1.
Self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon
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An anti-aircraft vehicle, also known as a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun or self-propelled air defense system, is a mobile vehicle with a dedicated anti-aircraft capability. The Russian equivalent of SPAAG is ZSU, for zenitnaya samokhodnaya ustanovka, specific weapon systems used include machine guns, autocannons, larger guns, or missiles, and some mount both guns and longer-ranged missiles. Platforms used include both trucks and heavier vehicles such as APCs and tanks, which add protection from aircraft, artillery. Anti-aircraft guns are mounted in a quickly-traversing turret with a high rate of elevation. They are often in dual or quadruple mounts, allowing a high rate of fire, today, missiles have largely supplanted anti-aircraft guns. Anti-aircraft machine guns have long been mounted on trucks, and these were common during World War I. A predecessor of the WWII German 88 anti-aircraft gun, the WWI German 77 mm anti-aircraft gun, was truck-mounted and used to great effect against British tanks, the British QF3 inch 20 cwt was mounted on trucks for use on the Western Front. The gun could be elevated for anti-aircraft use, Vickers Armstrong also developed a SPAAG based on the chassis of the Mk. E 6-ton light tank/Dragon Medium Mark IV tractor, mounting a Vickers QF-1 Pom-Pom gun of 40 mm. About 26 were sold to Siam and saw action as infantry support guns and this was probably the first tracked SPAAG manufactured in series. Later the British also developed a version of the Mk. VI Light Tank armed with four guns that was known as Light Tank AA Mk. I. And also a twin 15 mm version based on the Light Tank Mk. V was built, among early pre-war pioneers of self-propelled AA guns were the Germans. By the time of the war, they fielded the SdKfz 10/4 and 6/2, later in the war similar German halftracks mounted quadruple 20 mm weapons. Larger guns followed on larger trucks, but these mountings generally required off-truck setup in order to unlimber the stabilizing legs these guns needed. One exception to rule was the Italian Cannone da 90/53 which was highly effective when mounted on trucks. The 90/53 was a weapon, notably in the anti-tank role. Other nations tended to work on truck chassis, starting in 1941, the British developed the en portee method of mounting an anti-tank gun on a truck. This was to prevent the weapon from being damaged by long-distance towing across rough, stony deserts, however, crews tended to fire their weapons from their vehicles for the mobility this method provided, with consequent casualties. This undoubtedly inspired their Morris C9/B, a Bofors 40 mm AA gun mounted on a derived from the Morris Quad Field Artillery Tractor truck
2.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
3.
White Motor Company
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The White Motor Company was an American automobile, truck, bus and agricultural tractor manufacturer from 1900 until 1980. The company also produced bicycles, roller skates, automatic lathes, before World War II, the company was based in Cleveland, Ohio. White Diesel Engine Division in Springfield, Ohio manufactured diesel engine generators, aerospace defense ring, such as the Texas Towers. During the Vietnam era, the company retained its position within the Top 100 Defense Contractors list, about 1898, Thomas H. White purchased a Locomobile steam car and found its boiler unreliable. His son, Rollin, set out to improve its design and this second point was critical because the White steamer operated with superheated steam to take advantage of steams properties at higher temperatures. Rollin White patented his steam generator, US patent 659,837 of 1900, Rollin H. White patented his new design and offered it to, among others, Locomobile. Finally, he persuaded his father, founder of the White Sewing Machine Company, whites brother Windsor, who was a management talent, joined the business venture, followed by their brother Walter, who became instrumental in the sales, promotion and distribution of the product. The first group of fifty cars were completed in October 1900, on July 4,1905, a racing steam car named Whistling Billy and driven by Webb Jay set a record of 73.75 mph on the Morris Park Racecourse. In 1909, president William Howard Taft converted the White House stables into a garage and purchased four automobiles and this $4,000 car was one of the last steam cars produced and proved a favorite of the President who used bursts of steam against pesky press photographers. The 40 hp White Model M 7-seat tourer generated favorable press for the newly formed White Motor Company, the last steam car was built in January 1911 as the company made a transition to gasoline-powered vehicles. The company continued to show them in their catalogues as late as 1912, about 10,000 White steam-powered cars were built, more than the better known Stanley. The White steamer used unique technology, and it was vulnerable in a market that was accepting the internal combustion engine as the standard. White canvassed existing gas manufacturers and licensed the rights to the Delahaye design for the gas car, Rollin became more interested in agricultural tractors, and developed designs for tractors derived from standard White truck parts. In the early 1920s, Rollin briefly produced the Rollin car to diversify the tractor company, White was successful with their heavy machines, which saw service around the world during World War I. White remained in the industry for decades. White Motor Company ended car production after World War I and began producing trucks, the company soon sold 10 percent of all trucks made in the US. Although White produced all sizes of trucks from light delivery to semi, White acquired several truck companies during this time, Sterling, Autocar, Diamond T, and REO. White also agreed to sell Consolidated Freightways, Freightliner trucks through its own dealers, White produced trucks under the Autocar nameplate following its acquisition
4.
M2 Browning
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The M2 Machine Gun or Browning.50 Caliber Machine Gun is a heavy machine gun designed toward the end of World War I by John Browning. Its design is similar to Brownings earlier M1919 Browning machine gun, the M2 uses the much larger and much more powerful.50 BMG cartridge, which was developed alongside and takes its name from the gun itself. It has been referred to as Ma Deuce, in reference to its M2 nomenclature, the design has had many specific designations, the official designation for the current infantry type is Browning Machine Gun, Cal.50, M2, HB, Flexible. It is effective against infantry, unarmored or lightly armored vehicles and boats, light fortifications, the M2 has been produced longer than any other machine gun. The Browning.50 caliber machine gun has been used extensively as a vehicle weapon and it was heavily used during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Falklands War, the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan in the 2000s and 2010s. It is the heavy machine gun of NATO countries, and has been used by many other countries as well. The M2 has been in use longer than any firearm in U. S. inventory except the.45 ACP M1911 pistol. The current M2HB is manufactured in the U. S. by General Dynamics, Ordnance for use by the U. S. government, and for allies via Foreign Military Sales, as well as foreign manufacturers such as FN Herstal. Machine guns were used in World War I, and weapons of larger than rifle caliber were appearing. Both the British and French had large caliber machine guns, the larger rounds were needed to defeat the armor that was being introduced to the battlefield. Armor was also appearing in the skies, during World War I, the Germans introduced a heavily armored airplane, the Junkers J. I. The armor made aircraft machine guns using conventional rifle ammunition ineffective, consequently, the American Expeditionary Forces commander General John J. Pershing asked for a larger caliber machine gun. Pershing asked the Army Ordnance Department to develop a gun with a caliber of at least 0.50 inches. U. S. Col. John Henry Parker, commanding a machine gun school in France, the Army Ordnance Department ordered eight experimental Colt machine guns rechambered for the French 11 mm cartridge. The French had developed a machine gun for an even larger caliber. The French 11 mm round was found to be unsuitable because its velocity was too low, Pershing wanted a bullet of at least 670 gr and a muzzle velocity of 2,700 ft/s. Development with the French round was dropped, around July 1917, John M. Browning started redesigning his.30 caliber machine gun for a larger caliber. Winchester worked on the cartridge, which was a version of the. 30-06
5.
Petrol engine
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A petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels. In most petrol engines, the fuel and air are usually pre-mixed before compression, the process differs from a diesel engine in the method of mixing the fuel and air, and in using spark plugs to initiate the combustion process. In a diesel engine, only air is compressed, and the fuel is injected into very hot air at the end of the compression stroke, and self-ignites. The first practical petrol engine was built in 1876 in Germany by Nikolaus August Otto, although there had been attempts by Étienne Lenoir, Siegfried Marcus, Julius Hock. The first petrol engine was prototyped in 1882 in Italy by Enrico Bernardi. British engineer Edward Butler constructed the first petrol combustion engine. Butler invented the spark plug, ignition magneto, coil ignition and spray jet carburetor, with both air and fuel in a closed cylinder, compressing the mixture too much poses the danger of auto-ignition — or behaving like a diesel engine. Spark plugs are typically set statically or at idle at a minimum of 10 degrees or so of crankshaft rotation before the piston reaches T. D, higher octane petrol burns slower, therefore it has a lower propensity to auto-ignite and its rate of expansion is lower. Thus, engines designed to run high-octane fuel exclusively can achieve higher compression ratios, Petrol engines run at higher rotation speeds than diesels, partially due to their lighter pistons, connecting rods and crankshaft and due to petrol burning more quickly than diesel. However the lower compression ratios of petrol engines give petrol engines lower efficiency than diesel engines, examples, Bedford OB bus Bedford M series lorry GE 57-ton gas-electric boxcab locomotive Petrol engines may run on the four-stroke cycle or the two-stroke cycle. For details of working cycles see, Four-stroke cycle Two-stroke cycle Wankel engine Common cylinder arrangements are from 1 to 6 cylinders in-line or from 2 to 16 cylinders in V-formation. Flat engines – like a V design flattened out – are common in airplanes and motorcycles and were a hallmark of Volkswagen automobiles into the 1990s. Flat 6s are still used in many modern Porsches, as well as Subarus, less common, but notable in vehicles designed for high speeds is the W formation, similar to having 2 V engines side by side. Alternatives include rotary and radial engines the latter typically have 7 or 9 cylinders in a single ring, Petrol engines may be air-cooled, with fins, or liquid-cooled, by a water jacket and radiator. The coolant was formerly water, but is now usually a mixture of water and either ethylene glycol or propylene glycol, the cooling system is usually slightly pressurized to further raise the boiling point of the coolant. Petrol engines use spark ignition and high current for the spark may be provided by a magneto or an ignition coil. In modern car engines the ignition timing is managed by an electronic Engine Control Unit, the most common way of engine rating is what is known as the brake power, measured at the flywheel, and given in kilowatts or horsepower. This is the mechanical power output of the engine in a usable
6.
