In the interwar period in the United States, the main emphasis was on the development of light tanks, and only from the mid-30s did they begin to pay serious attention to the development of medium tanks. However, by the beginning of the war, the US Army did not have a fleet of light and medium tanks of the appropriate level. A total of 844 light tanks and 146 medium tanks were produced. Neither in quantity nor in quality, they did not meet the needs of the army, and during the war, it was necessary to develop and organize mass production of all classes of tanks that were used in the US Army and the Allied armies.
Light tank M3 / M5 General Stuart
The General Stuart light tank was the mainstream and best known American light tank during World War II. The tank was developed in 1940 on the basis of the M2A4 light tank; from 1941 to 1944, 22,743 tanks of this type were produced.
The tank had a front-mounted transmission and engine in the rear of the tank. The crew of the tank was 4 people, the driver and the gunner from the course machine gun were located in front of the tank hull, the commander and loader were in the tower. The landing of the driver and the gunner was carried out through two hatches in the frontal armor plate of the hull, when replacing the vertical armor plate with an inclined hatch, they were transferred to the roof of the hull. The landing of the crew in the turret was carried out through a hatch in the turret roof. A commander's cupola and a turret for an anti-aircraft machine gun were also installed on the roof of the tower.
The structure of the hull and turret was riveted from armor plates. On tanks of later series, they switched to a welded structure. The body of the tank is box-shaped, the tower is multifaceted with vertical walls and a sloping roof, in later models it was replaced with a horseshoe-shaped one.
With a tank weight of 12.94 tons, the tank had satisfactory bulletproof armor, the armor thickness of the hull's forehead was 38-51 mm, the sides were 25 mm, the turret was 25-38 mm, and the roof and bottom were 13 mm.
The armament of the tank consisted of a 37 mm M6 L / 53, 1 (L56, 6) cannon and five 7, 62 mm Browning machine guns. One machine gun was paired with a cannon, one was installed in a ball bearing in the frontal plate of the hull, two in the sponsons of the hull, which were controlled by the driver with the help of release cables, and one anti-aircraft gun on the roof of the tower.
The aircraft engine "Continental" with a capacity of 250 hp was used as a power plant, providing a speed of 48 km / h and a cruising range of 113 km. A part of the tanks was equipped with a Gyberson diesel engine.
The undercarriage on each side contained four rubberized rollers of a small diameter, combined in pairs into two bogies, suspended on vertical springs, three carrier rollers, a front drive and rear idler wheel.
Due to the shortage of Continental aircraft engines in 1941, it was decided to launch into production a simplified version of the tank, which received the M5 index, with two Cadillac engines with a total power of 220 hp, providing a speed of 48 km / h and a power reserve of 130 km. The thickness of the lower front plate on this modification was increased to 64 mm, the weight of the tank reached 15.4 tons.
The tank was distinguished by high driving performance and good reliability, but weak armament, large dimensions, and the aircraft engine was fire hazardous and consumed a large amount of high-octane gasoline. The armor of the tank was satisfactory in the first stage of the war, with the advent of more advanced German tanks and anti-tank guns, it turned out to be practically unprotected.
The Lend-Lease tank was supplied to the Soviet Union, in 1941-1943 1232 tanks were delivered, including 211 diesel ones. He took part in the war on many fronts, at the first stage of the war, Soviet tank crews gave him a satisfactory assessment, later he had to be replaced with more protected tanks.
Light tank M24 General Chaffee
The General Chaffee light tank was developed in 1943, in all its appearance the Soviet T-34 was guessed, was produced in 1944-1945, a total of 4070 (4731) tanks were produced.
The layout of the tank was with a front-mounted transmission, and the engine was in the rear of the tank. The crew of 4 (5) people, the driver and the machine gunner were housed in the hull, the commander and gunner were in the turret. The functions of the loader were performed by the shooter, moving into the tower, the loader was introduced into the crew on the command tanks.
The hull of the tank was box-shaped, welded from rolled armor plates, installed with rational angles of inclination. The upper frontal plate was installed at an angle of 60 degrees to the vertical, and the lower one at an angle of 45 degrees, the sides at an angle of 12 degrees. A tower of complex geometric shape was placed on the turret platform. A commander's cupola was installed on the roof of the tower. The armor was bulletproof, with a tank weight of 17.6 tons, the armor thickness of the hull's forehead was 25 mm, the sides were 19 mm, the turret was 38 mm, and the roof and bottom were 13 mm.
The armament of the tank consisted of a 75-mm gun M6 L37, 5, two 7, 62-mm machine guns, one coaxial with a cannon, the second course in a ball bearing in the frontal hull plate, and a 12, 7-mm anti-aircraft machine gun on the roof of the tower.
