Really dumb question - can you tow a tank?

[chuckster]

For those of you who have worked around tanks in the military this is probably a ridiculous question. When a tank breaks down and cannot be repaired in the field, is it possible to put it in neutral like a wheeled vehicle and tow it or is hoisting it onto a trailer the only option? If a tank happens to break down in a very inaccessable area, what is the easiest way to get it back to the shop?

[Alpheus]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armoured_recovery_vehicle

[Violet Fashion by Mindy]

Anything can be towed. Even if the transmission is ****ed and it's stuck in say reverse and you need to tow it forward.

Just need something with a ****load of horsepower and some weight.

[PsihoKeke]

I remember that I read of severall cases when tanks were towed by other tanks. It was usually done on the frontline if it was too dangerous for extraction veichles or they weren't avaible.

[Freibier]

There were lots of reported instances where a Tiger towed another Tiger out of harms way although it was stricly forbidden as it halfed the life of the transmission in the towing Tiger.

[PrinzEugen]

No problem what so ever. I was towed on more then a few occasions, mostly after getting stuck in bad terrain/mudd. I was on Strv 103, ( S-tank), which sucked for towing, the Centurion on the other hand had a huge torque and was perfect for it. I once saw three Centurions serial connected in order to pull a fourth one out of a ditch. Well the one inch steel cable snapped of with a loud bang and a lightning flash! Someone could really have hurt himself that time.

[IDF_TANKER]

No problem what so ever. I was towed on more then a few occasions, mostly after getting stuck in bad terrain/mudd. I was on Strv 103, ( S-tank), which sucked for towing, the Centurion on the other hand had a huge torque and was perfect for it. I once saw three Centurions serial connected in order to pull a fourth one out of a ditch. Well the one inch steel cable snapped of with a loud bang and a lightning flash! Someone could really have hurt himself that time.
x2
Towing tanks by other tanks is a pretty standard routine. Every tank has the towing cables as part of its standard equipment. In easy cases a tank can be towed by a tank or two tanks. In more difficult cases it will be towed by a special recovery vehicle. The IDF "tow track":
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/9693/80172351mp7.pnghttp://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7706/48720884sg4.pnghttp://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?t=101202&page=18

P.S. A recovery vehicle and the special towing tank(like the one above) are not necessarily the same. In IDF, for instance, there is a recovery vehicle in every armour company(an upgraded M113 APC with the special gear for field repairs).

[lt tahoe]

[QUOTE=IDF_TANKER;2917280]x2
The IDF "tow track":
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/9693/80172351mp7.png
[QUOTE]

Which is just a US M88 recovery vehicle with add-on slat armor and cupola, it appears. But the M88 is based on the M60 tank chassis, so again basically a tank towing a tank. Most ARVs are based on current or older MBTs, in order to have the power to tow another MBT. Even the German "Maus" could be towed--by a couple other Mauses (Mausi? Mise?), as I recall.

[Freibier]

[quote=IDF_TANKER;2917280]x2
by a couple other Mauses (Mausi? Mise?), as I recall.
Maus -> Mäuse

[BugHunt]

There were lots of reported instances where a Tiger towed another Tiger out of harms way although it was stricly forbidden as it halfed the life of the transmission in the towing Tiger.

Sometimes they would link two or three tigers to do the towing....


Hence why the german army invented the Berge Tiger for recovery of these huge expensive hard to replace beasts...

http://www.2iemeguerre.com/blindes/images/image377.jpg


http://www.aaamodels.co.uk/List_Pics/MAC_AMC/AMC_72101_BERGE_TIGER.JPG

[Jippo]

Normal routine with 3 tank platoon when enemy immobilises the tank is to get one tank in front to cover, and another tank in the rear to tow. TC's hook the tanks together and damaged tank is towed to rear. Each tank is equipped with towing cables and hooks, and either one has huge carabiner lock for fast attachment and release.

