Inside the Tiger

During my career as a journalist contributing to publications for military enthusiasts, I have attended many shows and events, including training weekends where instructions are given on how to drive a tank or wheeled vehicle such as a jeep or truck. I have also been invited to ride on and inside some of these vehicles, which is always a thrilling experience. If asked to say which one is my favorite, I would have to say they all are because each is different and as exciting as the next.

I suppose while serving in the British Army in the 1970s, riding in trucks or APCs became a routine for me all part of a day’s work. This carried over when I left the Army to pursue my career as a journalist and cover NATO exercises such as ‘Reforger’; Return Forces to Germany, where the press were transported in the likes of Stalwart trucks, which are now in private ownership with enthusiasts. We used to climb into the rear of Abbot SPGs or one of the series in the CVR(T) range such as the Sultan command vehicle. Interestingly, examples of both these types are also in private ownerships and appear at shows. From these experiences I can understand how an invitation for a visitor to a show to look inside a vehicle is a rare treat and not to be refused.

It is only natural for us to be curious and want to know what the interior of interesting military vehicles looks like; wondering where the crew sat and what goes on inside a tank. I’ve found that vehicle owners don’t mind being asked if it’s OK to look inside, take a look at the engine and snap some photographs. At shows, owners will often display their vehicles with the doors open to make photography easier and give people a chance to look inside the vehicle.

At the Tank Museum at Bovington in Dorset, England, the vehicles participating in the mobility displays during the annual Tankfest Show are parked with side hatches open so visitors can peer inside. In some cases, someone has thoughtfully placed a gantry alongside to allow visitors to look into the turret and take photographs. Queues quickly form with visitors waiting patiently in line to see inside a historic machine.

The Tank Museum has for many years displayed a Mk 3 Centurion tank which has been cut in half down its entire length to expose the interior. It is not an easy thing to cut in half a tank weighing 50 tons, and do it with precision. It took apprentices on the training program at the Royal Ordnance Factory in Leeds two years between 1982 and 1984 to achieve the result.

Life-sized mannequins have been placed in the crew positions to show driver, gunner, loader and commander. The vehicle is exhibited so that visitors walk between the two halves to see all the intricacies of the interior, from the engine to the gun mounting and the thickness of the armor, the exposed edges of which have been painted red for effect. In other parts of the museum exhibits are shown with sections cut away from the turrets with the same precision, such as on a T-55 training tank, to expose the interior. These are fascinating displays and looking at them I find myself wondering about the difficulties involved in casting something so large, complicated and heavy.

Any armored fighting vehicle is a complicated thing to design, and looking at them in museums allows us to appreciate them in detail. On occasion I have been privileged to meet WWII veterans who served in some of the types on display. For example, I met Joe Ekins, who served as a gunner in a Sherman “Firefly” tank with A Squadron, 1st Northamptonshire Yeomanry. On Aug. 8. 1944 near St Aignan-de-Cramesnil in France, he destroyed three Tiger tanks in an action, numbers 312, 314 and 007. He told me how it was long after the war a military historian interviewed him and explained how Tiger 007 was that of the ace Michael Wittmann. Ekins told me that until then he did not know anything about his adversaries from that day over 40 years earlier. He was a very modest man and sadly passed away in 2012, having probably spent more time inside a Firefly than almost anybody else.

In October 2016 I was invited by the Tank Museum in Bovington, to cover the opening of the new Tiger Tank Hall. Among the men I met that day was Waldermar Pliska, who served as a driver in the 7th Panzer Division. He was joined by Wilhelm Fischer, another German WWII veteran who had also served in Tiger tanks. At the time these men were just a handful of veterans who had spent more time inside a Tiger than any other person alive at the time. Like Ekins, these men were very modest about their achievements, despite having served in what is probably the most famous tank of WWII. They were joined on the occasion by British veterans who had served against them in France, including former L/Cpl Ken Tout of the Northamptonshire Yeomanry.

When looking inside some of the wartime tanks it’s incredible to think how much was crammed into such a small space. For example, the British Matilda II was operated by a crew of five men with 92 rounds for the .40-cal. 2-Pounder gun and almost 3,000 rounds for the machine guns stowed in there with them. The Tiger I was much larger, but also had a five-man crew and carried 92 rounds of .88-cal. ammunition and almost 4,000 rounds for the machine guns. Stowing all of this inside an already claustrophobic space made conditions inside the tank even more cramped. The driver’s position was perhaps the worst place in the vehicle, right at the front of the tank.

In many countries each year there are plenty of military vehicle shows where visitors can wander around snapping away freely and enjoying a glimpse inside. Britain is no exception and owners, seeing the attention their vehicles attract, start chatting and answer questions about technical details. I have learned many things about tanks at these events.

Even after being around historic vehicles for so many years I always accept invitations to look inside a tank, APC or even just sit in a truck. Each has its unique history. If you have not yet experienced it yet, take the opportunity to get into a tank if it is presented. Squeezing into one will give you a whole new outlook on historic tanks and the men who drove them. 

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