VEHICLE NOMENCLATURE – USA

 

M4A3E8 Sherman "Easy Eight"

In America a much more rational designation system was used. In the project, design, and development stages, a vehicle was given a designation in the T series (best remembered as T for Test). Thus a vehicle might be designated T89. Any experimental modification was indicated by a suffix in the E series (E for Experimental). Thus T1E1, T25E1, or T20E3, in the latter case the "3" indicating the third experimental modification. "T" numbers were normally allocated chronologically. When fully accepted for service by the using arms, the vehicle was "standardised" and given a designation in the M series. Thus M6 or M8. It was not usual for the M number to bear any relation to the original T designation, but towards the end of the war there was a change in favour of this in an attempt to avoid confusion. Thus the Light Tank T24 became the M24 on standardisation, for example. In rare instances a design was standardised from the "drawing board" and never received a T designation; an example was the Medium Tank M3. There were also many instances where vehicles were put into limited production and service before being standardised, and in some cases they never achieved the status of standardisation -an example being the T23 medium tank.

At this stage it must be emphasised that this system of designation was used for every item of military equipment in the US Army, so that it was possible to have an M3 Medium tank, an M3 Light tank, an M3 gun mount, an M3 rifle, an M3 flame-gun, an M3 gun sight and so on. Thus it was normal practice to qualify each item by its full title. Strictly speaking, therefore, it is necessary to say Light Tank M3 to distinguish it from Medium Tank M3 and so on, was indicated by an "A" suffix. An example of this is seen clearly in the Medium Tank M4 series, where engine and other changes gave rise to the M4A1, M4A2, M4A3 etc. Modifications confined to the chassis only were indicated by a "B" series suffix. An example arises in M7 howitzer motor carriage development. The M7 was based on the M3 medium tank chassis, and the same design based on the M4A3 chassis became the M7B2. Had yet another chassis been used subsequently, the designation would have been M7B2, and so on. The "E" series suffix was rarely retained when a design was standardised, but there were exceptions, one such being Assault Tank M4A3E2. It should be borne in mind that any special purpose equipment carried on American tanks was designated separately but following the same system. Thus an M4A1 tank could be seen fitted with an MI dozer blade or a T34 rocket launcher, etc.

Self-propelled artillery in American service was described by the calibre of the weapon with the term "gun/howitzer/ mortar motor carriage" as appropriate. Example: 105mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M37. Other special purpose vehicles were designated similarly to tanks. Example: Tank Recovery Vehicle T1. Names were not officially used for American tanks until the M26 heavy tank was called the Pershing. Before that, however, British names for American equipment (eg, Sherman, Lee) were being used colloquially in American service and some American vehicles had unofficial but commonly used names, such as Hellcat for the M18 GMC or Jumbo for the M4A3E2 assault tank.

Instead of being classified as "standard" equipment, American AFVs were sometimes classified "limited standard". This category was given to a vehicle which was not fully satisfactory for universal service, but which could be used when necessary. A further classification was "substitute standard", usually given to obsolescent or expedient equipment due for early replacement but which could still be used pending availability of the new design. Finally there was the "limited procurement" classification given to vehicles for which only restricted use could be foreseen. As the term implies, such vehicles were usually produced only in small quantities. Classification could, of course, be changed as necessary for any given vehicle type.

Armed and Armoured Willys MB-Jeeps

Much work was carried out in the USA and Britain to design special airborne vehicles to drop behind the enemy lines. Willys MB-Jeeps engaged in helping the Infantry by clearing snipers and other commando tasks. Generally manned by a sergeant and a trooper this vehicle was modified in many respects. It was armed with no fewer than five machine guns and had additional tanks for 135 l. of fuel.

 Scout/Recce
The most frequent combination encountered in the field. They were fitted with medium-range radios, and armed with the M1919 air-cooled Browning placed on the central pintle mount (fired by a standing gunner), but in some occasions, a heavier M1917A1 liquid-cooled was placed above the engine hood and fired by the co-driver. The M1920 often replaced the M1919 for added firepower. Usually the crew was two or three, the spare seat being utilized for ammo racks and gasoline jerrycans, allowing extra range. In practice, a large blackout headlamp was also mounted on the left front fender. 

Armored Jeep
In reconnaissance operations, the Jeep proved fast, but clearly unprotected. This led to field adaptation of armored plates and, after some time, formulated and officialized as the "1/4 ton 4x4 armored truck". This was an attempt by the army to set regulations of field modifications, consisting of adding a kind of "armored box" made of three plates (actually a single plate folded in three) protecting the front and sides of the driver compartment, with two small sight openings. The front plate replaced the windshield. The protection was sufficient against small arms fire.

