Left photo shows the Austrian platoon commander in SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 1 of the SS-Panzergrenadier-Division Leibstandarte SS SS-Oberscharführer
Kurt Sametreiter during the award of the Knight's Cross on July 31 1943. Sametreiter knocked out 24 Soviet tanks in one engagement during the Battle of Kursk. He ended the war as an officer and SS-Obersturmführer. Kurt Sametreiter died aged 95 on Jan. 28 2017 in Bad Gastein in Austria. Photo by SS-KB Max Büschel. Right photo shows the very first Tiger tank commander to be awarded the Knight's Cross the Austrian SS-Unterscharführer Franz Staudegger. On July 7 1943, a single Tiger n°1325 of SS-Hauptsturmführer
Heinz Kling's 13th (heavy) Company of SS-Panzer-Regiment 1 LSSAH engaged a Soviet group of some 50 T-34 tanks approaching from the northwest in the southern sector of the Kursk salient. The panzer crew commanded by the 20-year-old Staudegger consisted of the driver SS-Sturmmann Herbert Stellmacher, the gunner SS-Pz.Schütze Heinz Buchner, the loader SS-Pz.Schütze Walter Henke and the radio operator SS-Pz.Schütze Gerhard Waltersdorf. They arrived just in time to rescue elements of the SS Infantry battalion Deutschland of Das Reich from being overrun. Guided by the Waffen-SS infantry Staudegger knocked out astonishing 17 Soviet tanks before the enemy started retreating. He then ordered his crew to pursuit the retreating Soviets and knocked out another five tanks – a feat that would earn the young Austrian the coveted Knight's Cross. Staudegger ended the war in the
schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 101 where he reached the rank of SS-Oberscharführer. This heavy tank battalion was present at the
Battle of Normandy in 1944 under the command of SS-Oberführer Heinz von Westernhagen. Franz Staudegger died aged 68 on March 16 1991 in Frankfurt am Main. Photo taken after the award ceremony on July 10 1943. c. Bundesarchiv.
No comments:
Post a Comment