Dragon German Panther Ersatz M10 in 1:35 scale

"Operation Greif" was a German counteroffensive planned for the Ardennes region of Belgium. In December 1944, a special unit called Panzer Brigade 150 was assembled with English-speaking soldiers and equipped with American vehicles and lookalikes. Five Panther tanks were modified to resemble American M10 Tank Destroyers with shaped metal parts on the glacis, hull sides, hull rear and turret. Phony US Army markings were applied and the Panthers were painted to simulate US Olive Drab. According to German documentation, five Panther Gs were specifically modified for “Operation Greif.” Four were documented in American postwar reports as having marking numbers B4, B5, B7 and B10. The presence of a fifth Panther has not yet been confirmed by photographs.

This model was built out of the box for a group build at our AMPS Central Virginia chapter. The tracks are separate links included in the kit. The parts to depict the M10 were not very good compared to the Panther kit itself. The rear plate and the turret armor was warped but was coaxed into position.

This model represents Panther B5 that so far has not been confirmed in photos; therefore it represents a hybrid of features from the known Panthers. Markings were airbrushed with tape stencils in the style of the reference photos. They were crude and not as perfectly-shaped as US-applied ones.

The model was painted German Dunkelgrun. It was prevalent in late 1944 and would most likely been used by the Germans to mimic US Olive Drab.