Bogie
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A bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle, thus serving as a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transport, while bogie is the preferred spelling and first-listed variant in various dictionaries, bogey and bogy are also used. A bogie in the UK, or a truck, wheel truck. In Indian English, bogie may also refer to a railway carriage. In South Africa, the bogie is often alternatively used to refer to a freight or goods wagon. The first standard gauge British railway to build coaches with bogies, an alternate configuration often is used in articulated vehicles, which places the bogies under the connection between the carriages or wagons. Most bogies have two axles, but some cars designed for heavy loads have more axles per bogie, heavy-duty cars may have more than two bogies using span bolsters to equalize the load and connect the bogies to the cars. Suspension to absorb shocks between the frame and the rail vehicle body, Common types are coil springs, or rubber airbags. At least one wheelset, composed of an axle with bearings and a wheel at each end The bolster, the railway car is supported at the pivot point on the bolster. Axle box suspensions absorb shocks between the bearings and the bogie frame. The axle box suspension usually consists of a spring between the frame and axle bearings to permit up-and-down movement, and sliders to prevent lateral movement. A more modern design uses solid rubber springs, brake equipment, Two main types are used, brake shoes that are pressed against the tread of the wheel, and disc brakes and pads. More modern, bolsterless bogie designs omit these features, instead taking advantage of the movement of the suspension to permit rotational movement. The Commonwealth bogie, manufactured by the English Steel Corporation under licence from the Commonwealth Steel Company in Illinois, fitted with SKF or Timken bearings, it was introduced in the late 1950s for all BR Mark 1 vehicles. It was a heavy, cast-steel design weighing about 6.5 long tons, with sealed roller bearings on the axle ends, the leaf springs were replaced by coil springs running vertically rather than horizontally. The advanced design gave a better quality than the BR1. The side frame of the bogie was usually of bar construction, with simple horn guides attached, the axle boxes had a cast-steel equaliser beam or bar resting on them. The bar had two steel coil springs placed on it and the bogie frame rested on the springs, the effect was to allow the bar to act as a compensating lever between the two axles and to use both springs to soften shocks from either axle
7.
Battle of Anzio
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The operation was opposed by German forces in the area of Anzio and Nettuno. Any delay could result in the occupation of the mountains by the defenders, Lieutenant General Mark W. Clark, commander of the U. S. Fifth Army, understood that risk, but Clark did not pass on his appreciation of the situation to his subordinate, Lucas, the initial landing achieved complete surprise with no opposition and a jeep patrol even made it as far as the outskirts of Rome. While Lucas consolidated, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring, the German commander in the Italian theatre and his artillery units had a clear view of every Allied position. The Germans also stopped the pumps and flooded the reclaimed marsh with salt water, planning to entrap the Allies. For weeks a rain of shells fell on the beach, the marsh, the harbour, after a month of heavy but inconclusive fighting, Lucas was relieved and sent home. His replacement was Major General Lucian K. Truscott, who had commanded the U. S. 3rd Infantry Division. The Allies broke out in May, at the end of 1943, following the Allied invasion of Italy, Allied forces were bogged down at the Gustav Line, a defensive line across Italy south of the strategic objective of Rome. The terrain of central Italy had proved ideally suited to defense, Operation Shingle was originally conceived by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in December 1943, as he lay recovering from pneumonia in Marrakesh. His concept was to two divisions at Anzio, bypassing German forces in central Italy, and take Rome, the strategic objective of the current Battle of Rome. By January he had recovered and was badgering his commanders for a plan of attack, accusing them of not wanting to fight but of being interested only in drawing pay and eating rations. General Harold Alexander, commander of the Allied Armies in Italy, had considered such a plan since October using five divisions. However, the 5th Army did not have the troops nor the means to transport them, Clark proposed landing a reinforced division to divert German troops from Monte Cassino. This second landing, however, instead of failing similarly, would hold the shingle for a week in expectation of a breakthrough at Cassino, the Anzio beachhead is at the northwestern end of a tract of reclaimed marshland, formerly the Pontine Marshes, now the Pontine Fields. Previously uninhabitable due to mosquitoes carrying malaria, in Roman times armies marched as quickly as possible across it on the military road, the Via Appia. The marsh was bounded on one side by the sea and on others by mountains, the Monti Albani, the Monti Lepini, overall these mountains are referenced by the name Monti Laziali, the mountains of Lazio, the ancient Latium. Invading armies from the south had the choice of crossing the marsh or taking the other road to Rome. The marshes were turned into land in the 1930s under Benito Mussolini
8.
M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage
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The M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, also known as the M16 Half-track, was an American self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon built during World War II. It was equipped with four 0.5 inch M2 Browning machine guns in a M45 Quadmount,2700 were produced by White Motor Company from May 1943 to March 1944, with 568 M13 MGMCs and 109 T10 Half-tracks being converted into M16s as well. The chassis was derived from the T1E2 chassis, a version of the M13. Based on an M3 Half-track chassis, it replaced the M13 MGMC half-track after early 1944, as aircraft became more advanced, the usefulness of the M16 was reduced. In the Korean War, it was relegated primarily to the ground-support role, nicknamed the Meat Chopper, the M16 was famous for its effectiveness against low-flying aircraft and infantry, making it extremely popular with soldiers. It was used by the United States Army, the British Commonwealth, a similar version of the M16, the M17, was based on the M5 Half-track and exported via Lend-Lease to the Soviet Union. The specifications of the M16 were similar to those of the M3 Half-track and it was 21 ft 4 in long,7 ft 1 in wide, and 7 ft 8 in high and weighed 9.9 short tons. It had suspension consisting of vertical volute spring suspension for the tracks and it was powered by a 128 horsepower White 160AX386 cubic inch 6-cylinder gasoline engine. It had a ratio of 6.3,1. It could reach a top speed of 41.7 mph and a range of 175 miles and it had a main armament of four 0.5 in machine guns in a M45 Quadmount and 12 millimeters of armor on the front and the sides. The M16 was an improvement on the twin.50 caliber M2 Browning heavy machine gun equipped M13 MGMC and M14 MGMC. It was based on an model of the M13, but the M33 Maxson mount was replaced with the M45 Quadmount. This prototype was designated as the T61 MGMC, but after trials at Aberdeen it was accepted as the M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage. A few corrections were made on a vehicle in early 1943 before production started. A total of 2,877 were produced by the White Motor Company during the period from May 1943 to March 1944, further production of the M13 and M14 was ceased in favor of production of the M16 and M17. The M16 Multiple Gun Carriage entered service in early 1944, with the M13 taken out of action soon after, the M16 was nicknamed The Meat Chopper for its deadly firepower, and was extremely popular with troops. In addition to its role, the M16 was used in an infantry support role. The M17 MGMC primarily served with the Soviet Union as part of Operation Bagration, the M16 saw service with U. S. forces in the Italian Campaign, and Operation Overlord, the Battle of Arracourt, and the Ardennes Offensive in northern Europe
9.
Vertical volute spring suspension
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The vertical volute spring suspension system is a type of vehicle suspension system. This type of the system was mainly fitted on US and Italian tanks. During the 1930s, many innovations in the components of light tanks would make US tanks considerably reliable and these included rubber-bushed tracks, rear mounted radial engines and the vertical volute spring suspension. A volute spring is a spring in the form of a cone. Under compression the coils slide over each other, affording longer travel, the result is more stable and powerful than any leaf, coil, or torsion bar spring in the same volume. Mounted vertically in a road wheel bogie for a pair of wheels in a tank made a very compact unit. The Rock Island Arsenal produced a tank for the cavalry which used vertical volute spring suspension instead of leaf spring suspension. Standardized as the M1 Combat Car, it entered service with the US Army in 1937, the design was used in the M2 light tank and subsequent Stuart tank series. Design features of the Stuart were scaled up for use in the first M2 medium tanks which would evolve into the more successful M3 Lee and M4 Sherman, all using the VVSS. Battle experience showed a short life of the original vertical volute spring suspension of the late models M3s due to the tanks increasing combat weight with larger guns. After mid-1944, M4A3 models of the Sherman adopted a newly developed Horizontal Volute Spring Suspension and this type of a suspension system involved springing the pair of dual-mounted road wheels on each bogie against each other with a volute-spring. It was essentially a version of the British Horstmann suspension that replaced the Horstmanns coil-spring with a pair of volute-springs, coincidentally, the word Easy is the code-word for the letter E in the Able Baker code. Christie suspension Horstmann suspension torsion bar suspension Continuous track
10.
M45 Quadmount
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The M45 Quadmount was a weapon mounting consisting of four of the HB, or heavy barrel.50 caliber M2 Browning machine guns mounted in pairs on each side of an open, electrically powered turret. It was developed by the W. L. Maxson Corporation to replace the earlier M33 twin mount, although designed as an anti-aircraft weapon, it was also used against ground targets. Introduced in 1943 during World War II, it remained in US service as late as the Vietnam War. In order to develop a mobile weapon, several 0.5 inch twin machine gun mounts were tested on the chassis of the M2 half-track including Bendix, Martin Aircraft Company. The Maxson M33 turret mount was preferred and—on the larger M3 half-track —was accepted for service in 1942 as the M13 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, the mount was also used on the similar M5 half track as the M14 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage. Experimentally, the Quadmount was also tested in 1942 on a M3 Light Tank in place of the tanks turret, even as production of the two MGMC vehicles was underway, there was work to increase the firepower. Re-working the M33 to take four machine guns gave the M45 mounting, the M45 Quadmount was the principal weapon of highly mobile anti-aircraft artillery battalions deployed in the European Theater during World War II. These battalions provided invaluable air defense to much larger units, particularly field artillery, multiple-gun mounts were developed for the M2 Browning because the M2s rate of fire for a single gun was too low for anti-aircraft use. The M45 found use throughout the war as a land-based weapon, although the Allies achieved air supremacy by the invasion of Normandy in June 1944, German attack runs were still a threat. German Jabo fighter-bombers could approach and attack at low altitude and then retreat to avoid Allied fighters. The Luftwaffe also mustered a large number of planes for Operation Bodenplatte that took place on New Years Day 1945. At Oppenheim, when the Allies were gathering to make a push after crossing the River Rhine,248 German warplanes were used in an effort to destroy the bridge first. U. S. Army anti-aircraft artillery battalions massed, shot down 30% of the attacking force mainly with M45 Quadmounts, the M45 Quadmount was ineffective against the new, fast-flying planes of the Jet Age. However, it was used against infantry targets in US post-war service, in Vietnam they were pressed into service to ride escort convoys along Viet Cong roads. The French Army also used M45s in combat, M45 Quad Mounts were placed in trucks to deal with ambushes and four M45s were used during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. The TCM-20 was a postwar Israeli development of the M45 mount, in frontline Israeli service, it was replaced by the M163 Vulcan Air Defense System in the 1970s, but some reserve units still used TCM-20s into the 1980s. The weapon was exported to several third-world countries. During World War II, the M45 turret was mounted on two systems, the M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage and the M51 Multiple Machine Gun Carriage
11.
