Nicholas “The Chieftain” Moran of Wargaming examines the Swedish Striv 103C part 1. This first part looks at the exterior of the vehicle.
Unofficial High-Speed Tour of Saumur, Part 2
May 9, 2017 by 1 Comment
Nick “The Chieftain” Moran posts part 2 of his quick video tour of the French tank museum at Saumur.
The Matilda Diaries Part 12
May 8, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Episode 12 of The Matilda Diaries chronicling the restoration of the Matilda infantry tank at the Bovington Tank Musuem is now online. This clip looks at the restoration of the turret interior.
Book Alert: Sabers through the Reich
May 4, 2017 by Leave a Comment
For those interested in WWII armored cavalry, there is a new book titled Sabers through the Reich: World War II Corps Cavalry from Normandy to the Elbe
Publishers Description:
Before the Allies landed on the beaches of Normandy in June 1944, their aerial reconnaissance discovered signs of German defenses on the Îles St. Marcouf. From these two coastal islands, German artillery could bombard the 4th US Infantry Division and repulse a crucial thrust of Operation Overlord. With the fate of the war on the line, the 4th Mechanized Cavalry Group navigated the islands’ minefields and reported no trace of German soldiers. Their rapid and accurate intelligence gave the Allies the necessary time and concentration of forces for the D-Day invasion to succeed.
In Sabers through the Reich, William Stuart Nance provides the first comprehensive operational history of American corps cavalry in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) during World War II. The corps cavalry had a substantive and direct impact on Allied success in almost every campaign, serving as offensive guards for armies across Europe and conducting reconnaissance, economy of force, and security missions, as well as prisoner of war rescues. From D-Day and Operation Cobra to the Battle of the Bulge and the drive to the Rhine, these groups had the mobility, flexibility, and firepower to move quickly across the battlefield, enabling them to aid communications and intelligence gathering and reducing the Clausewitzian friction of war.
Article on Tank 785
May 4, 2017 by Leave a Comment
The Daily Mail recently posted an article on the WWI era Mark II tank identified at tank 785. This tank currently resides at the Tank Museum at Bovington. According to the article, this tank was unwittingly sent into combat despite being built not out of armor plate but of untreated steel, leaving it vulnerable to rifle fire.
British tank crews unwittingly went into the first ever major tank battle in vulnerable unarmoured vehicles, historians have revealed 100 years after the event. Researchers have found that the 45 Mark II tanks that went into action at the Battle of Arras in May 1917 were training vehicles which had no armour. Experts believe the crews were not informed the steel the tanks were made from was untreated and therefore could be penetrated by rifle fire. The weakness of the vehicles actually ended up helping the British war effort after one was captured by the Germans, who then abandoned plans to develop more advanced armour-piercing weapons. But it was actually mechanical issues that proved the most costly, with just 11 of the tanks eventually crossing No Man’s Land due to breakdowns.
Tank and AFV News 