I have a personal interest in sword beach and th18th in particular. Buy an illustrated guide to tank busters by bruce quarrie online at alibris. Janes world war ii tanks and fighting vehicles the. Tank busters, the history of the 811th tank destroyer battalion. A bomb will destroy a tank if you hit it directly or very close to it but dive bombing a tank means flying straight at it and tanks usually had a lot of men with mgs around them. Feb 01, 2018 first impressions of the newest patch for the mmo world war ii online. Franz staudegger german tiger ace in the battle of kursk. The top tank buster of world war 2 linkedin slideshare. After the end of the cold war, a huge number of very valuable ww2 era german tanks and assault guns were discovered forgotten and abandoned. The 23 mm vya and 37 mm ns37 were developed specifically for aircraft and used in both the air combat and anti tank roles. It was tested in air combat and proposed for various anti tank aircraft, but not adopted. The greatest tank destroyer in history has to be hansulrich rudel of the luftwaffe.
Everly on march 15 1943, two months after after my 18th birthday, i found myself drafted and on my way to meet my destiny. Helmet stand military german,us, wwi, wwii,black wwood trim mod. Tank busters 2 the 811th tank destroyer battalion by walt. A closeup of a junkers ju 87g1 anti tank aircraft, fitted with two 3. The panzer iv was originally intended to be an infantrysupport tank. June 27, 2001 il2 the il2 stormovik was more than a tank buster. In april 1943, hans rudel was awarded oak leaves to his knights cross and his squadron of tank busting ju87 g1s were assigned to support the german panzers during operation citadel in the battle of kursk.
A history of americas world war ii tank destroyer force kindle edition by yeide, harry. Weigley noted, went all through the second world war refusing to develop, until too late to do much good, heavier tanks comparable to the german tigers and panthers, let alone the royal tiger or the russian stalin. It was thus armed with a 75 mm howitzer intended primarily. A german soldier inspects a knocked out t34 during the battle of kursk. The hs 129 was supposed to be the luftwaffes ultimate aerial tank killer, dealing death from above to soviet t34s on the russian front. This independent tank destroyer battalion served with the 5th armored division, the 3rd armored division, and the 82nd airborne division in world war ii europe. It filled the role as ground attack aircraft better than any in the world too.
News magazine, distributed exclusively inside the service during world war 2. It was not until mid1943 that german bombers were seriously menaced by soviet fighters. The reason they dont talk is they couldnt get the picture over to somebody that wasnt there. The russian il stormovik was the soviet answer to the panzer and a good one, btw but its armour made it vulnerable to air attack. The most numerous aircraft in wwii with over 36 6 produced, the il2 is claimed to have been responsible for the destruction of huge numbers of german tanks. I cleared it myself as scholar just before patch 2. This independent tank destroyer battalion served with the 80th infantry division, the 7th and 9th armored divisions, and the 101st airborne division in world war ii europe. Designed by hermann pohlmann, it first flew in 1935. Spearhead is a wwii book on tank strategy, but humanity is central.
An illustrated guide to tank busters arco military book. Leichter ladungstrager goliath goliath light charge carrier was a name given to two german unmanned ground vehicles, disposable demolition vehicles, used during world war ii. It combined thin but sloped armor with the m4 shermans reliable drivetrain and a reasonably potent anti tank weapon mounted in an opentopped turret. Things were so bad in germany that by april 1945 the luftwaffe resorted to using training aircraft, the bucker bu 181 bestmann, as tank busters. Utilizing cv tank and narrowing the years down between 19391945, allowed me to acquire certain subjects on tank regiments and divisions of the german army. Over the course of the battle his tank was hit by russian 76mm gunfire an astounding 67 times and yet was able to continue the fight and deliver its occupants to safety. The junkers ju 87 or stuka from sturzkampfflugzeug, dive bomber was a german dive bomber and groundattack aircraft. Pool killed over german soldiers and took 250 as war prisoners. P51 loss rates started to climb when they went down to straf airfields, ground fire was a bigger danger than lw fighters. They arrived in england during april, 1944, and entered combat in mid june, landing at utah beach. Typhoon tank busters over normandy a section of hawker typhoon mark ibs of no. The american tank ace that killed 12 tank and 258 armoured. The il2 sturmoviks performance has also been overrated as a tank buster.