Reflector sight
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These sights work on the simple optical principle that anything at the focus of a lens or curved mirror will look like it is sitting in front of the viewer at infinity. Since their invention in 1900, reflector sights have come to be used as gun sights on all kinds of weapons. They were used on aircraft, in a limited capacity in World War I, widely used in World War II. Reflector sights are used in civilian applications such as sights on surveying equipment, optical telescope pointing aids. The collimated reticle image can also be seen at any eye position in the volume of collimated light created by the sight behind the optical window. Eye movement perpendicular to the optical axis will make the reticle image move in exact relationship to eye position in the cylindrical column of light created by the collimating optics. A common type uses a lens and a beam splitter. This type tends to be bulky since it requires at least two components, the lens and the beam splitter/glass plate. The reticle collimation optics are situated at 90° to the optical path making lighting difficult, usually needing additional electric illumination, condensing lenses and this type is most often seen as the red dot type used on small arms. It is also possible to place the reticle between the viewer and the mirror at the mirrors focus. The reticle itself is too close to the eye to be in focus, the viewing portion of a reflector sight does not use any refractive optical elements, it is simply a projected reticle bounced off a beam splitter or curved mirror right into the users eye. This gives it the characteristics of not needing considerable experience and skill to use. The primary drawback of reflector sight is that they need some way to illuminate the reticle to function, reticles illuminated by ambient light are hard to use in low light situations, and sights with electrical illumination stop functioning altogether if that system fails. The idea of a reflector sight originated in 1900 with Irish optical designer and this arrangement would be of course equally impracticable for obvious reasons but it is instanced to show that a beam of light has the necessary qualifications for our purposes. It was noted soon after its invention that the sight could be an alternative to iron sights. The reflector sight was first used on German fighter aircraft in 1918, through their development in the 1930s and into World War II the sight was also being referred to in some applications by the abbreviation reflex sight. Reflector sights were invented as an improved gun-sight and since their invention they have adapted to many types of weapons. When used with different types of guns, reflector sights are considered an improvement over simple iron sights, the reflector sights single, parallax-free virtual image, in focus with the target, removes this aiming problem, helping poor, average, and expert shooters alike
12.
Convoy
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A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas. Arriving at the scene of an emergency with a well-ordered unit. Naval convoys have been in use for centuries, with examples of merchant ships traveling under naval protection dating to the 12th century, the use of organized naval convoys dates from when ships began to be separated into specialist classes and national navies were established. By the French Revolutionary Wars of the late 18th century, effective naval tactics had been developed to ward off pirates. Some convoys contained several hundred merchant ships, the most enduring system of convoys were the Spanish treasure fleets, that sailed from the 1520s until 1790. When merchant ships sailed independently, a privateer could cruise a shipping lane, ships sailing in convoy presented a much smaller target, a convoy was as hard to find as a single ship. As a result of the convoy systems effectiveness, wartime insurance premiums were consistently lower for ships that sailed in convoys, losses of ships travelling out of convoy however were so high that no merchant ship was allowed to sail unescorted. In the early 20th century, the changed the balance of power in convoy battles. Steaming faster than merchant ships and firing at long ranges, a battleship could destroy many ships in a convoy before the others could scatter over the horizon. To protect a convoy against a ship required providing it with an escort of another capital ship. Battleships were the reason that the British Admiralty did not adopt convoy tactics at the start of the first Battle of the Atlantic in World War I. But the German capital ships had been bottled up in the North Sea, the Admiralty took a long time to respond to this change in the tactical position, and in April 1917 convoy was trialled, before being officially introduced in the Atlantic in September 1917. Other arguments against convoy were raised, further, large convoys were thought to overload port resources. Actual analysis of shipping losses in World War I disproved all these arguments, at least so far as they applied to transatlantic, ships sailing in convoys were far less likely to be sunk, even when not provided with any escort at all. The loss of productivity due to delays was small compared with the loss of productivity due to ships being sunk. Ports could deal more easily with convoys because they tended to arrive on schedule, Convoy duty also exposes the escorting warships to the sometimes hazardous conditions of the North Atlantic, with only rare occurrences of visible achievement. The British adopted a system, initially voluntary and later compulsory for almost all merchant ships
13.
Bendix Corporation
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It was also well known for the name Bendix, as used on home clothes washing machines, but never actually made these appliances. Bendix granted permission to his invention which was described as a New York device for the starting of explosive motors and this company made a low cost triple thread screw which could be used in the manufacture of other drive parts. By using this screw with the Eclipse Machine Company, Bendix had a foundation for his future business plans. Bendix in the 1920s owned and controlled many important patents for devices applicable to the industry, for example, brakes, carburetors. It acquired Bragg-Kliesrath brakes in the late 1920s, by 1940 Bendix had sales running around $40 million, and in 1948 General Motors sold its interest in Bendix as it wanted to focus on its expanding automotive operations. Bendix was formally founded in 1924 in South Bend, Indiana, at first it manufactured brake systems for cars and trucks, supplying General Motors and other automobile manufacturers. Bendix manufactured both hydraulic systems and a vacuum booster TreadleVac for its production lines for decades. In 1924 Vincent Bendix had acquired the rights to Henri Perrots patents for drum, in 1956, Bendix introduced Electrojector, a true multipoint electronic fuel injection system, which was optional on several 1958 models of automobiles built by Chrysler Corporation. In the 1960s, Bendix automotive brakes blossomed with the introduction of disc brakes. During the 1960s, Bendix also dabbled in bicycle hardware, producing a reliable, starting in the 1950s or before, Bendix Pacific designed, tested, and manufactured hydraulic components and systems, primarily for the military. In the same facility avionics and other hardware was designed, manufactured. Much of this operation was relocated to a new facility in Sylmar, telemetry components for the RIM-8 Talos surface-to-air missile included transmitters and oscillators in various frequency bands, the missile itself was designed and built by Bendix. They built and installed the system in all the ground stations for the first manned space flights. For this program developed the first cardio tachometer and respiration rate monitor system so that a ground-based physician could observe an astronauts vital signs. MK46 torpedo electronics also came from this facility, other diverse products included radar detectors in aircraft that identified ground missile tracking and ground missile launch at the aircraft. In the 1960s they produced an anti-lock brake system for aircraft using established technology similar to Dunlops earlier Maxaret. The technology is similar to the wheel and reluctor now used in cars. Bendix Scintilla manufactured MIL SPEC electrical connectors of many styles, criteria was met for hostile and non-hostile environments that provided seals against liquids and gasses
14.
Glenn L. Martin Company
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The Glenn L. Martin Company was an American aircraft and aerospace manufacturing company that was founded by the aviation pioneer Glenn L. Martin. The Martin Company produced many important aircraft for the defense of the United States and its allies, especially during World War II and the Cold War. Also, during the 1950s and 60s, the Martin Company moved gradually out of the industry and into the guided missile, space exploration. In 1961, the Martin Company merged with the American-Marietta Corporation, then, in 1995, Martin Marietta merged with aerospace giant Lockheed to form the Lockheed Martin Corporation. Glenn L. Martin Company was founded by aviation pioneer Glenn Luther Martin on August 16,1912 and this new company did not go well, and Glenn Martin left it to form a second Glenn L. Martin Company on September 10,1917. This time it was based in Cleveland, Ohio, the aircraft was shipped on May 5,1913 in five crates to Tucson, Arizona via Wells Fargo Express, and then moved through the border into Mexico to the town of Naco, Sonora. The aircraft, named Sonora by the insurgents, was reassembled there, the Sonora, armed with rudimentary 3 inch pipe bombs, performed the first known air to naval bombing runs in history. For the Dutch East Indies a number of planes were delivered, with the first flight on November 6,1915. It involved 2 types TE,6 types TT and 8 types R. Martins first big success came during World War I with the MB-1 bomber, although the War Department ordered 110 more, it retained the ownership rights to the design and put the order out for bid. Unfortunately for Martin, the orders were given to other companies that had bid lower, Curtiss. The design was the standard bomber used by the Air Service until 1930 and was used by seven squadrons of the Air Service/Air Corps, four in Virginia. In 1924 the Martin Company underbid Curtiss for the production of a Curtiss-designed scout bomber, the SC-1, in 1929 Martin sold the Cleveland plant and built a new one in Middle River, Maryland, northeast of Baltimore. During the 1930s, Martin built flying boats for the U. S. Navy, the Martin Company also produced the noted China Clipper flying boats used by Pan American Airways for its transpacific San Francisco to the Philippines route. The 1941 Office for Emergency Management film Bomber was filmed in the Martin facility in Baltimore, Martin ranked 14th among United States corporations in the value of wartime production contracts. The Martin Company built a total of 531 Boeing B-29 Superfortresses and 1,585 B-26 Marauders at its Omaha, Nebraska, plant at Offutt Field. Among the B-29s manufactured there were all the Silverplate aircraft, including Enola Gay, on April 22,1957, the company name was formally changed to The Martin Company. The Vanguard was the first American space exploration rocket designed from scratch to be a launch vehicle — rather than being a modified sounding rocket or a ballistic missile. Martin also designed and manufactured the huge and heavily armed Titan I, Martin Company of Orlando, Florida, was the prime contractor for the U. S. Armys Pershing missile
15.
Chassis
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A chassis consists of an internal vehicle frame that supports an artificial object in its construction and use, can also provide protection for some internal parts. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, if the running gear such as wheels and transmission, and sometimes even the drivers seat, are included, then the assembly is described as a rolling chassis. In the case of vehicles, the rolling chassis means the frame plus the running gear like engine, transmission, drive shaft, differential. An under body, which is not necessary for integrity of the structure, is built on the chassis to complete the vehicle. For commercial vehicles, a rolling chassis consists of an assembly of all the parts of a truck to be ready for operation on the road. The design of a car chassis will be different than one for commercial vehicles because of the heavier loads. Commercial vehicle manufacturers sell chassis only, cowl and chassis, as well as chassis cab versions that can be outfitted with specialized bodies and these include motor homes, fire engines, ambulances, box trucks, etc. In particular applications, such as buses, a government agency like National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the U. S. defines the design standards of chassis. An armoured fighting vehicles hull serves as the chassis and comprises the part of the AFV that includes the tracks, engine, drivers seat. This describes the hull, although common usage might include the upper hull to mean the AFV without the turret. The hull serves as a basis for platforms on tanks, armoured carriers, combat engineering vehicles. In an electronic device, the chassis consists of a frame or other supporting structure on which the circuit boards. In the absence of a frame, the chassis refers to the circuit boards and components themselves. The combination of chassis and outer covering is called an enclosure. Vietnam Studies, Department of the Army, Washington, D. C.1978
16.