[Angelino]

When three Tigers aren't enough to do the job, bring on the Elephant!
http://www.wewerethere.mod.uk/ww2/images/sherman_lg.jpg

Seriously though, the picture caption reads:
The British commander and Indian crew of a Sherman tank of the 9th Royal Deccan Horse, 255th Indian Tank Brigade, encounter a newly liberated elephant on the road to Meiktila, Burma 1945.
Courtesy of: Imperial War Museum (SE 3640)
Link from: http://www.wewerethere.mod.uk/ww2/india_1.html

[Freibier]

Sometimes they would link two or three tigers to do the towing....


Hence why the german army invented the Berge Tiger for recovery of these huge expensive hard to replace beasts...

http://www.2iemeguerre.com/blindes/images/image377.jpg


http://www.aaamodels.co.uk/List_Pics/MAC_AMC/AMC_72101_BERGE_TIGER.JPG
Almost everything indicates that this wasn't a Bergepanzer but a Demolition charge laying vehicle ;)
Till the introduction of the Bergepanther, the standard recovery vehicles with Tiger units were Sd.Kfz.9 - usually three of them to tow a single Tiger!

[BugHunt]

Dont you be dissing my Berge! *SHAKES FIST* :backhand:


What makes you think its a demo vehicle? p-)

[Freibier]

That tiny crane would simply break off in any tow attempt.
The vehicle was one of the 45 Tigers that equipped the 508th Schwere Heeres Panzer Abteilung in late 1943 before the unit was deployed to counter the Allied landings in Anzio in January 1944. The 508th took it upon themselves to modify one of their Tiger Is by removing the main gun and adding heavy winch on top of the turret. The winch could not be operated from within the vehicle, so as far as I can tell, a crewman or crewmen would have to exit via the rear turret escape hatch to operate the winch under fire and lay the demolition charges. This vehicle was eventually abandoned and when the Allies happened upon it they thought that it was a recovery vehicle - this is probably why Dragon gave it the incorrect designation.

[hank]

That tiny crane would simply break off in any tow attempt.
The vehicle was one of the 45 Tigers that equipped the 508th Schwere Heeres Panzer Abteilung in late 1943 before the unit was deployed to counter the Allied landings in Anzio in January 1944. The 508th took it upon themselves to modify one of their Tiger Is by removing the main gun and adding heavy winch on top of the turret. The winch could not be operated from within the vehicle, so as far as I can tell, a crewman or crewmen would have to exit via the rear turret escape hatch to operate the winch under fire and lay the demolition charges. This vehicle was eventually abandoned and when the Allies happened upon it they thought that it was a recovery vehicle - this is probably why Dragon gave it the incorrect designation.

I'm totally not disagreeing with you but it is a little curious to me that the Germans would modify a Tiger for demolition laying purposes. Tigers were always in short supply. I agree with you though and have read somewhere that Tigers were recovered with three sdkfz 9s. Interesting

hank

[BugHunt]

That tiny crane would simply break off in any tow attempt.
The vehicle was one of the 45 Tigers that equipped the 508th Schwere Heeres Panzer Abteilung in late 1943 before the unit was deployed to counter the Allied landings in Anzio in January 1944. The 508th took it upon themselves to modify one of their Tiger Is by removing the main gun and adding heavy winch on top of the turret. The winch could not be operated from within the vehicle, so as far as I can tell, a crewman or crewmen would have to exit via the rear turret escape hatch to operate the winch under fire and lay the demolition charges. This vehicle was eventually abandoned and when the Allies happened upon it they thought that it was a recovery vehicle - this is probably why Dragon gave it the incorrect designation.

Smart arse ;)

Ill bet they didnt pick popular crew members to play winchman....:)

[Freibier]

Ill bet they didnt pick popular crew members to play winchman....:)
Soldat Meier: Herr Hauptmann, you don't have anything against me do you?
Hauptmann: Nein! Now man that wench, Meier, SCHNELL SCHNELL!!!!
p-)
Bergepanther:
http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/7774/bergepanthermg6.jpg

[Kragh]

Can you tow a tank ?

