Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
05-16-2010 | 01:34 PM
#1
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From: Charleston, SC
05-16-2010 | 07:15 PM
#2
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
Interesting but it seems they dragged it out in a very clumsy and inefficient way. With all the heavy gear they had, a flat bed could have been placed in the area instead of plowing up the entire beach. Note toward the end , the sand had jammed up all the road wheels that were previously rolling free. [:-]
05-16-2010 | 07:58 PM
#3
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
I have to agree these guys don't do this for a living or may have not ever recovered a vehicle before. It would have been 100 times easier to winch it up on the back of a flat bed trailer designed for a bull dozer or the trailer they brought the shovel out to the beach with. I guess it wasn't still there for them to use. The two tracked vehicles they finally towed it with looked military I think I would have asked to borrow a tank recovery vehicle. they would have been out of there in a day.
Just my two pennies.
Steve
Just my two pennies.
Steve
05-16-2010 | 08:47 PM
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From: exeterdevon, UNITED KINGDOM
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
The Poles who did this obviously went to a lot of effort to accomplish the recovery, and should be commended, not criticized. Most Poles, given the history of the country and the Nazi occupation, would have gladly said, '**** it, let it rot', sobe grateful that they bothered to recover a piece of history. We're all experts in retrospect and in the comfort of our armchairs.Oh, and 'Szary Wilk' translates to 'Gray Wolf'. I'm Polish, if you hadn't guessed.
05-17-2010 | 12:14 AM
#5
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
This would have been a combined military/civilian recovery effort, military because the vehicle is a 'State Treasure', and also because of the ordinance still in the AFV. And that was a tank recovery vehicle used in the initial recovery from the Sea, the second tracked AFV was an amphib unit.
Still and all, not a bad recovery effort. However, the crowds should have been kept way back from the area. If the tow cable had snapped, it may well have whipped thru the crowd with distressing results.
Interesting too to see a CUTV in the recovery vid. Guess when we were done with them we sold them off to whomever would buy those gawd awful things.
Still and all, not a bad recovery effort. However, the crowds should have been kept way back from the area. If the tow cable had snapped, it may well have whipped thru the crowd with distressing results.
Interesting too to see a CUTV in the recovery vid. Guess when we were done with them we sold them off to whomever would buy those gawd awful things.
05-17-2010 | 02:25 AM
#6
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
I did not mean to offend anyone, I was just critisizing their methods not them personally and Bob was right if that cable had snapped with all that tension on it, it could have very easily killed a couple people. I'm no expert but having workedaround largewreckersrecovering fully loaded tractor trailers and dump trucksfor about a year,I have seen what can happenif your methods are faulty.
At the very least you damage the equipment and at worst someone gets killed. I just think they could have found someone who may have been morefamilar with that type of recovery operation, like an underwater salvage company for example. The fact that they are Polish doesn't enter into it. All the instances in my experience the people were Americans. Ignorance knows no nationality.
Sorry if I hurt anyones feelings.
Steve
At the very least you damage the equipment and at worst someone gets killed. I just think they could have found someone who may have been morefamilar with that type of recovery operation, like an underwater salvage company for example. The fact that they are Polish doesn't enter into it. All the instances in my experience the people were Americans. Ignorance knows no nationality.
Sorry if I hurt anyones feelings.
Steve
05-17-2010 | 06:01 AM
#7
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
I can't see where you offended anyone. I've seen some pretty scary recovery ops in my time, and also had the honor of watching a brand new TOW Humvee sling loaded beneath a beater loose it's grip and fall about 30m to the ground. Not pretty. I was simply trying to point out that the military was involved because of the ordinance suspected of being aboard, and the recover AFV and the Amphib were of course military. No offense taken on my part at all.
05-17-2010 | 07:54 AM
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From: exeterdevon, UNITED KINGDOM
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
You didn't offend anyone; you're right about the cable though-hadn't occurred to me. The tension in that could cut someone in half if it broke!
ORIGINAL: Shark27
I did not mean to offend anyone, I was just critisizing their methods not them personally and Bob was right if that cable had snapped with all that tension on it, it could have very easily killed a couple people. I'm no expert but having workedaround largewreckersrecovering fully loaded tractor trailers and dump trucksfor about a year,I have seen what can happenif your methods are faulty.
At the very least you damage the equipment and at worst someone gets killed. I just think they could have found someone who may have been morefamilar with that type of recovery operation, like an underwater salvage company for example. The fact that they are Polish doesn't enter into it. All the instances in my experience the people were Americans. Ignorance knows no nationality.
Sorry if I hurt anyones feelings.
Steve
I did not mean to offend anyone, I was just critisizing their methods not them personally and Bob was right if that cable had snapped with all that tension on it, it could have very easily killed a couple people. I'm no expert but having workedaround largewreckersrecovering fully loaded tractor trailers and dump trucksfor about a year,I have seen what can happenif your methods are faulty.
At the very least you damage the equipment and at worst someone gets killed. I just think they could have found someone who may have been morefamilar with that type of recovery operation, like an underwater salvage company for example. The fact that they are Polish doesn't enter into it. All the instances in my experience the people were Americans. Ignorance knows no nationality.
