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There’s nothing gentle about the vehicle known officially as the “38cm RW61 auf Sturmmörser Tiger”, a vehicle designed specifically to destroy buildings and strong-points. An enormous 38cm mortar was mounted in a fixed casemate atop a Tiger I chassis, instead of the usual turret-mounted 8.8cm gun. Interestingly, the massive mortar fired rocket-assisted ammunition, with vents in the wall of the gun tube designed to exhaust the gases forward. The 38cm weapon had a creditable maximum range of 4,600m and the complete Sturmtiger vehicle weighed a staggering 65 tons.
Only 18 such Sturmtigers were converted by Alkett at its Berlin-Spandau plant from August to December 1944. They were mainly used in the defense of Germany, and this is the case with Dragon Armor’s latest 1/72 scale incarnation of the 38cm RW61 auf Sturmmörser Tiger. This Sturmtiger model is based on a vehicle from Sturm-Mörser-Kompanie 1001 that fought in the vicinity of Bonn in 1945. This unit was established on September 23 1944, with its final engagement being on the east bank of the Rhine in early 1945 as German forces retreated. The accurately detailed model wears a three-color camouflage scheme of green and red-brown over a sand-yellow base. Interestingly, the lower parts of the model show traces of white, probably the last vestiges of a hastily applied coat of winter whitewash. The expertly painted and weathered model is fully detailed, and it’s sure to be a big hit with collectors of German armor! |