Two twin Cadillac 44T24 engines with a total capacity of 220 hp were used as a power plant. sec., providing a speed of 56 km / h and a cruising range of 160 km.
The undercarriage on each side consisted of five double rubberized road wheels and three carrier rollers. The suspension of the road wheels was an individual torsion bar with shock absorbers.
The tank took part in hostilities at the end of the war and was distinguished by good speed, maneuverability, maneuverability and ease of operation, while the armor did not provide protection against German anti-tank weapons and the 75mm gun of the tank was inferior to the guns of German tanks.
Medium tank M3 General Lee
The M3 General Lee tank was developed in 1940, taking into account the positive experience of the use of tanks by Germany in the first stage of the war and as an alternative to the German medium tank Pz. IV. The tank was developed on the basis of the M2 medium tank using a significant part of the components and assemblies of this tank. A total of 6258 tanks of this type were produced in 1941-1942.
The layout of the tank provided for a four-tiered arrangement of weapons. On the first tier, in the frontal part of the hull, two paired 7, 62-mm machine guns were installed, on the second in the sponson of the hull, a 75-mm cannon was installed with a targeting angle of 32 degrees horizontally, on the third in the turret, a 37-mm cannon and a paired 7, 62- mm machine gun, on the fourth in the commander's cupola there was a 7.62 mm machine gun. Due to this layout, the tank was very bulky, its height reached 3, 12 m.
According to the layout and composition of the armament, the tank was designed for 6 (7) people. In the front part of the hull there was a transmission, behind it a control compartment and a fighting compartment, the engine was located in the rear of the tank. The driver's seat was in the front left of the hull. On the right side of the front of the hull, behind the 75-mm cannon, were the gunner's and loader's seats. In the turret, the commander was located in the center behind the 37-mm cannon and served the 7.62-mm machine gun in the commander's cupola. To the left of the gun was the gunner's place, to the right - the loader's. Due to the limited internal volume of the tank, the radio operator on subsequent samples was excluded from the crew and his functions were assigned to the driver.
For boarding the crew on the sides of the hull, rectangular doors were provided, for the driver's landing there was a hatch located on the right side of the upper frontal sheet. To the left of the driver's hatch in the lower frontal sheet there was an embrasure for the installation of coaxial machine guns. Sponson for the 75 mm cannon was installed in the front right part of the hull. The design of the hull was of a complex configuration and rather exotic for the convenience of the crew and high firepower. With the M2A2 modification, the hull was welded, and the turret, sponson and commander's cupola were cast. Access to the tower was through a hatch in the roof of the commander's cupola.
Weighing 27.9 tons, the tank had satisfactory armor protection, the armor thickness of the hull's forehead was 51 mm, the sides were 38 mm, the turret was 38-51 mm, and the roof and bottom were 13-22 mm.
The armament of the tank consisted of a 75 mm M2 L28.5 cannon (M3 L37.5), a 37 mm M6 cannon (L56.5), equipped only with armor-piercing shells to defeat armored vehicles, and four 7.62 mm machine guns. The cannon in the sponson was equipped with a gyroscopic stabilizer in the vertical plane.
The aircraft engine "Continental" R-975EC-2 with a capacity of 340 hp was used as a power plant. with., the tanks of the latest modifications were equipped with a twin diesel engine GM 6046 with a total capacity of 410 hp, providing a road speed of 39 km / h and a cruising range of 193 km.
The undercarriage on each side contained six double rubberized rollers of a small diameter, combined into three bogies with a spring suspension. On the top of each bogie, a roller was attached to support the upper branch of the caterpillar.
For delivery to England, a modification of the M3 "Grant" I was developed, in which the turret was changed and the commander's cupola was absent, in its place a low superstructure with a double hatch was installed. Since 1942, the Grant II tanks, a modification of the M3A5 with American-type turrets and minor changes in equipment, began to be produced for England.
The M3 General Lee tank was widely used in the first stage of the war, especially in operations in North Africa, where it could still withstand the German PzKpfwI and PzKpfwII. With the advent of more advanced tanks and anti-tank artillery in Germany, the M3 began to lose seriously, and in 1942 its production was curtailed in favor of the more powerful M4 Sherman.
The Lend-Lease tank was supplied to the Soviet Union, a total of 976 tanks were delivered. The M3 tank was not very popular among Soviet tankers. The main complaints were about the power plant due to high fuel consumption and fire hazard, as well as poor maneuverability, inefficiency of the 37-mm cannon and the vulnerability of the tank from enemy fire due to insufficient armor protection and a high silhouette of the tank.
Medium tank M4 General Sherman
The M4 General Sherman tank was the most massive US tank in World War II. The tank was developed in 1941, produced in 1942-1945, a total of 49234 tanks were produced.
