maus (tank)
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The Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus ("Mouse") was a German World War II super-heavy tank prototype design completed in late 1944.
It is the heaviest fully enclosed armored fighting vehicle ever built. The complete vehicle was 10.2 metres (33 ft 6 in) long, 3.71 metres (12 ft 2 in) wide and 3.63 metres (11.9 ft) high. Weighing 188 metric tons, the Maus's main armament was the Krupp-designed 128 mm KwK 44 L/55 gun, based on the 12.8 cm Pak 44 anti-tank field artillery piece also used in the casemate-type Jagdtiger tank destroyer, with a coaxial 75 mm KwK 44 L/36.5 gun. The 128 mm gun was powerful enough to destroy all Allied armored fighting vehicles then in service, some at ranges exceeding 3,500 metres (3,800 yd).
However, the vehicle's extreme weight meant that it was ridiculously slow and impractical, being a perfect target for bombing runs by aircraft. In addition, it was a logistical nightmare, needing absurd amounts of fuel and being difficult to maintain and repair. If fielded in large numbers, it would most likely not have had any significant effect on the war effort due to its complete unsuitability for the mobile, air-dominated battlefield. Only two prototypes were constructed, the first of which did not have an actual turret. The second prototype had its hull destroyed by the Germans to prevent Russian forces from capturing it. The surviving Maus in Kublinka tank museum today is the turret from the second prototype on the hull of the first prototype.
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