:: ILLUSTRATION GALLERY ::

~ TANKS AND ARMORED VEHICLES ~

I

Type 97 Chi-Ha

Type 97 Chi-Ha

Japan's main battle tank during the Second World War, the Type 97 Chi-Ha saw widespread service in the Pacific and in China. A distinctive feature of the tank was the radio antenna around the turret top.
Crusader III

Crusader III

The Crusader III cruiser tank is famous for its skirmishing and advanced reconnaissance roles in the North African campaigns of the Second World War.

M3 Lee

M3 Lee

Armed with a hard hitting 75-millimeter gun, the American M3 Lee tank proved a formidable fighting machine in battles with the Germans in North Africa and the Japanese in the Pacific. Produced as a stop-gap measure in 1940 prior to the introduction of a more battle-worthy tank, the Lee fought the German Panzer IV and Tiger I in Tunisia and despite heavy losses turned the tide of battle in favour of the Allies.

M3 Grant

M3 Grant

With all the appearance of an armoured chariot, the American-built Grant tank joined the British 8th Army in North Africa in 1942 and for the first time the German Panzer IV units found themselves matched in both firepower and armour. The Grant was one of the few multi-turreted tanks to see successful combat in the Second World War.

Panzer III

PzKpfw III

The PzKpfw III was one of the workhorses of the German Army when the Second World War started but halfway on the conflict this tank was already obsolete, because its hull was too small for fitting on it a rotating turret which was large enough for housing a powerful cannon. The successive improvements made on this tank allowed it to face the Crusader tanks in North Africa, but it was largely outmatched by the T-34 in Russia and this signaled its retirement from the battlefield. Thereafter the hull of the retired PzKpfw III tanks was reused for building a series of tank destroyers which were effective until the end of the conflict.

Panzer VI Tiger

PzKpfw VI Tiger

When the PzKpfw VI Tiger was deployed on the battlefield for the first time, in the late 1942 in Tunisia, it was more powerful than any other existing tank. The 88-millimeter L/56 cannon and the thick armour were the strong points of the monstrous German tank, which was an effective response to the Russian T-34, albeit this one was endowed with greater mobility and mechanical reliability. The Tiger was fitted a stereoscopic gunsight which facilitated to fire at targets with precision at long distances. However, this tank had some weak points as well: its vertical armour required greater thickness than sloped armour and this added extra weight, which caused high fuel consumption and rendered the tank prone to mechanical failures.

:: Return to Index :: :: Next Page ::