In fact, the M3 Grant tank was a failed design. At that time, American engineers had designed and completed a medium tank equipped with a 37mm main gun in accordance with the requirements of the Army. However, as the German army blitzed Poland and swept across the European continent with armored groups,
The U.S. Army has just realized that the 37mm main gun is no longer useful.
So the U.S. Army quickly revised its requirements for the tanks that will be equipped with the U.S. Army in the future, replacing the original 37mm main gun with a 75mm one. However, a cannon can be drawn on the drawing, but it will be troublesome when it is built. The original
The small turret couldn't hold the 75mm gun at all. As a last resort, the designers had no choice but to modify the drawings and add a height under the turret to place the 75mm gun. And the 37mm gun couldn't be thrown away because
This 75mm gun cannot rotate.
From this design, we can see how makeshift the U.S. Army is. It actually ordered 4,000 of this weird tank. It's so stupid that people have so much money.
The M4 Sherman tank is a medium-sized tank redesigned and produced by the U.S. Army. It weighs 34 tons and is also powered by a gasoline engine. It is 2.8 meters wide, almost 3 meters high, and 5.8 meters long. It is still very long.
Tall and thin. The thickest part of its armor is the gun mantlet, which is 80 mm, the turret is 60 mm, and the top and sides are only more than 20 mm.
The m4 is equipped with a 75mm cannon. Its armor-piercing ability is very average. It can penetrate 100mm of vertically homogeneous armor steel within 500 meters. Its performance in later World War II was the same as that of the famous American generals. It was a good player in fighting with the wind.
.Because it is produced on an assembly line, the output is very high and maintenance is very convenient, but its combat effectiveness is not as good as that of Soviet tanks.
Moreover, m4 had a very vivid nickname "ronson" during World War II. This is an American lighter, and the advertising slogan of this lighter is "One dozen, and every dozen is compared." This nickname is very similar.
How easily the Sherman tank's gasoline engine caught fire.
It is not that General Patton has never seen this type of tank equipped by the federal army. From the military photos, some of the tanks used by Germany on the European continent look like this. However, the artillery obviously does not have such a large caliber.
In awe of the German armored divisions, General Patton decided to invest all his tank troops and anti-tank gun battalions in an effort to use quantitative superiority to make up for the possible quality gap.
As the tank troops from both sides gradually approached, General Patton's eyebrows furrowed even more. In other aspects, he could not see the performance of these federal tanks. However, judging from the situation of this cross-country walking, the federal tanks seemed more comfortable.
It is more agile. This shows that the engine power of the Federal tank is very good, and the track and suspension system are also quite good.
When the tanks on both sides were still about 1,000 meters apart, the entire federal tank arrayed in more than 30 columns suddenly changed. Some of the tanks suddenly braked, then sat back, and the muzzle flashed out.
There was a ball of fire and smoke, and they started shooting!
Several clouds of black smoke immediately rose from the US tank group located 1,000 meters away. Several tanks were hit by bullets and exploded. The surrounding tanks dodged, causing a slight confusion in the US tank group. But this did not end.
, then the federal tanks fired again, and this time some US tanks were hit, exploded or caught fire, and the formation of the US tank group became more and more irregular.
"Give the order to attack at full speed. We can't go on like this. We have to fight hand-to-hand." General Patton said vaguely without taking his eyes off the artillery mirror, holding a large cigar in his mouth.
"Our radio is out of order. It's full of noise. The communication company is trying to find a solution." A miserable man next to him was obviously familiar with his division commander's way of speaking, so he trotted to the tent to convey the order, but soon he
He came back, walked to Barton, and whispered in his ear.
"When did it happen?" This time Patton took his eyes away from the artillery mirror and turned his head to ask the staff officer beside him.
"Just now, ten minutes ago I was on the phone with the regimental commander and battalion commander at the front, and suddenly it stopped working." The staff officer reported truthfully.