The tank was a further development of the M3 medium tank with the placement of a 75-mm cannon not in the sponson of the tank hull, but in a rotating turret. This tank became a platform for the creation of a large number of special vehicles and self-propelled guns.
The M4 tank borrowed many components and mechanisms of the not entirely successful M3 tank - the lower part of the hull, the chassis and the 75-mm cannon. The tank had a classic German layout with a front-mounted transmission, an engine in the rear and a fighting compartment in the center of the tank. The crew consisted of five people, the driver was located in front of the hull to the left of the transmission, the radio operator was on the right. The commander, gunner and loader were located in the tower. For the landing of the driver and radio operator, each had a hatch in the upper frontal sheet; in later modifications, the hatches were moved to the roof of the hull. For the landing of the crew in the tower, there was a double-leaf hatch in the roof of the tower, later a commander's cupola was installed.
The tank had a great height due to the vertical installation of a radial aircraft engine and transmission gimbal drive, while the large internal volume provided comfortable conditions for the crew.
The hull of the tank was welded from rolled armor plates and a cast front part of the hull, consisting of three parts and assembled with bolts, later it was a single welded part. On some of the tanks, the hull was completely cast, but due to the difficulties of production, this was abandoned. A significant part of the tanks had a foam rubber lining inside to exclude the destruction of the crew by secondary fragments when they hit the tank.
With a tank weight of 30, 3 tons, it had satisfactory protection, the armor thickness of the hull's forehead was 51 mm, the sides were 38 mm, the turret was 51-76 mm, the roof was 19 mm and the bottom was 13-25 mm. On a small batch of vehicles, the armor of the hull's forehead was increased to 101 mm and the sides to 76 mm due to the welding of additional armor plates.
The armament of the tank consisted of a 75-mm cannon M3 L / 37, 5, two 7, 62-mm machine guns, one coaxial with a cannon, a second course in the ball joint of the gunner-radio operator, and a 12, 7-mm anti-aircraft machine gun on a turret on the turret roof … The M3 cannon in its characteristics corresponded to the Soviet F-34 cannon. With the appearance of the Germans' new PzKpfw V "Panther" and PzKpfw VI "Tiger" tanks, this gun could no longer hit them, in this regard, a new 76, 2-mm M1 L / 55 cannon with more effective armor-piercing shells was installed on the tank. An armament stabilizer was installed on the tank, providing vertical stabilization of the gun. On the modification of the M4 (105) infantry direct support tank, a 105 mm M4 howitzer was installed.
As a power plant, the tank was equipped with a Continental R975 C1 radial aircraft engine with a capacity of 350 hp, on the M4A2 modification, a twin diesel engine GM 6046 with a capacity of 375 hp, on the M4A3 modification, a specially developed V8Ford GAA engine with a capacity of 500 hp. The power plant provided a highway speed of 48 km / h and a cruising range of 190 km.
The chassis was borrowed from the MZ tank and on each side included six rubberized rollers, interlocked in pairs in three bogies, suspended on vertical springs, and three support rollers. On the latest modifications of the tank, the suspension was modernized (HVSS suspension), the rollers became double, the springs were horizontal and hydraulic shock absorbers were introduced.
M4 tanks were delivered under Lend-Lease to the Soviet Union, a total of 3,664 tanks were delivered, they were used on almost all fronts until the end of the war. In general, the M4 tank corresponded to the Soviet T-34-76, the Soviet tankers noted the convenience of the crew and the high quality of instrumentation and communications.
M4 tanks were used in almost all theaters of the Second World War. The M4 was distinguished by good reliability in operation in various conditions. The high height of the tank led to a large frontal and side projection and made it vulnerable to enemy fire. The armament of the tank was at the level of the Soviet T-34-76 and was inferior to the German tanks PzKpfw IV, PzKpfw V and PzKpfw VI. Armor protection was lower than that of Soviet and German tanks. Mobility was satisfactory, but the suspension was vulnerable to enemy fire. In general, the M4 tank was a reliable and unpretentious tank of the Second World War and was positively assessed by tankers from different countries in which it was used.
Heavy tank M6
The heavy tank M6 was developed since 1940, in 1942-1944 40 tank samples were made, the tests of the tank samples showed its futility, and in 1944 the work on the tank was discontinued. M6 tanks did not take part in hostilities.
The tank was of a classic layout. Weighing 57.5 tons, with a crew of 6 people. The hull of the tank was in two versions - cast and welded, the tower was cast, a commander's cupola was installed on the roof of the tower.
For a heavy tank, the armor was insufficient, the thickness of the armor of the forehead was 70-83 mm, the sides were 44-70 mm, the turret was 83 mm, the bottom and roof were 25 mm.
