans either refunded the Japanese, leased or just took the tanks back as they did need them.
I am very excited for this release for this release. I’ve been considering making my own version of Japanese Tiger using a Tamiya kit as of late but now I don’t have to. I’m glad some effort has been into the model beyond just throwing a set of Japanese markings in the box and maybe a figure.
The Japanese Tiger I was/is still a popular story in Japan with a novel being made about the tank in what I assume is a fictional WWII setting? Not sure I can’t read Japanese.
It’s 2023 - a few seconds with a smartphone and Google Translate yielded this : Burmese Tiger by Hiroshi Umemoto. The 88mm cannon of the strongest heavy tank, the Tiger, bursts into British tanks!
Hyperscale & Missing Lynx are toxic waste pits - if you’re a FOB (Friend of Brett Green), you can be total a** to other people on the forums there. Anyone else who is not, look out, because they’ll be gunning for you…
I’m just happy that a model company is thinking outside the box so to say with 1/35 armor. From what I understand Border Models is planning more releases along the lines of the Japanese Tiger and I am eager to see what is released.
It’s thought of as a “what if”, hypothetical version. Even if the Japanese were able to get the Tiger to Japan and pressed it into battle, they did not have the logistical infrastructure to support the tank. And one tank that’s too heavy to maneuver onto ships and maneuver on a tropical island once it’s landed (can they even get it ashore?) is rather useless and a waste of resources.
Even the Japanese home grown “heavy” tank that wasn’t even fully developed by the end of WW2 was outclassed by the early versions of the Sherman.
It’s a fun story and an interesting version of the Tiger that’s not like other Tigers.
The Tiger was also not mechanically sound enough to travel on its own for any great distances and had to be transported by rail or by heavy halftrack hauler.
Logistics is always the great equalizer. You may have the greatest tank on the battlefield but if it’s stuck at your home country, it’s only good for home defense.
Much like many of these massive hostile armies throughout the world. Great for home defense or against neighboring countries, but useless against the world without global power projection (the ability to get your forces to another continent unmolested).
It’s like those scenes from WW2 movies when German officers are discussing how private soldiers have unspoiled baked cakes from the US when they are captured in France. They know the war is lost when they can’t get ammo or fuel from Germany to France, but the US can get baked goods from the US to France and have it still be good.