"I hope this is just a malfunction. Let the command post pack up everything and follow the emergency evacuation speed." After listening to the staff officer's words, Patton put his eyes on the artillery mirror. A few seconds later, his second order was issued.
.
"...Yes!" The staff officer was obviously surprised by the division commander's order, but he was more aware of the division commander's violent temper. He didn't dare to ask why these three words, so he turned around and went to the tent to find the communications soldier.
What forced Patton to make a retreat was not that the radio failed, but what he saw in the artillery mirror. The federal tanks did start shooting from 1,000 meters away and hit several American tanks, but
This doesn't mean anything. At most, it proves that the big cannon on the federal tank is indeed not a decoration. In large-scale tank battles, in addition to the distance and accuracy of the cannon, more depends on how far apart the two sides are.
The performance of hand-to-hand combat after 100 meters or even dozens of meters.
But when the second round of shelling started immediately, General Patton discovered that the Federal tanks fired all the odd-numbered columns in the first round, and all the even-numbered columns fired in the second round. In other words, even during the driving process, all the tanks fired.
The first vehicle in the odd-numbered column collectively stopped briefly and aimed and fired, while the two tanks following it drove past it. At this time, all the first vehicles in the even-numbered column stopped briefly and opened fire, while the two tanks following it drove past it.
The two tanks behind it also drove past it.
In this way, there are always more than 30 tanks in the federal tank formation firing non-stop, and their formation is not chaotic at all. What does this mean? This shows that the training of this tank unit is very strict, at least more than
The U.S. military must be strict. In the eyes of General Patton, who was known for his rigorous military management, military obedience and discipline were more important than weapons, although
The two sides are still about 300 meters apart, but the U.S. tank formation has become obviously chaotic. Many tanks have been hit and caught fire, and some of the tanks around it have even hit other moving tanks in order to avoid it. From this aspect
, General Patton knew that he encountered a strong enemy today, and he might not be able to win simply by relying on numerical superiority.
Soon, the tanks of both sides passed each other. The flash of the muzzles and the explosion of artillery shells were connected together. In addition, the dust kicked up by the tanks as they drove, the battlefield was covered with a layer of white mist. Through these,
In the smoke, Patton discovered that the Federal tanks had changed their formation, and there were 3 more tanks.
The vehicles formed a small convoy, covering each other's weakest vehicle rear parts while turning backwards, and then began to charge towards the road, once again facing the bombardment of the US tanks, while the tanks of the other 4 teams pounced directly on the tanks.
A U.S. artillery position firing on a U.S. military position.
Due to the hasty start of the war, the U.S. Second Armored Division did not have time to lay anti-tank mines in front of the position, and these more than ten federal tanks drove very fast on this plain terrain. They kept changing directions, and soon
They approached the U.S. artillery battalion position behind the battle line, and started taking turns to stop and fire into the position a few hundred meters away.
There were only dozens of light tanks and armored vehicles in the rear of the position at this time. They were no match for these federal tanks. Those small cannons bounced off the federal tanks directly after they hit them. Some federal tanks directly used the front of the car to hit the US light tanks or armored vehicles.
The armored vehicle overturned and then continued to fire at the US artillery position.
After being suddenly attacked by more than a dozen tanks, those large-caliber howitzers, which could only hit far but not close, became decorations. They were called out by federal tanks one by one. After a while, more than a dozen 105 howitzers and four 155 howitzers became
scrap iron,
Most of the American gunners on the artillery position were mowed down by the machine guns on the front of the tanks. After killing the American artillery, these federal tanks turned around and returned to the front line where the fierce battle was taking place, and continued to join the ranks of the American tanks that were being harvested.
That's right, after only half an hour of fighting, the U.S. tank cluster was disrupted. Basically, as long as a federal tank opened fire, a nearby U.S. tank would explode or catch fire. Regardless of whether these federal tanks were reversing or moving forward, they would always
It is to point the front of the tank towards most of the US tanks. (To be continued...)
