75 mm gun M2–M6
A number of 75 mm guns were fielded for service by the United States in the Second World War, in both the Army and the Marine Corps.
There were two lines, howitzers that could trace their design back to the First World War and a series of guns that equipped the American tanks during the Second World War.
75 mm howitzer
The howitzers came from a need for a gun that could be moved across difficult country. The gun and carriage was designed so that it could be broken down into several pieces to be carried by mule or similar pack animal.
M1
Short barrel (16 calibres) pack howitzer gun.
- Rate of fire: 25 rounds per minute
- Muzzle velocity: 1,250 ft/s (380 m/s)
- Range: 9,610 yards (8790 m)
- Shell: 6.3 kg
M2
M1 howitzer gun converted for use on the 75 mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M8, a Light Tank M5 conversion, and by use of the same turret on the LVT(A)4 (Landing Vehicle Tracked(Armored)4) by the Marine Corps.
M3
A new build howitzer gun as used on the 75 mm HMC M8.
M8
A specially modified pack howitzer (carriage and gun) designed to be airportable. Either parachuted in sections or, as with British practice, delivered whole to the battlefield by Horsa glider. It replaced the 3.75 inch howitzer in use with the British airborne units and was used at Arnhem during Operation Market Garden.
- Overall length: 12 ft 0 in (3.7 m)
- Width: 3 ft 11 in (1.2 m)
- Height: 2 ft 10 in (864 mm)
- Weight: 1339 lb (607 kg)
- Elevation: -5° to +45°
- Maximum range : 9,760 yd (8920 m)
- Rate of fire : 3 to 6 round/min
75 mm gun
The American army fielded two medium tanks in World War 2, the M3 and the M4, both of which used the 75 mm gun. The gun was also used to equip the Light Tank M24 and the B-25 Mitchell bomber. The gun was designed to have both powerful HE projectile and good anti-tank capability, however from the middle of the war it was no longer effective in the anti-tank role, due to its low muzzle velocity, (compared to German guns like KwK 40), and the thicker armor of the German medium and heavy tanks.
M2
A version used on the early Medium Tank M3.
- Barrel length: 31 calibres
- Muzzle velocity: 588 m/s
- Shell weight (M72 AP): 6.32 kg
- Armour penetration (M72 AP shell, 457 m, at 30 degrees): 60 mm
M3
Longer derivative of the M2. Equipped American and British vehicles such as the Medium Tank M4, the later models of the Medium Tank M3 and the Churchill III/IV (scavenged from General Sherman tanks in the North African theatre). US Army also experimented with mounting of the M3 on various wheeled carriages for use as anti-tank gun, but the program was cancelled due to lack of requirement[1].
- Barrel length: 40 calibres (3 m)
- Muzzle velocity: 619 m/s
- Shell weight (M72 AP): 6.32 kg
- Armour penetration (M72 AP shell, 457 m, at 30 degrees): 76 mm
To gain the benefits of the 75 mm gun, particularly its HE shell, the British designed their Ordnance QF 75 mm to take the same rounds giving both their main tanks, the Sherman and Cromwell the same ammunition.
T13E1 / M5
A lightweight version with thin wall barrel and different recoil mechanism. Was used in the B-25H Mitchell bomber. Same ammunition and ballistics as M3.
M6
A version derived from the T13E1 for the Light Tank M24.
See also
Notes
- ^ Zaloga, Delf - US Anti-tank Artillery 1941-45, p 8-9
References
- Zaloga, Steven J., Brian Delf - US Anti-tank Artillery 1941-45 (2005) Osprey Publishing (New Vanguard 107), ISBN 1-84176-690-9.
External links
