The
75 mm Gun Motor Carriage M3 was a United States
tank destroyerA self-propelled anti-tank gun, or tank destroyer, is a type of armored fighting vehicle designed specifically to engage enemy armored vehicles. Many have been produced as a tank-like vehicle, but with light armor and capable of higher speed, with a gun or missile launcher. Many lack turrets...
and
self-propelled artillerySelf-propelled artillery vehicles are a way of giving mobility to artillery. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery...
piece of the
Second World WarWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
The
German victory over France in 1940In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, executed from 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations...
using armored divisions profoundly impressed the
United States ArmyThe United States Army is the branch of the United States Military responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military and is one of seven uniformed services...
. Realizing that defense against tanks was essential, an urgent requirement was issued for the development of tank destroyers for the U.S. Army. In June 1941, an M3 Halftrack was mated with an
75 mm gun M1897A4The French 75mm field gun was a quick-firing field artillery piece adopted in March 1898 after 5 years of research and secret trials. It saw widespread service in World War I including in the American Expeditionary Forces . It also served during World War II in various but more limited capacities...
, which was an American version of the famous "French 75" of
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
fame.
The
75 mm Gun Motor Carriage M3 was a United States
tank destroyerA self-propelled anti-tank gun, or tank destroyer, is a type of armored fighting vehicle designed specifically to engage enemy armored vehicles. Many have been produced as a tank-like vehicle, but with light armor and capable of higher speed, with a gun or missile launcher. Many lack turrets...
and
self-propelled artillerySelf-propelled artillery vehicles are a way of giving mobility to artillery. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery...
piece of the
Second World WarWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Development
The
German victory over France in 1940In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, executed from 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations...
using armored divisions profoundly impressed the
United States ArmyThe United States Army is the branch of the United States Military responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military and is one of seven uniformed services...
. Realizing that defense against tanks was essential, an urgent requirement was issued for the development of tank destroyers for the U.S. Army. In June 1941, an M3 Halftrack was mated with an
75 mm gun M1897A4The French 75mm field gun was a quick-firing field artillery piece adopted in March 1898 after 5 years of research and secret trials. It saw widespread service in World War I including in the American Expeditionary Forces . It also served during World War II in various but more limited capacities...
, which was an American version of the famous "French 75" of
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
fame. This experimental vehicle was known as the T12, and proved to work remarkably well given the speed with which it was developed. Standardized in October 1941 as the 75 mm GMC M3, over 2,200 75 mm GMC M3's were produced until April 1943. However, a large number of them were converted back to standard halftracks before issue to troop units, resulting in only 842 seeing field service. The GMC M3A1 was a variant that used a different gun mount. The 75 mm GMC M3 was reclassified first as limited standard and then as obsolete in 1944.
Description
The 75 mm GMC M3 was an M3 Halftrack with an
M1897A4The French 75mm field gun was a quick-firing field artillery piece adopted in March 1898 after 5 years of research and secret trials. It saw widespread service in World War I including in the American Expeditionary Forces . It also served during World War II in various but more limited capacities...
75 mm gun mounted in the rear of the halftrack. The gun had an indirect fire range of 9,200 yards (8,400 meters), and fired the AP M72 (Armor Piercing) shell that could penetrate 3.2 inches of armour at 500 yards, the APC M61 (Armor Piercing Capped) shell that could penetrate 2.8 inches of armour at 500 yards, and the HE M48 (High Explosive) shell for use against infantry and other non-armored targets. 59 rounds of 75-mm ammunition were carried aboard.
The crew were equipped with a rifle and four carbines for self defense.
American Use
Confronted with an
impending war with JapanThe Pacific War was the part of World War II—and preceding conflicts—that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia. The war began as a conflict with the Empire of Japan and the Republic of China on July 7, 1937, but by December 1941, became part of the greater World War II,...
, 75 GMC M3's and T12's, termed "Self-Propelled Mount" (SPM) halftracks, were shipped to the Philippine Islands in September 1941 to form the (2nd) Provisional SPM Brigade. These vehicles saw action during the
Japanese invasion of the PhilippinesThe Battle of the Philippines was the invasion of the Philippines by Japan in 1941–1942 and the defense of the islands by Filipino and United States forces....
, and some were later captured by the Japanese and used against U.S. forces in 1944.
