News for all things related to Tanks and Armored Fighting Vehicles
Today’s photo of the day comes from the recent unsuccessful military coup in Turkey. We are not sure if this photo shows an example of extreme bravery or extreme foolishness. Perhaps a mix of both. Regardless, it’s a nice shot of a Turkish army Leopard I tank.
A new entry in the Osprey Duel series is due for release on July 19. Bradley vs BMP: Desert Storm 1991 (Duel)
Publishers Description:
In the mid-1960s, the Soviet Union unveiled the BMP, the first true infantry fighting vehicle. A revolutionary design, the BMP marked a significant departure from the traditional armoured personnel carrier, with a lower silhouette and heavier armament than rival APCs. One of the most fearsome light-armoured vehicles of its day, it caused great consternation on the other side of the Iron Curtain as the Americans scrambled to design a machine to rival the BMP. The result was the M2/M3 Bradley. These Cold War icons first clashed – not on the plains of Europe, but in southern Iraq during the Gulf War of 1991. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork, this is the absorbing story of the origins, development and combat performance of the BMP and Bradley, culminating in the bloody battles of the Gulf War.
From the pages of Canadian Military History comes an article on the role Canada played in WW2 tank production and design. “Not compentent to produce tanks” the Ram and Tank Production in Canada, 1939-1945 by Grahm Broad is a ten page long examination of the topic. Aside from repeating some of the well worn myths about German tank superiority (a Panther is worth five Shermans!), it’s worth a read.
According to Amazon, the Kindle edition of the new book Tank Action: An Armoured Troop Commander’s War 1944-45 by Captain David Render (2016-06-16)
Publishers Description:
In 1944 the average life expectancy of a newly commissioned tank troop officer in Normandy was estimated as being less than two weeks. David Render was a nineteen-year-old second lieutenant fresh from Sandhurst when he was sent to France to join a veteran armoured unit that had already spent years fighting with the Desert Rats in North Africa. Joining the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry five days after the D-Day landings, the combat-hardened men he was sent to command did not expect him to last long. However, in the following weeks of ferocious fighting in Normandy, in which more than 90 per cent of his fellow tank commanders became casualties, his ability to emerge unscathed from countless combat engagements defied expectations and earned him his squadron’s nickname of the ‘Inevitable Mr Render’.
In Tank Action David Render tells his remarkable story, spanning every major episode of the last year of the Second World War in Western Europe, from the invasion of Normandy to the fall of Germany. Ultimately it is a story of survival, comradeship and the ability to stand up and be counted as a leader in combat.
This photo showed up in a thread over at the missing-lynx forum. It comes from a WW2 US newsreel about a war bonds event in Central Park. Video here. A M6 Heavy Tank and a German Tiger!
In the 23rd Tank Chat, David Fletcher takes a look at the Hornsby Tractor. The Hornsby Tractor was the first tracked vehicle in service with the British Army. They were designed to tow artillery. The Museum’s example is still running and is the oldest vehicle in the collection.
This article originally was serialized in four parts in the 1969 run of ARMOR magazine. Written by Timothy K. Nenninger, it gives a good description of the development of American armor from 1917 to 1940. We have provided links to the four parts below which can be downloaded in PDF form.
Part II The Tank Corps Reorganized
This reproduction of a WWII era John Deere “Tractor Tank” was built by Brian Anderson and Leo Milleman of Ames, Iowa. These vehicles were proposed by John Deere in 1940 as a low cost armored vehicle. Prototypes were tested at Aberdeen Proving Grounds and rejected, then scrapped back at the factory. For more on this rather unusual AFV, click here.
This video appeared on youtube a couple days ago. It shows US troops instructing a visiting Canadian soldier on how to operate the drivers position on an M1 Abrams tank.
According to TASS, a WWII era Soviet T-34 produced by the Stalingrad Tractor Factory has been recovered from the Don River near the village of Ukrainskaya Builovka in the Voronezh Region of Russia. This is believed to be the only surviving T-34 in existence built at the Stalingrad Factory, all other T-34 tanks built at Stalingrad are believed to have been destroyed during the war. The tank was successfully retrieved by a BREM-1 repair and evacuation vehicle based on a T-72 tank from the 7-meter depth. The tank is said to be in very good condition all things considered and restoring it to running condition is a possibility. The most likely theory as to how it ended up in the river is that it sunk when crossing the river on a pontoon bridge which collapsed. Full article here.
Tank and AFV News 