|
The M2 Half Track Car was a half-track armored vehicle produced by the United States during World War II. Its design drew upon half-tracks brought in from France in the 1930s, employing standard components supplied by U.S. truck manufacturers to speed production and reduce costs. Production by the White Motor Company began in 1940. The M2 was initially intended for use as an artillery tractor, but also found use with reconnaissance units. International Harvester Company built the M9 half-track, a variant of their M5 half track, to fulfill the same purpose. ==History== The half-track design had been evaluated by the US Ordnance department using Citroën-Kégresse vehicles. The Cavalry arm of the US Army found that their wheeled armored scout cars had trouble in rainy weather due to their weight and high ground pressure. In 1938, the White Motor Company took the Timken rear bogie assembly from a T9 half-track truck and added it to an M3 Scout Car, creating the T7 Half-Track Car.〔Zaloga p4〕 This vehicle was woefully underpowered. When a further requirement came down from US Army artillery units in 1939 for a prime mover to be used as an artillery tractor, a vehicle with an uprated engine was developed, which was designated the Half Track Scout Car T14. By 1940, the vehicle had been standardized as the M2 Half-Track car. The M2 design was recognised as having the potential for general mechanized infantry use, which spawned the larger bodied M3 Half Track. Both the M2 and M3 were ordered into production in late 1940, with M2 contracts let to the Autocar Company, White and Diamond-T. The first vehicles were received by the army in 1941. The M2 was supplied to artillery units as the prime mover and ammunition carrier for the 105mm howitzer, and to armored infantry units for carrying machine gun squads. It was also given to armored reconnaissance units〔Zaloga p4-5〕 as an interim solution until more specialized vehicles could be fielded. Between 1942 and 1943, both the M2 and M3 would receive a number of modifications to the drive train, engine, and stowage, among other things. Total production of M2 and derivatives by White was about 13,500 units. To meet the needs of Lend-Lease to the Allies, the International Harvester Company produced 3,500 units of the M9. The M9 was the same as the IH-produced M5 but with different internal stowage and apart from using IH mechanical components the M9 was longer than the M2. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「M2 Half Track Car」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|