The GMC M3 was the most widely-deployed tank destroyer in
U.S. tank destroyer battalionsThe tank destroyer battalion was a type of unit used by the United States Army during World War II. The unit was organized in one of two different forms—a towed battalion equipped with anti-tank guns, or a self-propelled battalion equipped with armored tank destroyers. U.S. Army doctrine held...
during the
campaign in TunisiaThe Tunisia Campaign was a series of World War II battles that took place in Tunisia in the North African Campaign of World War II, between Axis and Allied forces. The Allies consisted primarily of British Imperial Forces along with American and the French Army...
in late 1942 and early 1943, and was prominent during the battles of
Sidi Bou ZidSidi Bou Zid or Sidi Bouzid is a city of Tunisia. It is the capital of the governorate of Sidi Bou Zid or Sidi Bouzid in the center of the country. It was the site of a battle which took place in February 1943, part of the Tunisia Campaign of World War II...
, Kasserine Pass, and
El GuettarThe Battle of El Guettar was a World War II battle that took place during the Tunisia Campaign, fought between elements of the Army Group Afrika under Jürgen von Arnim and U.S. II Corps under Major General George Patton in south-central Tunisia. It was the first battle in which U.S...
. Although many GMC M3's were lost in these battles, the U.S. Army concluded that improper employment had caused some of these losses. The GMC M3 was again used in the tank destroyer role in the
Sicilian CampaignThe Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major World War II campaign, in which the Allies took Sicily from the Axis . It was a large scale amphibious and airborne operation, followed by six weeks of land combat. It launched the Italian Campaign.Husky began on the night of...
in July 1943. Subsequently, the GMC M3 was phased out of tank destroyer battalions and replaced by the
GMC M10The M10 tank destroyer, formally 3-inch Gun Motor Carriage, M10 was a United States tank destroyer of World War II. US troops also called them TDs...
, a turreted tank destroyer mounting a modern 3-inch gun. Although then considered obsolete for use against German tanks, the GMC M3 was powerful enough to destroy the light tanks deployed by the Japanese, and so the GMC M3 continued to be used in the Pacific Theater, primarily with regimental weapons companies of the U.S. Marine Corps, seeing action on
SaipanThe Battle of Saipan was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June 1944 to 9 July 1944. The invasion fleet embarking the expeditionary forces left Pearl Harbor on June 5, 1944, the same day Operation Overlord was launched...
,
PeleliuThe Battle of Peleliu, codenamed Operation Stalemate II, was fought between the United States and Japan in the Pacific Theater of World War II, taking place between September and November 1944 on the island of Peleliu. The U.S...
, and
OkinawaThe Battle of Okinawa, also known as Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Nearly 60,000 troops stormed ashore on the initial invasion...
, among other island battles. Because tanks were not frequently deployed by the Japanese, the GMC M3 was often used as a self-propelled artillery piece or for direct fire support against Japanese fortifications. In 1945, the GMC M3 was replaced in Marine Corps use by the
105 mm HMC M7The 105 mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M7 was an American self-propelled artillery vehicle produced during World War II. It was given the official name Priest in British service, due to the pulpit-like machine gun ring and following on from the Bishop self propelled gun, the full designation when...
self-propelled artillery piece.
Allied use
Around 170 GMC M3's were provided to the
British ArmyThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
in early 1943. The British deployed them in the headquarters
troopA troop is a military unit, originally a small force of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron and headed by the troop leader. A cavalry soldier of private rank is called a trooper ....
s of armoured car and tank units as self-propelled artillery pieces. These, known as
75 mm SP, Autocar in British
nomenclatureNomenclature refers to either a list of names and/or terms, or to the system of principles, procedures and terms related to naming - which is the assigning of a word or phrase to a particular object or property...
, were employed in Tunisia and
ItalyThe Italian Campaign of World War II was the name of Allied operations in and around Italy, from 1943 to the end of the war. Joint Allied Forces Headquarters AFHQ was operationally responsible for all Allied land forces in the Mediterranean theatre, and it planned and commanded the invasion of...
. The 75 mm GMC M3 was also used by the
French ArmyThe French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based component of the French Armed Forces and its largest. As of 2008, the army employs 133,947 regular soldiers and 24 000+ civilians...
on a limited basis during
on the Western Front 1944 - 1945The Western Front of the European Theatre of World War II encompassed, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, and west Germany. The Western Front was marked by two phases of large-scale ground combat operations...
.
External links