VI Corps (United States)
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The VI Corps was activated as VI Army Corps in August 1918 at Neufchâteau, France, serving in the Lorraine Campaign. Constituted in the Organized Reserves in 1921, it was allotted to the Regular Army in 1933 and activated on 1 August 1940 at Fort Sheridan, VI Corps took part in some of the most high-profile operations in World War II. By wars end it was part of the Seventh Army of the 6th Army Group. In early May 1945 its 103d Infantry Division, which had raced south through Bavaria into Innsbruck, Austria, met up with troops of the 349th Infantry, the VI Corps was activated as VI Army Corps on 1 August 1918 at Neufchâteau, France. It served in the Lorraine Campaign, VI Corps commanders during World War I were MG Omar Bundy, from 26 August through 12 September 1918, MG Charles C. Ballou, from 23 October 1918 through 10 November 1918, MG Charles T. Menoher, MG Adelbert Cronkhite commanded from January to April,1919. The corps was demobilized on 11 April 1919, at Villerupt, the VI Corps was reconstituted in the Organized Reserves on 29 July 1921, and was organized in March 1922 at Chicago, Illinois. It was withdrawn from the Organized Reserves on 1 October 1933, the corps was activated on 1 August 1940 at Fort Sheridan, Illinois. The VI Corps took part in some of the most high-profile operations in World War II, fifth Army as part of Operation Avalanche. Major General Dawley was replaced after the battle, as he was judged to be worn out and he was replaced by Major General John Lucas. At the end of December, after fighting on the Bernhardt Line without a breakthrough. At first German resistance was negligible, however, Major General Lucas felt he needed to consolidate his beachhead before breaking out. This gave the Germans critical time to concentrate forces against him, another bloody stalemate ensued, with the corps almost being driven back into the sea for the second time in Italy, again being rescued by naval and air power. This, along with the performance at Anzio, would cast a shadow over the reputation of the corps. Following the capture of Rome, VI Corps again left the line, Operation Dragoon was aimed at capturing southern France, and VI Corps provided the assault troops, coming under Seventh Army. The landing, on 15 August 1944, was not opposed with much fervor, German forces, by comparison, lost over 2,000 men, with the bulk taken prisoner. Fearing their forces in southern France would be caught in a squeeze between the U. S, Seventh Army and allied forces advancing eastward from Normandy, the Germans began a strategic retreat toward the north. Wishing to avoid a repeat of the Anzio landings, elements of VI Corps moved north rapidly while the beachhead was consolidated and these units established a commanding position over the main route of German retreat near the town of Montelimar
17.
Fifth United States Army
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The United States Army North is a formation of the United States Army Service Component Command of United States Northern Command. As the joint force land component command, it is responsible for defense and defense support of civil authorities. It is garrisoned at Fort Sam Houston, Texas and it was officially activated on 5 January 1943 at Oujda, French Morocco and made responsible for the defence of Algeria and Morocco. Writing to Lieutenant General Jacob L. Devers in late March 1944, Clark explained the difficulties of the fighting in Italy so far, which could be said of the whole campaign. The Fifth Army first saw action during the Salerno landings, the landings at Salerno, part of the Allied invasion of Italy. Due to the low numbers of American troops available in the Mediterranean Theater it was made up of one American. They were the U. S. VI Corps, under Major General Ernest J. Dawley, at Salerno, VI Corps landed on the right flank, and X Corps on the left flank. Progress was initially slow, due in part to a lack of initiative by Dawley, the VI Corps commander, however, heavy naval and air bombardment, along with a parachute drop by elements of the U. S. On 20 September, by time the Fifth and Eighth Armies had linked up, Major General Dawley. Dawley was temporarily made deputy commander, and was soon replaced in command of VI Corps by Major General John P. Lucas. Progress was then good for a couple of weeks and the Fifth Army crossed the Barbara Line and they had established a position on the Winter Line, which included the formidable defensive positions at San Pietro Infine in the Liri Valley and at Monte Cassino. By this point, Fifth Army had been reinforced by a second American corps, II Corps, commanded by Major General Geoffrey Keyes. By the end of November Clarks Fifth Army had almost doubled in size, with the addition of French General Alphonse Juins French Expeditionary Corps, from 130,247 men to 243,827. VI Corps, with its experience of amphibious landings at Salerno, was chosen for the assault and withdrawn from the line and they made a second attempt to capture Monte Cassino in conjunction with the amphibious assault by VI Corps, which again failed. VI Corps landed at Anzio, unopposed, on 22 January 1944 in Operation Shingle, the fault, however, was not due to Lucass incompetence, it was due instead to wishful thinking, faulty operational planning, and the German armys ability to respond forcefully and aggressively. After the failure of Shingle, a reorganisation took place. Previously the Apennines had been the rough dividing line between Fifth and Eighth Armies, however, the dividing line was shifted westwards, to allow the concentration of both armies on the western side of Italy for maximum firepower to break through to Rome. British V Corps was left on the Adriatic coast to pin down any German units there, Fifth Army was relieved of responsibility for Cassino and the final phases of that battle saw Indian, New Zealand and finally Polish troops thrown against the fortress
18.
Tank
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A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat, with heavy firepower, strong armour, and tracks providing good battlefield maneuverability. The first tanks were designed to overcome the deadlock of trench warfare, now they are a mainstay of ground forces. Modern tanks are versatile mobile land weapon platforms, mounting a large-calibre cannon in a rotating gun turret. In both offensive and defensive roles, they are units that are capable of performing tasks which are required of armoured units on the battlefield. As a result of advances, tanks underwent tremendous shifts in capability in the years since their first appearance. Tanks in World War I were developed separately and simultaneously by Great Britain and this was a prototype of a new design that would become the British Armys Mark I tank, the first tank used in combat in September 1916 during the Battle of the Somme. The name tank was adopted by the British during the stages of their development. While the British and French built thousands of tanks in World War I, Germany was unconvinced of the tanks potential, Tanks of the interwar period evolved into the much larger and more powerful designs of World War II. Tanks in the Cold War were designed with these weapons in mind, improved engines, transmissions and suspensions allowed tanks of this period to grow larger. Aspects of gun technology changed significantly as well, with advances in shell design, during the Cold War, the main battle tank concept arose and became a key component of modern armies. Modern tanks seldom operate alone, as they are organized into combined arms units which involve the support of infantry and they are also usually supported by reconnaissance or ground-attack aircraft. The tank is the 20th century realization of an ancient concept, the internal combustion engine, armour plate, and continuous track were key innovations leading to the invention of the modern tank. Many sources imply that Leonardo da Vinci and H. G. Wells in some way foresaw or invented the tank, leonardos late 15th century drawings of what some describe as a tank show a man-powered, wheeled vehicle with cannons all around it. However the human crew would not have power to move it over larger distance. In the 15th century, Jan Žižka built armoured wagons containing cannons, the caterpillar track arose from attempts to improve the mobility of wheeled vehicles by spreading their weight, reducing ground pressure, and increasing their traction. Experiments can be traced back as far as the 17th century and it is frequently claimed that Richard Lovell Edgeworth created a caterpillar track. It is true that in 1770 he patented a machine, that should carry and lay down its own road and his own account in his autobiography is of a horse-drawn wooden carriage on eight retractable legs, capable of lifting itself over high walls. The description bears no similarity to a caterpillar track, armoured trains appeared in the mid-19th century, and various armoured steam and petrol-engined vehicles were also proposed
19.
Lend-Lease
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This included warships and warplanes, along with other weaponry. It was signed into law on March 11,1941 and ended in September 1945, in general the aid was free, although some hardware were returned after the war. In return, the U. S. was given leases on army, Canada operated a similar smaller program under a different name. A total of $50.1 billion worth of supplies was shipped, or 17% of the total war expenditures of the U. S. In all, $31.4 billion went to Britain, $11.3 billion to the Soviet Union, $3.2 billion to France, $1.6 billion to China, and the remaining $2.6 billion to the other Allies. Reverse Lend-Lease policies comprised services such as rent on air bases that went to the U. S. and totaled $7.8 billion, of this, $6.8 billion came from the British and the Commonwealth. The terms of the agreement provided that the materiel was to be used until returned or destroyed, in practice very little equipment was returned. Supplies that arrived after the date were sold to Britain at a large discount for £1.075 billion. Canada operated a program called Mutual Aid that sent a loan of $1 billion and $3.4 billion in supplies and services to Britain. This program effectively ended the United States pretense of neutrality and was a step away from non-interventionist policy. Following the Fall of France in June 1940, the British Commonwealth and Empire were the forces engaged in war against Germany and Italy. During this same period, the U. S. government began to mobilize for war, instituting the first-ever peacetime draft. In the meantime, as the British began running short of money, arms, as one Roosevelt biographer has characterized it, If there was no practical alternative, there was certainly no moral one either. Britain and the Commonwealth were carrying the battle for all civilization, as the President himself put it, There can be no reasoning with incendiary bombs. In September 1940, during the Battle of Britain the British government sent the Tizard Mission to the United States, in December 1940, President Roosevelt proclaimed the U. S. would be the Arsenal of Democracy and proposed selling munitions to Britain and Canada. Isolationists were strongly opposed, warning it would lead to American involvement in what was seen by most Americans as an essentially European conflict. In time, opinion shifted as increasing numbers of Americans began to see the advantage of funding the British war against Germany, while staying out of the hostilities themselves. After a decade of neutrality, Roosevelt knew that the change to Allied support must be gradual, originally, the American position was to help the British but not enter the war
20.
