THIS is the poignant moment two German Tiger tank drivers and their British counterparts met for the first time 72 years after they fought on opposite sides in the Second World War.

Wilhelm Fischer and Waldemar Pliska instilled terror in British troops by manning the fearsome fighting machines and unleashing fury with their huge 88mm guns.

Two of the enemy who had first hand experience of the heavily armoured Tigers were British tank men Ernest Slarks and Dr Ken Tout.

Now aged in their 90s, the four old foes became friends when they assembled yesterday for the launch of an historic exhibition at the Tank Museum in Bovington.

For the first time ever, five of the six variants of the Tiger tank have been brought together in the same place.

The former enemies warmly greeted each other with hugs and handshakes before sharing pleasantries while sat in the shadows of the imposing Tigers.

For Herr Fischer and Herr Pliska, the reunion with the Tigers and Normandy veterans Mr Slarks and Dr Tout stirred up mixed emotions.

Herr Pliska, 92, of Dortmund, said: “Before I arrived at the museum I didn’t know how I was going to react to seeing the tanks.

“When I looked inside it brought back so many memories and emotions which I struggled to control for a few minutes. It was all too much.”

Herr Fischer was knocked unconscious six times by flying shrapnel inside a Tiger during the war. The 93-year-old of Wiesbaden, near Mainz, said: “It is great to meet these British men. Before we were enemies but today we are friends together.

“Seeing the Tigers brings back a lot of emotions. I served in most of these tanks.”

Dr Tout, 93, of West Sussex, said: “To shake hands with people you were trying to shoot so many years ago is a very unusual experience. But it has been absolutely thrilling to meet them because they have so much in common with us.

“You are able in a sense to get a better idea of what the people you were fighting against were thinking because before they were unknown quantities who have been tarnished by propaganda.

“Now you have the chance to realise they are fellow men who have been through similar experiences, lived their lives and are now happy to shake your hands.

“The Tiger Tanks were terrifying, much more powerful and bigger than anything else on the battlefield.”

Ernest Slarks, 94, of Kent, said: “When you heard the name Tiger it filled you with fear. They could fire and take you out from a mile and a half away. It has been amazing, incredible, to meet these Germans after 70 years, although it is a very strange feeling.”