Leutnant Kasper Geoggler commanded three Jagdtigers from 3rd. Kompanie, Schwere Panzerjäger Abteilung 653 (3/s.Pz.Jg.Abt.653). Geoggler’s mount was “331” while “323” and “234” made up the remainder of the unit. The kampfgruppe was situated outside Neustadt and on March 22, 1945, the unit engaged an armored column from the U.S. 3rd. Army. As was a common tactic, the Jagdtigers shot up the lead and rear tanks, sandwiching the remainder of the tanks between the wrecks. In the chaos, the Jagdtigers picked off the U.S. tanks with relative ease. In all, Geoggler’s three Jagdtigers claimed a total of 25 tanks destroyed, including M4 Shermans and M10 Wolverine tank destroyers. “331” and “323” suffered a total of 10 hits from U.S. tank rounds but not a one penetrated the thick armor of the Jagdtigers.
Geoggler withdrew the kampfgruppe into Neustadt proper. There, “323” broke down while attempting to get into a firing position within a garden. “331” was situated along Landauer Strasse, across from the immobilized “323,” which gave it a dominating field of fire along the road. In time, “331” was down to its last round and so Geoggler ordered the recoil cylinders drained and had the final round fired. This jammed the gun in full recoil, rendering it useless to the Americans. The crews boarded their SdKfz 251 half-tracks and along with Jagdtiger “234”, abandoned Neustadt and made for Zeiskam.
There, “234” went into action at a railway crossing until a shot penetrated the right front fender and broke the track. With no chance to repair the track or recover “234”, it was abandoned and blown up by its crew. The photograph shows “234” following the U.S. Army entry into Zeiskam. The internal fire caused the suspension to drop which is why the Jagdtiger appears to be “sitting” so low. Curious GIs, such as these men, spent many a moment clambering up onto “234” and taking photographs with it.
No comments:
Post a Comment