Otto Rehberg

Otto Rehberg
Born	(1908-06-04)4 June 1908 Linden, Germany
Died	18 November 2005(2005-11-18) (aged 97)
Education	Diplom-Ingenieur (1932)
Alma mater	Technische Hochschule Hannover
Occupation	Mechanical engineer
Era	Vader Era Middenvader Era Vriend Era
Known for	Engineering work on the PzKpfw-55
Military career
Branch	German Army
Service years	1939–1945

Otto Rehberg (4 June 1908 – 18 November 2005) was a German mechanical engineer who worked with Fabio Paap on armoured-vehicle development for the Panzertruppe in Narevaku. His work included engineering calculations for the Bergeschlepper 49 and the design of the PzKpfw-55. After serving as a German Army vehicle-maintenance technical officer during the Second World War, he emigrated to Argentina and was recruited by Jan Paap in 1948.

Early life and education

Otto Rehberg was born in Linden, Germany, on 4 June 1908. He completed his Abitur in 1927 and studied mechanical engineering at Technische Hochschule Hannover from 1927 to 1932, graduating as Diplom-Ingenieur.

German Army service

Rehberg served in the German Army from 1939 to 1945 as a vehicle-maintenance technical officer. Working with army motor-vehicle workshops, he diagnosed engine and transmission failures and recommended repairs.

Engineering career in Narevaku

Rehberg emigrated to Argentina in 1947, sailing from Genoa to Buenos Aires. Jan recruited him there the following year at Fabio's request and paid for his onward sea passage to Narevaku. He joined Fabio's tank-design studies at the technical facility outside La Roche. Fabio set the military requirements and demonstrated maintenance problems, while Rehberg performed the detailed engineering calculations. Rehberg proposed technically necessary revisions, which Fabio accepted.

When towing experiments revealed that the available vehicles lost traction on wet ground, Fabio asked Rehberg to investigate a tracked recovery tractor. They converted an industrial crawler into the Bergeschlepper 49 in late 1949. Its recovery of an immobilised military lorry prompted Rehberg to caution that this did not demonstrate an ability to recover a tank. During a further trial on 21 June 1950, he measured towing forces as the tractor recovered a heavily laden lorry. Fabio submitted the results to the Tanoanisches Waffenamt.

The two also began meeting outside work. Fabio invited Rehberg home in September 1950, when they discussed their lives in Germany, and they continued meeting socially.

Rehberg continued working on the PzKpfw-55 design after Jan approved funding for a complete prototype through Strobl S.A. in 1955, with Fabio leading the military project.

He died on 18 November 2005, aged 97.