Aberdeen Proving Ground
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Aberdeen Proving Ground is a United States Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Maryland. Part of the facility is a place, which had a population of 3,116 at the 2000 census. APG is the U. S. Armys oldest active proving ground, established on October 20,1917 and its location allowed design and testing of ordnance materiel to take place near contemporary industrial and shipping centers. The proving ground was created as a successor to the Sandy Hook Proving Ground, at the peak of World War II, APG had billeting space for 2,348 officers and 24,189 enlisted personnel. These poison gas manufacturing facilities came to be known as Edgewood Arsenal, Edgewood Arsenal included plants to manufacture mustard gas, chloropicrin and phosgene, and separate facilities to fill artillery shells with these chemicals. Production began in 1918, reached 2,756 tons per month, some of this gas was shipped overseas for use in French and British artillery shells. The Edgewood area of Aberdeen Proving Ground is approximately 13,000 acres, the Edgewood area was used for the development and testing of chemical agent munitions. From 1917 to the present, the Edgewood area conducted chemical research programs, manufactured chemical agents, and tested, stored, from 1955 to 1975, the U. S. Army Chemical Corps conducted classified medical studies at Edgewood Arsenal, Maryland. The purpose was to evaluate the impact of chemical warfare agents on military personnel and to test protective clothing. About 7,000 soldiers took part in experiments that involved exposures to more than 250 different chemicals. Some of the volunteers exhibited symptoms at the time of exposure to these agents, the Gunpowder Meetinghouse and Presbury Meetinghouse are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Other parts of APG not attached to the installation include the Churchville Test Area in Harford County. The eastern half Carroll Island was used as a location for open air static testing of chemical weapons since the 1950s. Simulant agents, incendiaries, decontaminating compounds, signaling and screening smokes, mustard, the test sites consisted of spray grids, a wind tunnel, test grids, and small buildings. Edgewood Chemical Activity is a depot located at APG. Elimination of the chemicals held here was put on an accelerated schedule after the September 11,2001, attacks, Fort Hoyle was established on October 7,1922, and was created from a portion of the Edgewood Arsenal. Named for Brigadier General Eli D, Fort Hoyle was officially disestablished as a separate military post when it was reabsorbed by Edgewood Arsenal on September 10,1940. The U. S. Army Ordnance Corps Museum previously located at APG, was moved to Fort Lee, Virginia as a result of the 2005 Base Relocation, APG is located at 39°28′24″N 76°8′27″W and occupies a land area of 293 square kilometres
21.
M2 Half Track Car
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The M2 Half Track Car was a half-track armored vehicle produced by the United States during World War II. Its design drew upon half-tracks brought in from France in the 1930s, employing standard components supplied by U. S. truck manufacturers to speed production, the M2 was initially intended for use as an artillery tractor, but also found use with reconnaissance units. International Harvester Company built the M9 half-track, a variant of their M5 half track, the half-track design had been evaluated by the US Ordnance department using Citroën-Kégresse vehicles. The Cavalry branch of the US Army found that their wheeled armored cars had trouble in wet terrain due to their high ground pressure. In 1938, the White Motor Company took the Timken rear bogie assembly from a T9 half-track truck and added it to an M3 Scout Car, by 1940, the vehicle had been standardized as the M2 Half-Track car. The M2 design was recognized as having the potential for general mechanized infantry use, both the M2 and M3 were ordered into production in late 1940, with M2 contracts let to Autocar, White and Diamond T. The first vehicles were received by the Army in 1941, the M2 was supplied to artillery units as the prime mover and ammunition carrier for the 105mm howitzer, and to armored infantry units for carrying machine gun squads. It was also issued to armored units as an interim solution until more specialized vehicles could be fielded. Between 1942 and 1943, both the M2 and M3 would receive a number of modifications to the train, engine. Total production of M2 and derivatives by White was about 13,500 units, to meet the needs of Lend-Lease to the Allies, the International Harvester Company produced 3,500 units of the M9. The M9 was the same as the IH-produced M5 but with different internal stowage, the first M2s were fielded in 1941, and would be used in the Philippines, North Africa, and Europe by the U. S. Army, and around the Pacific by the Marines. About 800 M2 and M9 halftracks were sent to the Soviet Union, many remaining vehicles initially destined for lend-lease were transferred to other U. S. allies, primarily in South America. These vehicles often received a number of upgrades designed at extending service life, nicaraguas National Guard received 10 M2s in 1942, which saw heavy action during the 1978-79 Nicaraguan Revolution. The Argentine Army retired its last upgraded M9 in 2006 and donated them to Bolivia, in 1947, the Finnish heavy vehicle producer Vanajan Autotehdas bought 425 M2 Half track vehicles from the Western Allied surplus stocks located in France and Germany. The vehicles were delivered without armour,359 units were converted into field and forest clearing vehicles, some were scrapped for parts and 60 units were equipped with conventional rear axles and converted into 4×4 or 4×2 trucks. They were badged as Vanaja VaWh, the last units were sold in 1952. United States United Kingdom Soviet Union Czechoslovakia Chile France Greece Portugal Brazil Dominican Republic – Dominican Army 16 M3 version still in service, Philippines Poland Israel -2,000 modified M3/M9 versions on service with the IDF. Mexico Belgium Netherlands Cambodia South Vietnam Laos Lebanon - M3 in service with the Lebanese Army between 1949 -1970, ex-IDF versions supplied by Israel to the Lebanese Forces and South Lebanon Army passed on to the Amal Movement, Hezbollah, Lebanese Army
22.
Bomber
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A bomber is a combat aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry, firing torpedoes or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. In 1912, during the First Balkan War, Bulgarian Air Force pilot Christo Toprakchiev suggested the use of aircraft to drop bombs on Turkish positions, captain Simeon Petrov developed the idea and created several prototypes by adapting different types of grenades and increasing their payload. This is deemed to be the first use of an aircraft as a bomber, the first heavier-than-air aircraft purposely designed for bombing were the Italian Caproni Ca 30 and British Bristol T. B.8, both of 1913. The Bristol T. B.8 was an early British single engined biplane built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, under the command of Charles Rumney Samson, a bombing attack on German gun batteries at Middelkerke, Belgium was executed on 25 November 1914. The dirigible, or airship, was developed in the early 20th century, early airships were prone to disaster, but slowly the airship became more dependable, with a more rigid structure and stronger skin. Prior to the outbreak of war, Zeppelins, a larger and these were the first long range, strategic bombers. Although the German air arm was strong, with a total of 123 airships by the end of the war, they were vulnerable to attack and engine failure, German airships inflicted little damage on all 51 raids, with 557 Britons killed and 1,358 injured. The German Navy lost 53 of its 73 airships, and the German Army lost 26 of its 50 ships, the Caproni Ca 30 was built by Gianni Caproni in Italy. It was a biplane with three 67 kW Gnome rotary engines and first flew in October 1914. Test flights revealed power to be insufficient and the engine layout unworkable, the improved design was bought by the Italian Army and it was delivered in quantity from August 1915. Bombing raids and interdiction operations were carried out by French. Sustained attacks with a view to interrupting the enemys railway communications, in conjunction with the main operations of the Allied Armies. The most important bombers used in World War I were the French Breguet 14, British de Havilland DH-4, German Albatros C. III, the Russian Sikorsky Ilya Muromets, was the first four-engine bomber to equip a dedicated strategic bombing unit during World War I. This heavy bomber was unrivaled in the stages of the war. With engine power as a limitation, combined with the desire for accuracy and other operational factors. By the start of the war included, dive bomber — specially strengthened for vertical diving attacks for greater accuracy. Light bomber, medium bomber and heavy bomber — subjective definitions based on size, torpedo bomber — specialized aircraft armed with torpedoes. Ground attack aircraft — aircraft used against targets on a such as troop or tank concentrations
23.
M5 Half-track
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The M5 Half-track was an American armored personnel carrier in use during World War II. It was developed in 1942 when existing manufacturers of the M2 Half Track Car, International Harvester had capacity to produce a similar vehicle to the M3, but some differences from it had to be accepted due to different production equipment. The M5 was produced by IH from December 1942 to October 1943, using the same chassis as their M5, IH could produced an equivalent to the M2, which was the M9 Half-track. There are also variants of the M13 and M16 MGMCs based on the M5, the M13 and M16 were exported to the United Kingdom and to Soviet Union respectively. The M5 was supplied to Allied nations under the Lend-Lease, after the war, it was leased to many countries in the NATO. It served with Israel in multiple different wars and was developed by the country into the M3 Mark A, the specifications of the M5 were almost identical to the specifications of the M3 Half-track. It was 20.8 feet long,7.3 feet wide,9 feet high and it had vertical volute springs for the tracks and semi-elliptical longitudal leaf springs for the wheels. It was powered by a 142 hp White 160AX,386 cubic inch, 6-cylinder engine and it had a fuel capacity of 60 US gallons, a range of 125 miles, and a speed of 42 miles per hour. It had constant mesh transmission,6. 5–13.5 mm of armor, one 0.5 in M2 machine gun, as a result, the war munitions industry in the U. S. rapidly expanded. While the existing manufacturers of M3 half-tracks could not meet the demands, International Harvester could build them. Prototype vehicles were provided designated as the M3E2 and the M2E5, after testing by General Motors, they were accepted for production under the designations M5 and M9 respectively. Due to a lack of face-hardened armor, homogeneous armor was used instead, although thicker at 5⁄16 inch to the M3s 1⁄4 inch, it was effectively less protection – armor-piercing rifle-caliber bullets could penetrate it at 300 yards rather than 200 yards for the M3. At the same time, IH was to produce a version of the M2 Half Track Car, the first production run of the M5 was completed in December 1942. Changes to the demand for half-tracks led to reduced orders within the U. S. Army, a total of 7,484 were produced before production was stopped in October 1943. Almost all M5s were sent to U. S. allies for further use, the added weight of the armor reduced the speed to 42 mph, and range was reduced to 125 mi. The final vehicles were completed in October 1943, in the UK, it was used as an artillery tractor for towing the British 6-pounder and 17-pounder guns, due to the Universal Carrier already fulfilling the infantry transport role. Some were also retained in the U. S. for training purposes, the M5 later saw service with the Israeli army in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. They were commonly painted red to them as agricultural tractors
24.
