Tag: history
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A34 Comet (Type A)
Type: Cruiser Tank Nation: United Kingdom Period: World War 2 Location: Bastogne Barracks, Belgium In 1943 the British Army had recognised the need for a tank with a high-velocity gun to take on the newest generation of German tanks, namely Panther and Tiger. But they soon found out that the excellent 17-pounder anti-tank gun was…
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M24 Chaffee
Type: Light Tank Nation: USA Period: World War 2 Location: Musée National d’Histoire Militaire, Diekirch, Luxembourg The M24 Chaffee was first put into service in late 1944. It was designed to replace the M3 and M5 Stuart light tanks which had become clearly outdated by that stage of the war. The new tank was named…
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VT-55A
Type: Special Purpose Vehicle Nation: Soviet Union Period: Cold War Location: Panzerfahrschule Heyse, Steinhöfel, Germany The VT-55A is a Czech armoured recovery vehicle developed from the licence-built Soviet BTS-2, which itself was based on the chassis of the T-55A medium tank. It was produced from 1969 to 1983 and used by several other Warsaw Pact…
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Panzerbefehlswagen IV Ausf. J (Sd.Kfz. 162/2)
Type: Medium Tank Nation: Germany Period: World War 2 Location: Bastogne Barracks, Belgium The Panzer IV was the only German tank that was produced throughout the whole of World War 2. Often called the “workhorse” of the German Armour Corps, it saw service on all fronts in numerous upgraded versions from the early Ausführung A…
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Sherman VC Firefly
Type: Medium Tank/Cruiser Tank Nation: United Kingdom Period: World War 2 Location: Bastogne Barracks, Belgium The Firefly was a British conversion of the American M4 medium tank, re-armed with the powerful 17-pounder anti-tank gun. In this case the base vehicle was an M4A4 which was powered by a Chrysler A57 30-cylinder multibank engine. The size…
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Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger Ausf. B (Sd.Kfz. 182)
Type: Heavy Tank Nation: Germany Period: World War 2 Location: December 44 Museum, La Gleize, Belgium Heavyweights The German Tiger II (also known as Tiger Ausf. B) was the heaviest mass-produced turreted tank of World War 2. Weighing over 69 metric tons, its operational combat weight was only surpassed by its derivative, the Jagdtiger tank…
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Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger Ausf. E (Sd.Kfz. 181, Late Production)
Type: Heavy Tank Nation: Germany Period: World War 2 Location: Vimoutiers, France The giant When the Tiger appeared on the battlefield in 1942, it represented a whole new level in terms of firepower, armour protection and weight. Despite its 57 metric tons it was fairly mobile – thanks to its 700 hp V12 Maybach engine.…
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T-55
Type: Medium TankNation: Soviet UnionPeriod: Cold War Location: Park Vojaške Zgodovine, Pivka, Slovenia The 36-ton T-55 was first introduced in 1958 as an upgraded version of the very similar T-54 medium tank. Combined, T-54/T-55 is the world’s most produced tank model with about 100,000 units built in the Soviet Union, Poland, Czechoslovakia and China (as…
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M4 Sherman “Ginsling”
Type: Medium Tank Nation: USA Period: World War 2 Location: Wibrin, Belgium The sleeping giant At the beginning of World War 2 the US Armys’ tank force was virtually nonexistent. Even Poland possessed more tanks when they were attacked by Nazi Germany in September 1939. The Great Depression and long years of isolationism had drastically…