There's a debate going on over at Missing-Lynx
http://www.network54.com/Hide/Forum/...eid=1079988082 about what this marking meant, and with the idea that there may be some here who don't visit that forum, I want to raise it over here.
The marking we're talking about is a large letter G apparently painted on some vehicles. It appears primarily on Tiger IIs in the winter of 1944-45 (but also on Jagdpanther and some other vehicles), and usually on the glacis plate (but in one instance on the rear plate). Probably the most famous example is the tank shown below. This is headquarters tank 008 of schwere SS-PanzerAbteilung 501, part of Kampfgruppe Peiper, shown moving toward the front after leaving its pre-Ardennes assembly area on 16 Dec 44.
The most bandied-about theories are:
1. A marking for the march route the tank was supposed to take during the Ardennes Offensive. That doesn't really hold water because the G only appears on one s. SS-501 tank in the Ardennes, and s. SS-501 was supposed to use Rollbahn D as its route, and there wasn't a Rollbahn G anyway.
2. A marking designating the type of antifreeze/coolant to be used. The coolant "Glysantin" was used in some German engines, and some people feel that it wasn't supposed to be mixed with anything else, hence a warning marking. I think this is a more plausible explanation, but why wasn't it on every tank? And why would the marking be on the front of the tank, away from the engine compartment?
Any insights?
Regards,
Greg
"G" on Tiger IIs and other Tanks
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