International Harvester
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The International Harvester Company was a United States manufacturer of agricultural machinery, construction equipment, trucks, and household and commercial products. In 1902, J. P. Morgan merged the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and Deering Harvester Company, in 1985, International Harvester sold off most of its agricultural division to Tenneco, Inc. which merged it into its subsidiary J. I. Case under the Case IH brand, following the terms of IHs agreement with Tenneco, International Harvester renamed itself Navistar International Corporation in 1986. Together with his brother Leander J. McCormick, McCormick moved to Chicago in 1847, the McCormick reaper sold well, partially as a result of savvy and innovative business practices. Their products came onto the market just as the development of railroads offered wide distribution to distant market areas and he developed marketing and sales techniques, developing a vast network of trained salesmen able to demonstrate operation of the machines in the field. In 1902, the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and Deering Harvester Company, banker J. P. Morgan provided the financing. In 1919, the Parlin and Orendorff factory in Canton, Illinois, was a leader in the manufacturing industry. International Harvester purchased the factory, calling it the Canton Works, in 1926, IHs Farmall Works began production in a new plant in Rock Island, Illinois, built solely to produce the new Farmall tractor. By 1930, the 100, 000th Farmall was produced, IH next set their sights on introducing a true general-purpose tractor designed to satisfy the needs of the average US family farmer. IH ranked 33rd among United States corporations in the value of World War II production contracts, in 1946 IH acquired a defense plant in Louisville, Kentucky, which was enlarged, expanded, and re-equipped for production of the Farmall A, B, and the new 340 tractors. Then in 1948, IH acquired the Metropolitan Body Company of Bridgeport and this was the manufacturing facility for the bodies of the commercially successful Metro line of forward control vans and trucks from 1938 until roughly 1964. In 1974, the five-millionth IHC tractor was produced at the Rock Island Farmall plant, throughout the 1960s and 1970s, despite good sales, IHs profit margins remained slim. An overly conservative management, combined with a policy of in-house promotions, tended to stifle new management strategies. Products with increasingly ancient technology continued in production despite their marginal addition to sales, in 1979, IH named a new CEO, who was determined to improve profit margins and drastically cut ballooning costs. Unprofitable model lines were terminated, and factory production curtailed, by the end of the year, IH profits were at their highest in 10 years, but cash reserves were still too low. Union members became increasingly irate over production cutbacks and other cost-cutting measures, in the spring and summer of 1979, IH began short-term planning for a strike that seemed inevitable. Then on November 1, IH announced figures showing that president, McCardell sought overtime, work rule, and other changes from the United Auto Workers, which led to a strike on November 2,1979. Soon after, the economy turned unfavorable, and IH faced a financial crisis, the strike lasted about six months
25.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
26.
OCLC
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The Online Computer Library Center is a US-based nonprofit cooperative organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the worlds information and reducing information costs. It was founded in 1967 as the Ohio College Library Center, OCLC and its member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the largest online public access catalog in the world. OCLC is funded mainly by the fees that libraries have to pay for its services, the group first met on July 5,1967 on the campus of the Ohio State University to sign the articles of incorporation for the nonprofit organization. The group hired Frederick G. Kilgour, a former Yale University medical school librarian, Kilgour wished to merge the latest information storage and retrieval system of the time, the computer, with the oldest, the library. The goal of network and database was to bring libraries together to cooperatively keep track of the worlds information in order to best serve researchers and scholars. The first library to do online cataloging through OCLC was the Alden Library at Ohio University on August 26,1971 and this was the first occurrence of online cataloging by any library worldwide. Membership in OCLC is based on use of services and contribution of data, between 1967 and 1977, OCLC membership was limited to institutions in Ohio, but in 1978, a new governance structure was established that allowed institutions from other states to join. In 2002, the structure was again modified to accommodate participation from outside the United States. As OCLC expanded services in the United States outside of Ohio, it relied on establishing strategic partnerships with networks, organizations that provided training, support, by 2008, there were 15 independent United States regional service providers. OCLC networks played a key role in OCLC governance, with networks electing delegates to serve on OCLC Members Council, in early 2009, OCLC negotiated new contracts with the former networks and opened a centralized support center. OCLC provides bibliographic, abstract and full-text information to anyone, OCLC and its member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat—the OCLC Online Union Catalog, the largest online public access catalog in the world. WorldCat has holding records from public and private libraries worldwide. org, in October 2005, the OCLC technical staff began a wiki project, WikiD, allowing readers to add commentary and structured-field information associated with any WorldCat record. The Online Computer Library Center acquired the trademark and copyrights associated with the Dewey Decimal Classification System when it bought Forest Press in 1988, a browser for books with their Dewey Decimal Classifications was available until July 2013, it was replaced by the Classify Service. S. The reference management service QuestionPoint provides libraries with tools to communicate with users and this around-the-clock reference service is provided by a cooperative of participating global libraries. OCLC has produced cards for members since 1971 with its shared online catalog. OCLC commercially sells software, e. g. CONTENTdm for managing digital collections, OCLC has been conducting research for the library community for more than 30 years. In accordance with its mission, OCLC makes its research outcomes known through various publications and these publications, including journal articles, reports, newsletters, and presentations, are available through the organizations website. The most recent publications are displayed first, and all archived resources, membership Reports – A number of significant reports on topics ranging from virtual reference in libraries to perceptions about library funding
27.
Armoured fighting vehicle
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An armoured fighting vehicle is a combat vehicle, protected by strong armour and generally armed with weapons, which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked and it is not uncommon for AFVs to be simply referred to as armour. Armoured fighting vehicles are classified according to their role on the battlefield. This classification is not absolute, at different times different countries will classify the vehicle in different roles. For example, armoured carriers were generally replaced by infantry fighting vehicles in a similar role. Modern armoured fighting vehicles are the realization of an ancient concept, War machines with rudimentary armour have been used in battle for millennia. These designs historically struggled between the paradox of exposed-mobility, effective-firepower and cumbersome-protection, Siege engines, such as battering rams and trebuchets, would often be armoured in order to protect the crews from the defenders. Very large movable siege towers, helepolis were developed by Polyidus of Thessaly, the idea of a vehicle with a tortoise like cover has been known since antiquity. Frequently cited is Leonardo da Vincis 15th century sketch of a mobile, protected gun platform, the machine was to be mounted on four wheels which would be turned by the crew through a system of hand cranks and cage gears. Leonardo quoted I will build armored wagons which will be safe, there will be no obstacle which it cannot overcome. Modern replicas have demonstrated that the crew would have been able to move it over only short distances. The war wagon were medieval weapon-platforms developmed during the Hussite Wars around 1420 by Hussite forces rebelling in Bohemia. These heavy wagon were given protective sides with firing slits and heavy firepower from either a cannon or a force of hand-gunners and crossbowmen, supported by infantry using pikes, heavy arquebuses mounted on wagons were called arquebus à croc. These carried a ball of about 3.5 ounces, the first modern AFVs were armed cars, dating back virtually to the invention of the motor car. The Motor Scout was designed and built by British inventor F. R. Simms in 1898 and it was the first armed petrol engine powered vehicle ever built. The vehicle was a De Dion-Bouton quadricycle with a mounted Maxim machine gun on the front bar, an iron shield offered some protection for the driver from the front, but it lacked all-around protective armour. The armoured car was the first modern fully armoured fighting vehicle, the first of these was the Simms Motor War Car, designed by Simms and built by Vickers, Sons & Maxim in 1899. The vehicle had Vickers armour 6 mm thick and was powered by a four-cylinder 3. 3-litre 16 hp Cannstatt Daimler engine giving it a speed of around 9 miles per hour
28.
M1 Combat Car
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The M1 Combat Car was a light tank used by the U. S. Cavalry in the late 1930s and developed at the same time as the infantrys very similar M2 light tank. After the Spanish Civil War, most armies, including the U. S. Army, realized that they needed tanks armed with cannons, not merely vehicles armed with machine guns, and so the M1 became obsolete. The National Defense Act of 1920 set tanks as the responsibility of the infantry, Light tanks were defined as weighing five tons or less – so they could be carried by trucks – and medium tanks no greater than 15 tons to meet bridge weight limits. With very tight restrictions on spending, tank development in the U. S. was limited to a couple of test vehicles a year. The mechanization of the army was promoted by General Douglas MacArthur who believed that the cavalry should have tanks for a role rather than acting in support of the infantry. To allow U. S. Army cavalry units to be equipped with armored fighting vehicles, in the mid-1930s, the Rock Island Arsenal built three experimental T2 light tanks inspired by the British Vickers 6-ton tank. At the same time, they built a light tank similar to the T2 for the cavalry – the T5 combat car, the only major difference between the two was that the T5 used vertical volute suspension while the T2 had leaf springs as on the Vickers. The T5 was developed further and the T5E2 was accepted for production as the M1 combat car, the M1 entered service in 1937. A change to the suspension so that the idler wheel rested on the ground increased the length of track in contact with the ground, together with a different engine and improved turret, this produced the M2 combat car. In 1940, the distinction between infantry and cavalry tank units disappeared with the establishment of the force to manage all tanks in the U. S. Army. The combat car name was superfluous, and the cavalry unit tanks redesignated the M1 combat car as the light tank M1A1 and the M2 combat car as the light tank M1A2. The M1 and M2 combat cars were not used in combat by the U. S. Army during World War II, though some were used for training purposes. M1E2 – The prototype for the M1A1 M1A1 – A new octagonal turret instead of a D-shaped one, m1A1E1 – Prototype of the M2 combat car. The engine was replaced by a Guiberson T-1020 diesel, M2 – New Guiberson diesel engine and trailing idler. British and American Tanks of World War II, hunnicutt, R. P. Stuart, A History of the American Light Tank. Weapons of the Tankers, American Armor in World War II, the Encyclopedia of Tanks and Armored Fighting Vehicles – The Comprehensive Guide to Over 900 Armored Fighting Vehicles From 1915 to the Present Day. San Diego, CA, Thunder Bay Press, WWII vehicles Mobile Machine-Gun Nest Carries Five Guns Popular Mechanics, September 1937 Tanks Encyclopedia article
29.
M2 light tank
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The Light Tank M2 was an American pre-World War II light tank which saw limited use during World War II. The most common model, the M2A4, was equipped with one 37 mm M5 gun and it was originally developed from the prototype T2 tank built by Rock Island Arsenal, which had a Vickers-type leaf spring suspension. The suspension was replaced by the vertical volute system in the T2E1 series of 1935. This was put into production with minor modifications as the M2A1 in 1936, the main pre-war version was the M2A2, with 239 produced, becoming the main tank in the US Army infantry units in the pre-world-war-II period. The Spanish Civil War showed that tanks armed only with guns were ineffective. This led to the M2A4 with a 37 mm gun as the main armament, a total of 375 were delivered, the last ten as late as April 1942. Its only combat use in American units was with the US Marine Corps 1st Tank Battalion during the Pacific War in 1942. However, it is believed that M2A4s served in Burma and India with the British 7th Hussars, the M2A4 light tank led to the development of the M3 Stuart light tank and the M4 Tractor artillery prime mover. The M3 Stuart saw widespread use throughout the war, US Army infantry tank design started with the Light Tank, T1 during the 1920s, which developed into a series of experimental designs which didnt enter production. The T2 concept, starting five years later, incorporated several design lessons from the T1, the first prototype was delivered in 1933. The Defense Act of 1920 had defined tanks to be used in support of the infantry, through the 1920s a number of theorists outlined an independent role for the tank that required it to move at high speed into the rear areas, a modern version of the cavalry. The British referred to these designs as cruiser tanks, but similar high-speed designs were developed under a variety of names, as the Defense Act limited tank development to the infantry, the United States Cavalry began tank development under the name combat car. In keeping with the role, the new T5 Combat Car introduced the new vertical volute spring suspension system. This led to a prototype of the T2, the T2E1 in April 1934. The T2E1 was armed with one.30 cal and one.50 inch Browning machine gun mounted in a fixed turret, another.30 cal Browning was mounted on the hull front. The T2E1 was selected for production in 1935 as the M2, which mounted only the M2 Browning in a small turret. After only 10 units were delivered, the Infantry Branch decided to switch to a twin turret configuration in the M2E2 and these early twin-turret tanks were given the nickname Mae West by the troops, after the popular busty movie star. The twin-turret layout was inefficient, but was a feature of 1930s light tanks derived from the Vickers, such as the Soviet T-26
30.