The Jeep in action

About 144 Jeeps were provided to every infantry regiment in the U.S. Army, so it was the most currently available vehicle. This explains why it was used for so many tasks and so extensively, marking a deep and durable imprint on simple soldiers. Since it was involved in every possible operations performed by the US Army and Marines in Europe, Africa and the Pacific, it would be pointless to detail specific assignations. It was used as personnel carrier, staff transportation, medevac, liaison, reconnaissance, patrol, spearheading advanced columns or deep into enemy territory. It was used as light artillery tractor, ammo, water, food, fuel supply vehicle, mortar tractor, infantry support vehicle and even fast antitank vehicle, armored and equipped with bazookas. 30% of the production, mostly Ford GPAs, were turned to the Lend-Lease effort, largely distributed among British & Commonwealth, Free French, Free Polish forces and the Soviets, which ultimately derived a vehicle from it, the GAZ-67B. The production of this Soviet version started in September 23, 1943, and lasted until 1953, after 92,843 had been delivered.

One of the most thrilling uses of the Jeep, was performed by British and Allied LRDG units, "Long Range Desert Group" in North Africa. Often paired with Chevrolet WB trucks, they were heavily armed and received a lot of extra fuel. Their task was to navigate deep and far into enemy territory, gathering intelligence and operating covert reconnaissance. But they also hit depots, camps or even airbases, sometime at night or dawn, striking hard and fast, and creating havoc in rear line sectors reputedly "quiet", and therefore weakly defended. They made such an impression on the Italians in particular (which called it the "Pattuglia Fantasma" or "Ghost Patrol") that they developed a special vehicle, the AS-42 Sahariana, derived from the AB-41 armored car for the same tasks and missions. 

                                                           The AS-42 Sahariana

Infantry Tank Mks I and II Matilda

A Malta-based Matilda II with unique camouflage.

The Matilda was the only British tank with enough armour to withstand German tank guns in the early years. After a brief moment of glory at Arras, it won its real reputation with the 8th Army in the desert.

A requirement for a British army 'Infantry' tank was first made in 1934 and the immediate result was the All Infantry Tank Mk I, later nicknamed Matilda I. This was a very simple and small tank with a two-man crew but with armour heavy enough to defeat any contemporary anti-tank gun. The small turret mounted a single 7.7-mm (0.303-in) Vickers machine-gun and the engine was a commercial Ford V-8 unit. Orders for 140 were issued in April 1937, but when the type was tried in combat in France in 1940 it revealed many shortcomings: it was too slow and under armed for any form of armoured warfare, and the small numbers that remained in service after Dunkirk were used only for training.

The Matilda I was intended only as an interim type before the A12 Infantry Tank Mk II became available. This project began in 1936 and the first examples were completed in 1938. The Mk II, known later as Matilda II, was a much larger vehicle than the Matilda I with a four-man crew and a turret mounting a 2-pdr (40-mm/1.575-in) gun and liberal belts of cast armour (varying from 20 to 78 mm/0.8 to 3.1 in in thickness) capable of defeating all known anti-tank guns. The Matilda II was slow as it was intended for the direct support of infantry units, in which role speed was not essential. Overall it was a good-looking tank and it turned out to be far more reliable than many of its contemporaries. And despite the light gun carried it was found to be a good vehicle in combat. The Matilda IIA had a 7,92-mm (0.312-in) Besa machine-gun instead of the Vickers gun.

The main combat period for the Matilda (the term Matilda II was dropped when the little Matilda I was withdrawn in 1940) was the early North African campaign, where the type's armour proved to be effective against any Italian or German anti-tank gun with the exception of the German '88'. The Matilda was one of the armoured mainstays of the British forces until El Alamein, after which its place was taken by better armed and faster designs. But the importance of the Matilda did not diminish, for it then entered a long career as a special-purpose tank.

One of the most important of these special purposes was as a flail tank for mine-clearing. Starting with the Matilda Baron and then the Matilda Scorpion, it was used extensively for this role, but Matildas were also used to push AMRA mine-clearing rollers. Another variant was the Matilda CDL (Canal Defence Light), which used a special turret with a powerful light source to create 'artificial moonlight', Matildas were also fitted with dozer blades as the Matilda Dozer for combat engineering, and many were fitted with various flame-throwing devices as the Matilda Frog, There were many other special and demolition devices used with the Matilda, not all of them under British auspices for the Matilda became an important Australian tank as well. In fact Matilda gun tanks were used extensively by the Australian army in New Guinea and elsewhere until the war ended in 1945, and they devised several flame-throwing equipments. The Germans also used several captured Matildas to mount various anti-tank weapons of their own.

