![]() ![]() We also had bazookas, which were both unreliable and ineffective. P-47 Thunderbolts had a type of bomb they could try to drop on a tank, but obviously it was not easy to execute such a bombing. Of course there were other anti-tank methods. A more important weapon for US troops was borrowed from the British, the QF 6-pounder, known as an "M1" among US troops. About 3 months after D-Day troops started to get access to the M36 tank destroyer which the first weapon we had which was truly effective against Germany heavy armor. Since, the German tanks were much superior to the US tanks (the Sherman), this obviously created a problem. ![]() In general, German tanks were deployed in platoon-scale or smaller units, and were dealt with by ground-attack aircraft (#1 cause of combat losses) or towed anti-tank guns (#2), with other methods (tanks, tank destroyers, infantry anti-tank weapons) seeing use only when those were unavailable.Īs a matter of principle, the main weapon against a tank is another tank. German tanks were rarely found in the massive concentrations envisioned, and as a result, tank destroyers were deployed in small groups and treated as "fragile tanks" to directly support infantry. Combat tactics were hit-and-run or ambush-based: since the tank destroyers were fragile, mobility, visibility, and superior intelligence were to be used to attack while not being attacked in turn. According to it, the basic procedure was that most tank destroyers should be held in reserve, to be committed in battalion strength when a concentrated group of enemy tanks was identified. The thesis cites Field Manual 18-5 of 1942, Tactical Employment, Tank Destroyer Unit for doctrine. To deal with this, dedicated anti-tank battalions were formed of tank destroyers: heavy anti-tank guns mounted on lightly-armored mobile platforms. From the thesis linked by CGCampbell, American anti-tank doctrine was based around dealing with concentrated groups of German tanks on the offense, ie. ![]()
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