M3 Stuart
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The M3 Stuart, formally Light Tank M3, is an American light tank of World War II. It was supplied to British and Commonwealth forces under lend-lease prior to the entry of the U. S. into the war, thereafter, it was used by U. S. and Allied forces until the end of the war. The name General Stuart or Stuart given by the British comes from the American Civil War Confederate General J. E. B, Stuart and was used for both the M3 and the derivative M5 Light Tank. In British service, it also had the nickname of Honey after a tank driver remarked Shes a honey. To the United States Army, the tanks were known only as Light Tank M3. Stuarts were the first American-crewed tanks in World War II to engage the enemy in tank versus tank combat, observing events in Europe, American tank designers realized that the Light Tank M2 was becoming obsolete and set about improving it. The upgraded design, with armor, modified suspension and new gun recoil system was called Light Tank M3. Production of the started in March 1941 and continued until October 1943. Later, the gun was replaced with the slightly longer M6, for a light tank, the Stuart was fairly heavily armored. Internally, the engine was at the rear and the transmission at the front. The prop shaft connecting the two ran through the middle of the fighting compartment, the radial engine, having its crankshaft high off the hull bottom, contributed to the tanks high silhouette. When a revolving turret floor was introduced in the M3 hybrid and M3A1, in contrast to the M2A4, all M3/M5 series tanks had a trailing rear idler wheel for increased ground contact). This variation was quieter, cooler and roomier, owing to its automatic transmission, it also simplified crew training. The new model featured a redesigned hull with sloped glacis plate. Although the main criticism from the using it was that the Stuarts lacked firepower. The M5 gradually replaced the M3 in production from 1942 and, the British Army was the first to use the Light Tank M3 as the General Stuart in combat. From mid-November 1941 to the end of the year, about 170 Stuarts took part in Operation Crusader during the North Africa Campaign and this is despite the fact that the M3 was superior or comparable in most regards to most of the tanks used by the Axis forces. The most numerous German tank, the Panzer III Ausf G, had nearly identical armor and speed to the M3, mentioned in the British complaints were the 37 mm M5 gun and poor internal layout
31.
M22 Locust
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The Light Tank M22 or Locust was an American-designed airmobile light tank which was produced during World War II. The United States Ordnance Department was asked to produce this replacement, after a series of modifications were made to the initial prototype, production of the T9 began in April 1943. It was significantly delayed, however, when several faults were found with the tanks design, as a result, the Ordnance Department gave the tank the specification number M22 but no combat units were equipped with it. However, the War Office believed that the tank would perform adequately despite its faults, in October 1944 however, the remaining Tetrarchs of the regiment were replaced by Locusts and eight were used during Operation Varsity in March 1945. The tanks did not perform well in action, several were damaged during the landing process, only two Locusts were able to reach their planned rendezvous point and go into action, occupying a piece of high ground along with an infantry company. The tanks were forced to withdraw from the position after several hours however, the Locust never saw active service with the British Army again and was classified as obsolete in 1946. When officials at the War Office examined the equipment that would be required for a British airborne division and these gliders would be used to transport troops and heavy equipment, which by 1941 was to include artillery and some form of tank. In a conference held on January 16,1941, it was decided that the General Aircraft Hamilcar, under development at the time, as a result, the Vickers-Armstrong Light Tank Mk VII Tetrarch light tank was now considered obsolete. This made it available for use by the forces and it was chosen by the War Office as the tank to be transported by glider. However, it had not been designed specifically as a tank or to be airmobile. Its size limited the crew to three—a driver in the hull. The War Office was also aware that the tank had a faulty cooling system made the Tetrarch unsuitable for service in hotter climates, such as the Middle East. Instead the American government was approached with a request that it produce a replacement for the Tetrarch, the proposed tank was to have a primary armament of a 37-millimetre main gun and secondary armament of a. 30-06 Browning M1919A4, and a crew of three. The specification also called for a speed of 40 mph. The turret and front of the hull were to have a thickness of between 40 millimetres and 50 millimetres, and the sides of the tank a thickness of 30 millimetres. The design offered by Christie in mid-1941 was rejected as it failed to meet the size requirements. The T9 had a crew of three and weighed 6.7 metric tons and it was armed with a 37-millimetre main gun and a coaxial. 30-06 Browning M1919A4 machine-gun, as well as two further machine-guns on the right-hand side of the bow. The main gun and coaxial machine-gun were mounted in a powered turret, the tanks engine was able to give it a maximum speed of 40 mph
32.
M24 Chaffee
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In British service it was given the service name Chaffee after the United States Army General Adna R. Chaffee, Jr. who helped develop the use of tanks in the United States armed forces. While long removed from American and British service, it is found in service as a light tank in third-world countries. British combat experience in the North African campaign identified several shortcomings of the M3 Stuart light tank, the M3/M5 design was dated though, the 75 mm gun reduced storage space, and the armor was insufficient. The weight increase without increased power gave it unsatisfactory performance, the program was stopped in March 1943 to allow standardization on a medium tank - the M4 medium. The powerplant and transmission of the M5 were used together with some aspects of the T7, every effort was made to keep the weight of the vehicle under 20 tons. The armor was light, with the glacis plate only 25 mm thick. A new lightweight 75 mm gun was developed, a derivative of the gun used in the B-25H Mitchell bomber, the gun had the same ballistics as the 75 mm M3 in use by American tanks but used a thinly walled barrel and different recoil mechanism. The design featured -16 in - tracks and torsion bar suspension, the torsion bar system was to give a smoother ride than the vertical volute suspension used on most US armored vehicles. At the same time, the chassis was expected to be a used for other vehicles, such as self-propelled guns. It had a low silhouette and a three-man turret. On October 15,1943, the first pilot vehicle was delivered, the design was judged a success and a contract for 1,000 was immediately raised by the Ordnance Department. This was subsequently increased to 5,000, production began in 1944 under the designation Light Tank M24. It was produced at two sites, from April at Cadillac and from July at Massey-Harris, by the time production was stopped in August 1945,4,731 M24s had been produced. The M24 Chaffee was intended to replace the aging and obsolete Light Tank M5, the first thirty-four M24s reached Europe in November 1944 and were issued to the U. S. 2nd Cavalry Group in France. These were then issued to Troop F, 2nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron and Troop F, 42nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, which each received seventeen M24s. During the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944, these units and their new tanks were rushed to the southern sector, the M24 started to enter widespread use in December 1944, but they were slow in reaching the front-line combat units. By the end of the war, many armored divisions were mainly equipped with the M3/M5 Stuart. Some armored divisions did not receive their first M24s until the war was over, reports from the armored divisions that received them prior to the end of hostilities were generally positive
33.
Marmon-Herrington CTLS
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The Marmon-Herrington Combat Tank Light Series were a series of U. S. light tanks/tankettes that were produced for the export market at the start of the Second World War. The CTL-3 had a crew of two and was armed with two.30 cal M1919 machine guns and one.50 cal M2 Browning machine gun and they were originally designed to be amphibious light tanks. They were rejected by the Marines in 1939, but after the attack on Pearl Harbor they were exported and used as a light tank. It primarily served in Alaska and the Dutch East Indies, while numbers were used in the U. S. as guard tanks stationed along the U. S. coast. Marines required a light tank that could be used in amphibious operations, after trials with Christie amphibious tanks, Marmon Herrington produced a light, turretless tank with a 0.5 in M2 machine gun and two.30 cal M1919 machine guns. This was the first light tank to meet USMC standards when it was designed, with a crew of two, consisting of the driver and gunner, and protected by up to 0.5 in of armor, it was named the Combat Tank Light 3. All three machine guns were mounted on ball mounts on the front hull, fitted with bogie leaf suspension, the tank was 6 ft 10 in wide,11 ft 6 in long, with a height of 6 ft 11 in. It weighed 4.7 short tons, and was powered by a Lincoln V-12, Hercules 6-cylinder gasoline engine and it was capable of speeds of up to 33 mph, and had a range of 125 mi. Five prototypes were produced in 1936 to be tested, five more were produced in 1939. Tests continued until 1940, after which the Marine Corps deemed it obsolete because of the goals to make it amphibious which left it with fragile tracks, the Marine Corps thus relegated it to training use only. A small number were used by the US Marine Corps 1st Tank, some were employed on Western Samoa. None of those tanks saw action, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Ordnance Committee determined that a few CTLS-4TAC and 4TAYs would be dispersed to the U. S. Army and employed in the Aleutian Islands campaign. Under Ordnance Committee Minutes 18526, these examples were designated as the Light Tank T16. A total of 628 CTMS tanks were ordered by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army, of these, a small number were delivered to Java, just in time to see combat in the Dutch East Indies campaign following the Japanese invasion in early 1942. 149 from this order were diverted to Australia where they were used for training,600 CTLS-4TACs and 4TAYs were delivered to China under Lend-Lease after Pearl Harbor. After the war, the Indonesian Army is reported to have used several captured Dutch vehicles, CTL-1 – Designed by Marmon-Herrington to be shipped to the Polish Army, but it was rejected by them. CTL-2 – A CTL-1 with slightly thicker armor, CTL-3 – A tankette, fitted with one 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine gun and two.30 cal M1919 machine guns. Five were produced in 1936, while five were produced in 1939
34.
