WATCH: German Tank Rolls Into Plainview On WW II Anniversary

PLAINVIEW, NY — A replica of a German army tank used during World War II has rolled into Plainview for the 75th anniversary of the deadliest war in history.

World War II, which began Sept. 1, 1939, and lasted six years, involved more than 100 million people spanning 30 countries. About 291,000 Americans were killed in combat, though the total is about 400,000 including disease, accidents and other factors. Overall, about 15 million people died in battle and about 45 million civilians died.

The Museum of American Armor on Round Swamp Road marked the anniversary with the arrival of an operational replica Tiger I tank, which it hopes will remind visitors of the courage and sacrifice Americans needed to defeat the well-armed and implacable Axis. The museum told Patch the tank arrived Wednesday and is now a permanent part of the collection.

The museum is presenting several replicas of enemy armor for to educate visitors — especially kids — what it takes to defeat tyranny, Lawrence Kadish, president and founder of the museum, said in a news release.

"Those who faced down the Nazi Tiger knew that their odds of destroying it were small, but they confronted it in the knowledge that the Nazis had to be defeated at all costs," he said. "This operational reproduction helps tell that story."

The Tiger tank was fashioned from a former East German tank that was once part of a military force that confronted NATO during the Cold War, the museum said. It was later demilitarized and sold, then converted into a replica Tiger tank.

With an 88 mm gun that was lethal at long range, historians say the Tiger tank was the most powerful in the world when it was introduced in 1942. The vehicle was heavily armored making it nearly impossible to attack head-on.

The museum has about 40 operational military vehicles.