It is doubtful if a complete listing of all the many Matilda variants will ever be made, for numerous 'field modifications' and other unrecorded changes were made to the basic design. The first Matilda was produced in 1937 but only two were in service when war broke out in September 1939. Some 2,987 tanks were produced by John Fowler & Co., Ruston & Hornsby, and later London, Midland and Scottish Railway, Harland and Wolff, and the North British Locomotive Company. Production was stopped in August 1943. But the Matilda accommodated them all and many old soldiers still look back on this tank with affection for, despite its slow speed and light armament, it was reliable and steady, and above all it had good armour.

Variants

    * Matilda I (Infantry Tank Mk II)

    First production model.

    * Matilda II (Infantry Tank Mk IIA)

    Vickers machine gun replaced by Besa MG.

    * A few non-armored 'mild steel training tanks' were produced.

    * Matilda III (Infantry Tank Mk IIA*)

    New Leyland diesel engine.

    * Matilda III CS (for Close Support)

    Variant with 3 inch (75 mm) howitzer.

    * Matilda IV (Infantry Tank Mk IIA**)

    With improved engines.

    * Matilda V

    Improved gear box and gear shift.

    * Baron I, II, III, IIIA

    Matilda chassis with mine flail.

    * Matilda Scorpion I / II

    Matilda chassis with a mine flail.

    * Matilda II CDL / Matilda V CDL (Canal Defence Light)

    The normal turret was replaced by a cylindrical one containing a searchlight (projected through a vertical slit) and a BESA machine gun.

Australian variants:

    * Matilda Frog (25)

    Flame-thrower tank.

    * Murray and Murray FT

    Flame-thrower tank.

    * Matilda Hedgehog (6)

    A naval Hedgehog 7-barrel spigot mortar was mounted in an armoured box on the rear hull of several Australian Matilda tanks. The mortars were hydraulically elevated and electrically fired either individually or in a salvo of six, the fifth tube could not be fired until the turret was traversed to move the radio antenna out of the bomb's path. Each bomb weighed 30 kg and contained 14 kg of high explosive, the range of the bombs was up to 400 metres and aiming accomplished by pointing the entire tank as the mortars had no traverse independent of the hull of the tank.[2]

A Close Look and Personal Experience

The Matilda Mk II was highly feared by the Germans and Italians in the early North African campaigns. Its main gun, the 2pd was very effective against the Italians throughout the war, and could penetrate German tanks until they added "face-hardened" steel plates to their tanks. The added plates had the effect of shattering the 2pdr shell. Still there were few German tanks that could penetrate the Matilda II until the introduction of the HEAT rounds or the 75mm L/43 in the Pz. IV. The APCR rounds could also penetrate the Matilda, but since these rounds used critical Tungsten steel the sights for the round were set ONLY for short ranges, at which a hit was a near guarantee.

German respect for the Matilda can best be illustrated in an exchange between a German soldier and a British prisoner. The British prisoner said, "It is unfair for you to use an anti-aircraft gun (the 88) against tanks." To which the German replied, "It is unfair for you to have tanks that only the 88 can penetrate."

The Matilda was not a perfect tank, it had its drawbacks. I got into the driver's compartment years ago. It wasn't so much that I was entering a tank, but that I would putting on a tank. It was a tight fit. In the turret the crew varied from one to two. One crew member meant it shared the same disadvantage as the French tanks. That crew member had to be the commander, loader and gunner. In addition the cannon in the early British tanks lacked a geared elevating mechanism, instead had a shoulder pad that you fitted to your shoulder and adjusted the elevation by moving your body up and down. There was a tightening clamp that allowed you to adjust the tension and allowed you to lock in once you were on target, but it was still not a very desirable solution. Two people in the turret was an improvement of your duties, but it made the room for those men very tight. The Matilda was a small vehicle. Another disadvantage was the slow speed of the tank, generally 8 mile per hour. It didn't allow for rapid reactions to a mobile enemy. Still in attack the Matilda II was a formidable weapon. They were well armored and rather impervious to German 37 mm and Italian 37 mm AT fire. Though designed for infantry support they sported small caliber 40mm/2lb AT gun. Though better than the German 37mm and Ital 47 mm in armor piercing they were not produced with a HE shell. (Some ammunition was converted to use the Bofor's 40 mm HE AA shell though). I understand it was not as mechanically reliable as the Pz III but better than the M13/40 and overall not bad.

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