The answer is yes - a routine task for any armoured unit :)

http://www.hok.dk/galleri/photokorn/photos/10/med_kampvogn-over-skr-nt.jpg

[Herrmannek]

there is tow and the tow... Can tanks be towed for lets say a 100km on a curvy road?

[Freibier]

Probably but not practical.

Usually you only tow to the next trailer or shop, if that's 100km over curvy roads away, I'd rather blow the tank in place ;)

[James]

That tiny crane would simply break off in any tow attempt.


It might have been a different vehicle, but I've seen pictures of German tank recovery vehicles on the Eastern front using a similar crane to lift the engine out of a tank for maintenance/replacement, not for towing.

[Freibier]

Yeah, but those vehicles were open topped and had a much more powerfull wench (40T), like this:
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/1002/bergepantherst03os3.jpg


http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/2471/p04wk2.jpg
http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/8894/p03zf0.jpg
Just compare that to the tiny wench on the Bergetiger
And you're right, those wenches were usually not meant for towing, my bad, should've worded that differently.
Still the little Bergetiger crane would not suffice to get a Maybach engine out.

Tiger towed the "conventional" way, the 3rd sdkfz is out of the picture
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/1457/p02xi8.jpg

[lt tahoe]

Cheers Freiber, for the correct plural on Maus :)

I have to agree, though, that it seems unlikely they would use a Tiger for something like that--when they had the Sprengladungstrager that would be a hell of a lot cheaper, and doesn't take away the combat power.

[capixaba]

Cheers Freiber, for the correct plural on Maus :)

I have to agree, though, that it seems unlikely they would use a Tiger for something like that--when they had the Sprengladungstrager that would be a hell of a lot cheaper, and doesn't take away the combat power.

Here's some pics of a bogged Tiger being pulled out by another Tiger
Check out the site they came from.... some nice Tiger pics there.
http://www.alanhamby.com/tiger.html
There is a pic somewhre of a Tiger towing another Tiger on the road (Normandy) and it mentioned also in the caption that it was forbidden practice.
The other pic looks pretty much like the field crane in use - certainly you wouldn't use it to tow anything, just picking up heavy s--t.

[Kilkenny]

Yes, you can TOW a tank.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_nvA6d5CNk

[Herrmannek]

[Road safety a tip]If you tow a tank don't turn on emergency blinkers permanently use safety triangle instead...![/tip]

[loganinkosovo]

http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/m88a1e1.htm

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ground/m88.htm

http://www.inetres.com/gp/military/cv/eng/M88.html

Tow cables made of wire rope with steel turnbuckles are issued to each tank and are crossed over left to right and right to left when installed on the towing clevises in towing. The driver of the towed vehicle must be buttoned up during towing in case of a tow cable breaking. If the towed vehicle cannot be levered into neutral the final drive collars are removed and the final drive gears are popped out of the final drives with a tankers bar.

The tow cables are almost never used since full steel towing bars are carried with each company and battalion maintenance section.

You can even tow start a tank with dead batteries like you would push start a manual transmission car.

[Jippo]

You can even tow start a tank with dead batteries like you would push start a manual transmission car.


Depends on the tank.

[Kaplanr]

[Road safety a tip]If you tow a tank don't turn on emergency blinkers permanently use safety triangle instead...![/tip]

Make sure it's in neutral, that the parking brake is off; oh, and don't leave your valuables inside.

"The (Reichwehr, Bundeswher, Armoured Corps, Heyl Shiryon...) isn't responsible for personal property left in vehicles. Park at your own risk."

[Hollis]

When I was with ATs at Del Mar, The tank retriever where there too. They had some bogs not far away where they would practice retrieving stuck tanks and other vehicles.

http://www.olive-drab.com/idphoto/id_photos_recovery_m88.php

[jorn]

when i was in lebanon whe had to be towed by a m113 of the engeneers.whe where driving whit a aifvc25.,its not a tank but also heavy.you only need power to start roling.