For the allied forces, the british have the 40mm armed, hawker hurricane mk ii d. Book discusses the development of various types of anti tank rounds, and also anti tank guns and handheld weapons such as the prewar and early war anti tank rifles and the later shoulder held and rpg weapons. Janes world war ii tanks and fighting vehicles the complete guide. He was then appointed wing commander and formed a fierce tank hunting squadron, and by november 1943 he had flown more than 1,500 missions and taken out 100 tanks. Adam makos, an author of books about military history including. Rudel was the most decorated german serviceman of world war ii, being the sole recipient of the knights cross with golden oak leaves, swords, and diamonds in january 1945. If the panther was the most costeffective german afv, and perhaps the most effective tank of ww2, the tiger made such an impression, that it quickly shaped its own legend, besides any propaganda effort. Among the most widely recognized tank crew and tank platoon commander was the american ace of aces, lafayette g. In other words, it would be easy to see it as a world war iiforerunner of todays formidable a10 warthog. Use of subject headings and cv tank industry, military motor vehicle.
Post war evaluation showed very few tanks were busted in normandy. Tank busting blowing up the myth of the mighty m4 sherman. T64 battle tank the cold wars most secret tank, steven j. Retyped version with difficult to see photos, but it is a searchable document within adobe acrobat. It saw combat in all theaters, with the exception of the pacific theater, and was the only tank to remain in production for the entire war. B25 g bombers w 75mm m4 cannon on a combat mission ww2. Kindly recommend books on tanks and tank tactics for wwii era. Voyager offers a number of opportunities for searching.
In some cases, authors go so far as to claim an aircraft type was the best antidote to certain tank types, eg the tiger i tanks nemesis in normandy was apparently the rocket. The vvs claimed to have knocked out 270 tanks of 3rd panzer division within 2 hrs. Ww2 german tank destroyers archives tank encyclopedia. The greatest tank buster of world war 2 hans ulrich 2. The tankbuster or tank killer nickname was most often hung on the hawker typhoon one was that the p51s liquidcooled engine, with its bellymounted radiator, was quite vulnerable to ground fire. The aircraft saw combat in tunisia and on the eastern front a key requirement of the original specification was that the aircraft be powered by engines that were not in demand for other designs. Tank busting how effective were air strikes during wwii.
Thus, for october 26, the squadron operation record book announced. We follow along with the crew, feeling what they feel, see and communicate through each others experiences in the fog of war. A history of americas world war ii tank destroyer force. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. German airpower, including new ju87g stukas and hs. The russians by then had radar and could direct their fighters to intercept. The battalions history is one of courage, determination, and dedication to the cause of freedom and. See more ideas about german army, world war two and wwii. Ww2 tank buster junkers ju87 stuka dive bomber moore. Tank busters 3, the history of the 628th tank destroyer battalion. World war ii oral history, books about world war ii, world. Crisp spent most of his wartime service as commander of an m3 stuart tank.
B25 g bombers w 75mm m4 cannon on a combat mission ww2 usaaf aerial action. World war ii german antitank weapons of ww2 youtube. The regiment had lost all of its tanks and most of its personnel during the german invasion of france in the summer of 1940, and lieutenant crisp was one of many new personnel who joined the regiment in early 1941. The hs 129 was supposed to be the a10 of world war ii. Effectiveness of world war ii aircraft against tanks the. World war ii tank gunner clarence smoyer poses for a portrait near the. This is the story of the 607th tank destroyer battalions fight across europe. Postwar, he was a prominent neonazi activist in latin america and west germany. Our upload feature allows website visitors to add related ww2 images and other historic documents for educational purposes. After equipping myself with many of the technical books of walter j. This squares with all the reports from this time of the war of columns of german tanks surrendering or abandoning to strange causes like 4. An illustrated guide to tank busters arco military book quarry, bruce, spick, mike on. Stukas continued to operate in large numbersover 500 of them attacked the.
Even before the second world war, the famous german tank commander heinz guderian had predicted the need for highly mobile selfpropelled anti tank vehicles, later known as panzerjager or jagdpanzer tank destroyer or hunter. The ns45 was a version of the ns37, with the cartridge case necked out to 45 mm. World war ii aircraft could only carry a limited amount of air to ground bombs or missiles and on sustained fire, the main guns were prone to overheating. The unit fought across france and into germany during the summer and early winter of 1944. Hansulrich rudel 2 july 1916 18 december 1982 was a german groundattack pilot during world war ii.