M2 Medium Tank
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The Medium Tank M2 was a United States Army tank that was first produced in 1939 by the Rock Island Arsenal, just prior to the commencement of the Second World War in Europe. Production was 18 M2 tanks, and 94 slightly improved M2A1 tanks, events in Western Europe rapidly demonstrated that the M2 was obsolete, and it was never used overseas in combat, it was, however, used for training purposes throughout the war. The M2s features included a large number of machine guns, bullet deflector plates. The main armament was a 37 mm gun, with 32 mm armor, Rock Island Arsenal started work on a new medium tank, based on the design of the M2 Light Tank. Initially designated the T5, the model was re-designated as the M2 Medium Tank in June,1939. After the first 18 units had produced at Rock Island Arsenal and evaluated by the Army, the upgraded M2A1 specification was approved with a redesigned turret. The medium tank M2 was a development of the M2 Light Tank. Many components were common or used a design, including the vertical volute spring suspension which would be used in later tanks as well. Twin-wheeled bogies were mounted externally, which saved internal space compared to other suspension designs, the rubber-bushed and rubber-shod track proved durable on roads. The initial M2 model was powered by an air-cooled Wright R-975 radial engine, for the M2A1, this engine was supercharged to provide an extra 50 hp for a total of 400 horsepower, and designated as the R-975 C1 radial engine. These track and suspension designs, with modifications, were later used on the M3. The M2 had a superstructure, with a sponson-mounted machine gun in each corner. In addition, two machine guns were fixed in the glacis plate and fired by the driver. Surmounting the superstructure was a revolving turret armed with a 37 mm Gun M3. The 37 mm gun could penetrate 46 mm of face-hardened armor sloped 30° at a range of 500 yards, the crew consisted of the tank commander, a driver and four gunners. The vehicle provided internal stowage for 200 rounds of 37 mm ammunition, bullet deflector plates were installed over the rear fenders. Like the sponson machine guns themselves, the deflector plates turned out to be useless, however, the idea was used again on M5 light tanks in the Normandy campaign. Events in Europe made it obvious that the M2 was obsolete, instead of M2 medium tanks, the plant would now build 1,000 M3 Grant tanks once they had been designed
35.
M3 Lee
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The Medium Tank M3 was an American tank used during World War II. In Britain, the tank was called by two names based on the configuration and crew size. Tanks employing US pattern turrets were called the Lee, named after Confederate general Robert E. Lee, variants using British pattern turrets were known as Grant, named after U. S. general Ulysses S. Grant. Design commenced in July 1940, and the first M3s were operational in late 1941. The U. S. Army needed a medium tank armed with a 75mm gun and, coupled with the United Kingdoms immediate demand for 3,650 medium tanks, the design was a compromise meant to produce a tank as soon as possible. They were extensively used in northern Africa and its overall performance was not satisfactory and the tank was withdrawn from combat in most theaters as soon as the M4 Sherman tank became available in larger numbers. In spite of this, it was considered by Hans von Luck to be superior to the best German tank at the time of its introduction, despite being replaced elsewhere, the British continued to use M3s in combat against the Japanese in southeast Asia until 1945. In 1939, the U. S. Army possessed approximately 400 tanks, mostly M2 Light Tanks, the U. S. funded tank development poorly during the interwar years, and had little experience in design as well as poor doctrine to guide design efforts. The M2 Medium Tank was typical of armored fighting vehicles many nations produced in 1939. When the U. S. entered the war, the M2 design was obsolete with a 37 mm gun,32 mm frontal armor, an impractical number of secondary machine guns. The Panzer III and Panzer IVs success in the French campaign led the U. S. Army to immediately order a new tank armed with a 75 mm gun in a turret. This would be the M4 Sherman, until the Sherman reached production, an interim design with a 75 mm gun was urgently needed. The design was unusual because the main weapon — a larger caliber, the sponson mount was necessary because, at the time, American tank plants were incapable of casting a turret big enough to hold the 75mm main gun. A small turret with a lighter, high-velocity 37 mm gun sat on top of the tall hull, a small cupola on top of the turret held a machine gun. The use of two guns was seen on the French Char B1 and the Mark I version of the British Churchill tank. In each case, two weapons were mounted to give the tanks adequate capability in firing both anti-personnel high explosive ammunition and armor-piercing ammunition for anti-tank combat, using a hull mounted gun, the M3 design could be produced faster than a tank featuring a turreted gun. It was understood that the M3 design was flawed, but Britain urgently needed tanks, steering was by differential braking, with a turning circle of 37 ft. The turret was power-traversed by a system in the form of an electric motor providing the pressure for the hydraulic motor
36.
M4 Sherman
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The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most numerous battle tank used by the United States and some of the other Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, thousands were distributed through the Lend-Lease program to the British Commonwealth and Soviet Union. The tank was named by the British for the American Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman, the M4 Sherman evolved from the interim M3 Medium Tank, which had its main armament in a side sponson mount. The M4 retained much of the mechanical design, but put the main 75 mm gun in a fully traversing turret. The designers stressed mechanical reliability, ease of production and maintenance, durability, standardization of parts and ammunition in a number of variants. These factors, combined with the Shermans then-superior armor and armament, outclassed German light, the M4 went on to be produced in large numbers. It spearheaded many offensives by the Western Allies after 1942, for this reason, the US Army believed that the M4 would be adequate to win the war, and no pressure was exerted for further tank development. Logistical and transport restrictions, such as limitations imposed by roads, ports, Tank destroyer battalions using vehicles built on the M4 hull and chassis, but with open-topped turrets and more potent high-velocity guns, also entered widespread use in the Allied armies. Even by 1944, most M4 Shermans kept their dual purpose 75 mm gun, some Shermans were produced with a more capable gun, the 76 mm gun M1, or refitted with a 17-pounder by the British. These factors combined to give the Allies numerical superiority in most battles, the U. S. Army Ordnance Department designed the M4 medium tank as a replacement for the M3 medium tank. The M3 was a development of the M2 Medium Tank of 1939. The M3 was developed as a stopgap measure until a new turret mounting a 75 mm gun could be devised, though reluctant to adopt the British army weapons in their entirety the American designers were prepared to accept proved British ideas. British ideas, as embodied with in a designed by the Canadian General Staff. Before long American Services and designers had accumulated sufficient experience to forge ahead on several points, in the field of tank armament the American 75mm and 76mm dual-purpose tank guns won the acknowledgement of British tank experts. On 18 April 1941, the U. S, Armored Force Board chose the simplest of five designs. Known as the T6, the design was a modified M3 hull and chassis and this would later became the Sherman. The goals were to produce a fast, dependable medium tank able to support infantry, provide breakthrough striking capacity, the T6 prototype was completed on 2 September 1941. The T6 upper hull was a large casting
37.
M26 Pershing
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The Pershing was a heavy tank of the United States Army. The tank is named after General of the Armies John J. Pershing and it was briefly used in the final months of World War II and extensively during the Korean War. Based on the criteria of firepower, mobility, and protection, R. P. Hunnicutt ranked the Pershing second, behind the German Panther medium tank, but ahead of the Tiger I heavy tank. The lineage of the M26 continued with the M47 Patton, and was reflected in the new designs of the later M48 Patton and M60 Patton. The M26 was the culmination of a series of tank prototypes that began with the T20 in 1942. The prototype series began as a medium tank upgrade of the M4 Sherman, in addition, the large diameter of the radial engines in the M4 line of tanks added further to the hull height. These mechanical features accounted for the silhouette and large side sponsons that were characteristic of the M4 lineage. In the spring of 1942, as the M4 Sherman was entering production, the T20 tank reached a mock-up stage in May 1942, and was intended as an improved medium tank to follow the M4. An earlier heavy tank, the M6, had been standardized in February 1942, the U. S. Army had no doctrinal use for a heavy tank at the time. The T20 was designed to have a more compact hull than the M4, the Ford GAN V-8, a lower silhouette version of the GAA engine used in later variants of the M4, had become available. The T20 was fitted with the new 76 mm M1A1 gun, the 3 inch front hull armor was.5 in thicker than the 63 mm front armor of the M4. The glacis plate slope was similar at 46°, the T20s overall weight was approximately the same as the M4. The T20 used a version of the horizontal volute spring suspension. Later prototypes of the M26 tested a torsion bar suspension, which would become the standard for future U. S. tank suspension systems, the T22 series reverted to the M4 transmission because of problems with the early Torqmatic transmission used in the T20. The T22E1 tested an autoloader for the gun, and eliminated the loaders position with a small two-man turret. Through much of 1943, there was little perceived need within the U. S, the electrical transmission was built by General Electric, and had the engine driving a generator that powered two traction motors. The concept was similar to the system of the German Porsche Tiger. It had performance advantages in rough or hilly terrain, where the system could handle the rapid changes in torque requirements
38.
Self-propelled artillery
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Self-propelled artillery is artillery equipped with its own propulsion system to move towards its target. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery and they are high mobility vehicles, usually based on continuous tracks carrying either a large howitzer, field gun, a mortar or some form of rocket or missile launcher. They are usually used for long-range indirect bombardment support on the battlefield, in the past, self-propelled artillery has included direct-fire vehicles, such as assault guns and tank destroyers. These have been heavily armoured vehicles, the former providing close fire-support for infantry, modern self-propelled artillery vehicles may superficially resemble tanks, but they are generally lightly armoured, too lightly to survive in direct-fire combat. However, they protect their crews against shrapnel and small arms and are usually included as armoured fighting vehicles. Many are equipped with guns for defense against enemy infantry. The key advantage of self-propelled over towed artillery is that it can be brought into action much faster, before the towed artillery can be used, it has to stop, unlimber and set up the guns. To move position, the guns must be limbered up again, by comparison, self-propelled artillery can stop at a chosen location and begin firing almost immediately, then quickly move on to a new position. This shoot-and-scoot ability is useful in a mobile conflict and particularly on the advance. Conversely, towed artillery was and remains cheaper to build and maintain and it is also lighter and can be taken to places that self-propelled guns cannot reach. Since the Vietnam War, heavy transport helicopters have also used for rapid artillery deployment. So, despite the advantages of the artillery, towed guns remain in the arsenals of many modern armies. During the Thirty Years War, early 17th century experiments were made with early types of horse artillery, batteries towed light field guns where most or all of the crew rode horses into battle. The gunners were trained to quickly dismount, deploy the guns and provide instant fire support to cavalry, the Russian army organized small units of horse artillery that were distributed among their cavalry formations in the early 18th century. While not forming large batteries and employing only lighter 2- and 3-pound guns, they were still effective and this inspired Frederick the Great to organize the first regular horse artillery unit in 1759. The British Gun Carrier Mark I was the first example of a self-propelled gun and it was based on the first tank, the British Mark I and carried a heavy field gun. The gun could either be fired from the vehicle, or removed, in effect, the carrier replaced the use of a separate horse team or internal combustion engine powered artillery tractor, and allowed a new way for the gun to be used. The next major advance can be seen in the Birch gun developed by the British for their motorised warfare experimental brigade after the end of the War
