GA-54 - German King Tiger #123, Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B with "Porsche Turret"

Please note these are limited edition pre-order items. We have 5 set aside for the shop and once they are sold out they are gone. These will be shipped to the shop from January 12th 2025 and we will send them out to orders as soon as they arrive.

After reconstituting in May and June 1944, s.Pz.Abt. 503 was transported to the Normandy front in the first week of July. It was attached to Panzer-Regiment 22 (Pz.Rgt. 22) of the 21. Panzer-Division to increase that division's combat power, which had suffered significant armored losses since June. On 18 July 1944, s.Pz.Abt. 503 found itself deployed northeast of the village of Cagny, in support of Kampfgruppe von Luck. It was on this day when Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery launched Operation Goodwood, an ambitious offensive east of Caen designed to punch through German defenses and seize the strategic high ground beyond the Bourguébus Ridge. For the British, it was one of the largest tank battles they had ever fought. For the Germans, it was a test of resolve and survival.

Goodwood began with a massive aerial bombardment involving over 2,000 Allied bombers targeting German positions. This bombardment struck the assembly areas of Panzer-Regiment 21 and the 3. Kompanie of s.Pz.Abt. 503 particularly hard. Most of the Panzer IVs of Pz.Rgt. 22 were damaged or destroyed, and almost all of the Tiger I tanks of 3./s.Pz.Abt. 503 were damaged and buried in dirt and bomb craters...some of the 56-ton Tigers were even flipped completely upside down. In contrast, 1./s.Pz.Abt. 503 fared somewhat better and escaped the bombardment relatively intact.

Following the air attack, the 7th Armoured Division, 11th Armoured Division, and Guards Armoured Division advanced across open terrain between the Orne and Dives rivers. After some initial British gains, including the capture of several villages and the destruction of some German units,  they met siff resistance as the Germans rallied by noon and launched fierce counterattacks. The surviving Panzer IVs of Pz.Rgt. 22, along with the King Tigers of 1./s.Pz.Abt. 503, initially attacked along the Troarn–Caen road, and for the the rest of the day fierce fighting raged between the King Tigers and British tanks, particularly those of the Guards Armoured Division. Pz.Rgt. 22 and the 1./s.Pz.Abt. 503 initially reached Demouville, but by the end of the day the King Tigers had withdrawn to concentrate around Maneville, and repulsed further British attacks to the southeast. Over the course of the day's fighting, s.Pz.Abt. 503 knocked out 40 British tanks.

Fighting continued for the next two days, and the 21. Panzer-Division, s.Pz.Abt. 503, and the 1. SS-Panzer Division "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler" (LAH) mounted a determined defense that halted the British offensive. By the end of the operation, British forces suffered over 4,000 casualties and lost 300–400 tanks, with minimal territorial gains beyond the southern suburbs of Caen. Although a tactical disappointment, Operation Goodwood succeeded in tying down German armored reserves, helping pave the way for Operation Cobra, the successful American breakout to the west.

The JJ Designs release of King Tiger #123 of 1./s.Pz.Abt. 503, represents one of the unit's King Tigers, equipped with the early-production “Porsche turret.”

However, this description is a misnomer, as Dr. Ferdinand Porsche had nothing to do with the design or construction of the turret. In reality, the turret was designed and manufactured by Krupp, and it was originally intended to fit either of the competing Tiger II chassis designs: one from Henschel, the other from Porsche. Ultimately, Porsche’s chassis was rejected due to mechanical and reliability issues, and Henschel’s design was chosen for production. For unclear reasons, early post-war historians and armor enthusiasts retroactively dubbed these turrets the “Porsche turret.” While the term persists today, it is more a matter of convenience than a reflection of historical reality.

In addition to the "Porsche turret", King Tiger #123 also features several early production characteristics of the Tiger II, including the one-piece 8.8cm KwK43 cannon, finished in factory grey heat-resistant lacquer, and equipped with the muzzle brake from the Tiger I. It also includes the early-style exhaust system, also reminiscent of the Tiger I. King Tiger #123 is painted in a field-applied, irregular blotchy tri-color scheme of Dunkelgelb, Olivgrün, and Rotbraun, typical of s.Pz.Abt. 503’s King Tigers.

The JJD King Tiger #123 also includes the following features:

All hatches open and close

Detailed turret and hull interior

Detailed engine bay

Removable side mudguards

Brand: John Jenkins