Sorry if I hurt anyones feelings.
Steve
05-17-2010 | 09:39 AM
#9
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
There have been a few vehicles recovered from this region the Hetzer was recovered a few years back and yes there was a lot of live ammunition still in the tank when recovered, it seems that the Germans where retreating during winter 1944-45 and using the sea which was frozen to escape it’s thought that either some vehicles fell through the ice or where hit and burned before falling though the ice as could be the case with the Hetzer, as Bob will tell you ammunition becomes volatile and unstable after many years so recovery is a very delicate operation people are killed every year in France, Belgium and Germany sometimes by ploughing fields or relic hunting, have a look on Youtube there are endless films of people digging and recovering all manner of weapons in Russia
05-17-2010 | 10:15 AM
#10
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
Oh yes, the older the ammo gets the more unstable it gets. Even being submerged often does not harm it, so one has to be always careful.
The relic hunters here are always blowing themselves up. Ammo and weapons are still all over the place, not only from the War, but the revolution and before. Just 3 or so years or so ago we had some young lads digging a hot water feed pipe trench in Inkerman at the foot of the harbor, of course by hand. One of them hit a bomb with his shovel, and now we got 4 dead teenagers.
Watching the vids on youtube of some of the relic hunters will make your hair stand on end with the careless way they handle old ordinance. Not this old Shirt! Treat it with great care, always!
The relic hunters here are always blowing themselves up. Ammo and weapons are still all over the place, not only from the War, but the revolution and before. Just 3 or so years or so ago we had some young lads digging a hot water feed pipe trench in Inkerman at the foot of the harbor, of course by hand. One of them hit a bomb with his shovel, and now we got 4 dead teenagers.
Watching the vids on youtube of some of the relic hunters will make your hair stand on end with the careless way they handle old ordinance. Not this old Shirt! Treat it with great care, always!
05-17-2010 | 10:23 AM
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From: Fort Walton Beach, FL
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
Question: What scenario would likely give reason for that Hetzer to have been that far into the shore of the Baltic sea? Was it's position likely where the waters of the Baltic met the shore that long ago or was this a failed transportation effort during that time?
05-17-2010 | 10:26 AM
#12
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
The Poles are avid military enthusiasts. They have a great many military vehicle clubs, just like the US, with many T-34s, German/Czech 1/2 tracks and mock Tigers built from T-54-34 chassis. They wouldn't have let this rot away and are probably in the process of restoration. Just the clumsy manner in which they dragged it out is in question.
05-17-2010 | 10:51 AM
#13
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
During very cold winters the sea in this area freezes hence why the Hetzer was so far from the shore line, it’s thought that it was lost during a retreat.
Here in Belgium it’s illegal to go relic hunting but it’s still done on a regular basis as is the surrendering of WWII weapons usually held in barns and kept just in case of another invasion, after WWI when the troops left the trenches there was a vast amount of live ordinance left behind this was merely thrown back into the trench buried and forgot nearly 100 years latter it’s deadly and just waiting to be disturbed
Here in Belgium it’s illegal to go relic hunting but it’s still done on a regular basis as is the surrendering of WWII weapons usually held in barns and kept just in case of another invasion, after WWI when the troops left the trenches there was a vast amount of live ordinance left behind this was merely thrown back into the trench buried and forgot nearly 100 years latter it’s deadly and just waiting to be disturbed
05-17-2010 | 07:02 PM
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From: exeterdevon, UNITED KINGDOM
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
From what I read live, unstable WW1 ordnance is still being ploughed up in Belgium, in significant quantities. It gets left in piles by the side of the road for the Belgian army bomb disposal guys to deal with, apparently!
ORIGINAL: rivetcounter
During very cold winters the sea in this area freezes hence why the Hetzer was so far from the shore line, it’s thought that it was lost during a retreat.
Here in Belgium it’s illegal to go relic hunting but it’s still done on a regular basis as is the surrendering of WWII weapons usually held in barns and kept just in case of another invasion, after WWI when the troops left the trenches there was a vast amount of live ordinance left behind this was merely thrown back into the trench buried and forgot nearly 100 years latter it’s deadly and just waiting to be disturbed
During very cold winters the sea in this area freezes hence why the Hetzer was so far from the shore line, it’s thought that it was lost during a retreat.
Here in Belgium it’s illegal to go relic hunting but it’s still done on a regular basis as is the surrendering of WWII weapons usually held in barns and kept just in case of another invasion, after WWI when the troops left the trenches there was a vast amount of live ordinance left behind this was merely thrown back into the trench buried and forgot nearly 100 years latter it’s deadly and just waiting to be disturbed
05-17-2010 | 07:04 PM
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From: exeterdevon, UNITED KINGDOM
RE: Hetzer Recovered From Baltic
Absolutely; the time, money and dedication involved in restoring these hulks is significant and hugely appreciated by us enthusiasts.
ORIGINAL: HAL_HUSKER
awesome. respect to these enthusiasts.</p>
awesome. respect to these enthusiasts.</p>
