A new entry in the “In Action” series by David Doyle has been released by Squadron Signal, M-60 Main Battle Tank In Action
Publisher’s Description:
The M60 Main Battle Tank was conceived as the successor to the M48 Patton with the hope that it would prove a better adversary to the Soviet T-54A. Introduced in 1959, the 105mm-armed M60, and its variants, the M60A1 and M60A3, remained in production into 1987, forming the backbone of the U.S. armored force until it was supplanted by the M1 Abrams. In addition to the conventional cannon-armed versions of the M60, the M60A2 variant, sometimes dubbed “the starship,” featured new departures in tank armament. The M60A2 was armed with a 152mm projector, which could fire a conventional round with a fully combustible casing, or the MGM-51 Shillelagh anti-tank missile. Completing the M60 family were the M728 armored engineer vehicle, and the still-in-service M60 Armored Vehicle-Launched Bridge. Packed with 155 vintage color photos, 69 historic black-and-white images, by numerous fine line drawings, and a detailed data table, this 80-page volume traces the history of America’s iconic Cold War tank
is published by Schiffer Military History and is a 112 page hardcover.
differs from previous entries in the Visual History Series in that it is a 168 page hardcover.
The Panzer II was Germany’s first cannon-armed tank in the post World War I era. Designed and initially produced under the code name of 100-horsepower Farm Tractor, owing to the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles, the Panzer II remained in production, and in the field, well after it had been surpassed by better engineered, more heavily armed and armored vehicles, and indeed played a key part in the early victories achieved by the Blitzkrieg.
In late 1941 the concept of a separate tank destroyer force began to jell. This force would be armed with specialized weapons. While the army’s primary antitank weapons of the late 1930s were 37mm towed anti-tank guns, these were soon deemed to be inadequate against enemy armor. Accordingly, the quest for larger weapons began, as did the desire for a self-propelled antitank gun, or Gun Motor Carriage. The initial efforts, which involved adapting 3/4-ton, Dodge trucks to mount antitank weapons (the M6, née WC-55), which were intended as interim and training vehicles. In the same manner, half-tracks were fitted with cannon, yielding the M3 75mm Gun Motor Carriage. But, the quest was on to create a specialized and ideal tank destroyer, utilizing a tank chassis as the basis.
Shilka AA Gun In Detail
Tank and AFV News 