Battle tank force field11/21/2023 ![]() ![]() It is notable that the guide specifically states: "These tank units did not need reconnaissance, security, or other organic supporting weapons they were merely another Infantry support weapon." The infantry support tanks would be organized into separate tank battalions. The result is that by the time the US entered WWII, the tank had two roles: The tanks of the infantry branch would provide infantry support, protecting the doughs from machine gun emplacements, bunkers, and trenches. Chaffee's statement is clear: Tanks were to be rapid weapons of havoc. Chaffee commented: "If fast tanks can operate in this manner we will greatly aid in restoring mobility to warfare in keeping with the doctrine of operating on the flanks and rear and through the gap, in forcing the enemy to make detachments to guard his lines of communication, important bridges, airdromes, and bases, we would so considerably weaken his main forces in battle that a quicker decision will be reached." Chief among those was mobility, greatly lacking and nigh impossible to achieve in WWI. These thinkers saw armor as a weapon of speed, mobility, shock, and fear. Under the innovative and prescient thinking of the Fort Knox leadership, and based on extensive review of the WWI records of both infantry and armor combat, a new philosophy was born: Massed armor as a rapid exploitation force, capable of rapidly moving through a breakthrough to reach the rear of the enemy positions. This begat the 7th Cavalry Brigade (Mechanized). Scott was transferred from Fort Riley to Fort Knox, and was mechanized. The 13th Cavalry Regiment under the command of Col. The 1st Cavalry Regiment was moved from Texas to Fort Knox in 1931. Fort Knox, KY, was selected as the new home of the mechanized cavalry. Adna Chaffee, continued the nascent (and, to this point, failed) development efforts. ![]() Based on experiments conducted in 1930 at Fort Eustis, VA, the cavalry branch under the guidance of Col. It was not permitted tanks, but it did have "combat cars" that were remarkably similar to tanks. The cavalry branch, in a fit of clever thinking, was permitted to form the mechanized cavalry. However, it planted some seeds, particularly among cavalry officers.įostered by this thinking, the National Defense Act of 1920 mandated that tanks would be part of the infantry, not part of the cavalry or an independent branch. It was a stunted effort that was soon shuttered in an era of limited and shrinking budgets and little interest in armor. Impressed by the massing of armor, he kicked off a series of experiments at Fort Eustis, VA, in 1930. Davis visited England and saw a demonstration of tank maneuvers at Aldershot. The cavalry tanks were designed to be light, fast, and mobile, sacrificing gun and armor capability to achieve the necessary mobility. The second was a cavalry tank, designed to move quickly into and through exploits, as the horse cavalry had done in prior eras. The period of 1919 through 1939 saw tank development tank two paths: The first was the infantry support tank, designed to be slow (to accompany leg infantry), have great crushing power, and be resistant to the threats of the day. Even the Germans subscribed to this thinking, with the Panzer IV designed to provide infantry support, and the Panzer III designed to provide anti-tank protection for the infantry support tanks. Post WWI, tanks were designed to be infantry support weapons. 19, Role of the Tank, produced by the Armored School, provides a guided tour of tank philosophy. All of the warring powers would take roughly the same path of discovery and innovation, mostly due to the actions and reactions of their enemies. It's key to note that US tank philosophy in 1941 differed very little from the tank philosophy of all of the warring powers. Understanding the tank philosophy of the US as it entered WWII provides a foundation on which to build an understanding of US tank and tank destroyer design.
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