The armament of the tank consisted of a twin 76, 2-mm M7 L / 50 cannon and a 37-mm M6 L / 53, 5 cannon, two coaxial 7, 62-mm machine guns in the shooter's body and two 12, 7-mm machine guns. One of them was installed on the turret roof of the tower. An unsuccessful attempt was made to install a 105 mm cannon on the tank.
As a power plant, an 825 hp engine was used, providing a highway speed of 35 km / h and a cruising range of 160 km.
The undercarriage on each side contained eight road wheels, interlocked in pairs in four bogies suspended on horizontal springs, and four support rollers. The chassis was covered with armored screens.
The tank was already outdated from the beginning of the design, the large weight limited the mobility of the tank, the 75-mm cannon did not provide the necessary firepower, and the booking did not provide protection against enemy anti-tank weapons. In this regard, work on it was discontinued, and the manufactured samples of the tank were used only as training tanks.
Heavy tank M26 General Pershing
The most successful tank of the USA during the Second World War, which marked the beginning of a new generation of American tanks. The tank was created to replace the M3 Sherman tank to fight the German heavy tanks PzKpfw V "Panther" and PzKpfw VI "Tiger", against which the M3 could no longer resist. The tank was produced since January 1945; a total of 1436 tank samples were produced.
The M26 was developed as a medium tank, but due to its heavy weight, it was retrained into heavy tanks, after the war it became a medium tank again. The tank had a classic layout, the placement of the transmission in the nose of the tank, leading to an increase in the height of the tank and the complication of the design, was abandoned. The power plant was located in the stern, the control compartment in front and the combat one in the center of the tank. The crew of the tank is 5 people, the driver and the driver's assistant - a machine gunner, were stationed in the front of the hull, the commander, gunner and loader were in the tower. The hull of the tank was welded from rolled armor plates and cast parts, the turret with a developed aft niche was cast. On the forehead of the turret, an armored mask of a gun with a thickness of 115 mm was bolted. A commander's cupola was installed on the roof of the tower.
With a tank weight of 43, 1 ton, it had a powerful reservation, providing good protection against enemy anti-tank weapons. The thickness of the armor of the hull forehead: bottom 76 mm, top 102 mm, sides 51 mm, turret forehead 102 mm, sides 76 mm, roof 22 mm and bottom 13-25 mm.
The armament of the tank consisted of a long-barreled 90-mm cannon M3 L / 50, two 7.62-mm machine guns, one coaxial with a cannon, the other course in the body of the tank, and a 12.7-mm anti-aircraft machine gun mounted on a turret on the turret roof.
The power plant was a V8 Ford GAF engine with a capacity of 500 hp, which was installed on the M4A3 tank, providing a highway speed of 32 km / h and a cruising range of 150 km.
The undercarriage on each side contained six double rubberized rollers with individual torsion bar suspension, the first and third pairs of rollers were with hydraulic shock absorbers, and five carrier rollers.
The M26 General Pershing tank was developed at the end of the war, taking into account the experience of the development and use of Soviet T-34, KV and IS tanks, as well as the German PzKpfw V "Panther" and PzKpfw VI "Tiger" tanks and used the ideas implemented on these tanks.
In general, the tank showed quite satisfactory characteristics, was used at the last stage of the war in the European theater of operations and successfully resisted the last German tanks. The experience of using the tank in World War II and the Korean War confirmed the correctness of the chosen concept of the tank and the combination of its main characteristics in terms of firepower, protection and mobility. The M26 General Pershing tank served as the basis for the creation of the next generations of American tanks.
Tank production in the USA during the war
The tanks developed in the USA during the Second World War were successfully operated throughout the war in various theaters of operations in the US Army and the Allied armies. American designers were able to create and organize the mass production of light, medium and heavy tanks, which, in terms of their characteristics, met the level of tanks of that period.
No fundamentally new technical solutions were proposed in the design of the tank; the ideas of German and Soviet designers were mainly used. Thus, the use on most of the tanks of the "German" layout with a front-mounted transmission led to the complication of the design of the tank when transferring torque from the engine to the transmission, increasing the size and decreasing the reliability of the tanks. In terms of firepower, American tanks were inferior to German and Soviet tanks, and only on the M26 General Pershing did the tank's firepower make it possible to seriously resist the last German tanks.
The general high industrial and technological level of the United States made it possible in a short time to organize the production of tens of thousands of tanks and ensure their high quality of manufacture. A total of 83,741 tanks of various types were produced. This made it possible to supply tanks in large quantities to their army and to the allies and maintain a sufficient level of their equipment with armored vehicles, contributing to the achievement of victory over Germany.
5872 tanks were delivered to the Soviet Union under Lend-Lease, including 1232 M3 / M5 General Stuart tanks, 976 M3 General Lee tanks and 3664 M4 General Sherman tanks.