The ju 87 made its combat debut in 1937 with the luftwaffes condor legion during the spanish civil war and served the axis forces in world war ii the aircraft is easily recognisable by its inverted gull wings and fixed. Ww2incolor is made up of a large ww2 photograph collection of over 45 thousand images which have been viewed over 110 million times over the last few years. A sherman tank crew in wwii fights its way from normandy beach into berlin. World war ii saw the emergence of tank aces who became famous for their incredible milestones at the war front. Its armor plate was laid on thick around the monocoque bathtub type construction of the cockpit and most surfaces. Stuka tank busters 1943 ebook rapid reads german war. The panzer iv was the workhorse of the german tank force during world war ii.
The unrivalled inside story of the german army in wwii. An illustrated guide to tank busters by bruce quarrie alibris. The effectiveness of antitank aircraft in world war ii is taken for granted by most. John weeks, which naturally involves much about wwii tanks. Get the best deals on tank destroyer patch when you shop the largest online selection at. Apr 04, 2014 the il2 sturmoviks performance has also been overrated as a tankbuster. A brief history of a tank that was too advanced for its own good, combining advanced features that meant it couldnt be exported with an unreliable engine that made it unsuited for service with the red army for many years after it first appeared. Categories video world war ii explosions shock and awe guns and weapons. All the light we cannot see by anthony doerr, the nightingale by kristin hannah, the book thief by markus zusak, the orphans tale.
Despite its obsolescence in the face of more powerful german tanks like the panther and the introduction of more powerful and betterdesigned types as replacements. The photo coverage in the book is very extensive and shows all the tanks used by the different countries in wwii and also even in the earlier spanish civil war. Spielberger on german tanks, i was still be glad to have this book on my shelf. For user wishing to locate books on tanks in world war ii. His backseat gunner, a man called sergeant erwin hentschel, became one of the most successful in the entire air force.
I bought both, and just finished tiger tracks read in two sittings, btw and it was the most visceral and unflinching account of tankontank warfare i have ever read. Tank busting these ju87 g1s were nicknamed panzerknacker tank buster or kanonenvogel cannon bird. I bought both, and just finished tiger tracks read in two sittings, btw and it was the most visceral and unflinching account of tank on tank warfare i have ever read. The 607th tank destroyer battalion was a tank destroyer battalion of the united states army active during the second world war. Raf hurricane mkiid desert tank busters 40mm cannons ww2. Original ww2 802nd tank destroyer battalion vetaltered. Ww2 raf hawker hurricane 2d desert tank busters 2x 40mm cannon mounted under wing. Stuka tank busters 1943 ebook rapid reads german war machine. It is a coffee table book on german tanks, even wwii buffs wont mind refreshing their knowledge with. World war ii aircraft could only carry a limited amount of air to ground bombs or missiles and on sustained fire.
For its time, it was a hardened steel mobile bunker, equipped with one of the most aweinspiring guns of the war, the german antiaircraft 88. Tank busters available in tier 3 for the axis forces its the 37mm armed, junkers ju87g2. Rudel helped develope the tank busting ju 87g and claimed 519 tank kills by the end of the war. Combat vehicle by alex vanagsbaginskis july 19,1990 jan 1, 1657. Even today for helicopters or tank busting aircraft a10, su24, f16, ah64, hind, it can be relatively difficult, despite the availability of guided weapon systems.
See more ideas about luftwaffe, ww2 aircraft and military aircraft. The manual of tank busters hardcover oct 1 1991 by gina sandford author, richard crow author 3. German anti tank and ground attack aircraft junkers ju 87g. The junkers ju 87 stuka was a successful world war ii divebomber. Stuka tank busters looks how a nearobsolete dive bomber became the most feared groundattack aircraft on the eastern front of world war ii and the skilled pilots who put it to use in the skies of kursk and kharkov. A decision was made to raise the guns after an operation by the russian black sea fleet where the wreck of the german cargo ship santa fe was explored by. The henschel hs 129 was a world war ii groundattack aircraft fielded by the german luftwaffe. P51s and raf mustangs could carry 500ib bombs or rockets and had 0. Nazi germany 1942 selfpropelled anti tank gun 531576, 6875 converted, 10 field conversions. Nov 26, 2007 according to my references, han rudel was the dean of the german tank snipers using a stuka with 37 mm wingmounted cannon. While the french receive the 37mm armed bell mle 26 the french version of the us p39n. The book details the armoured vehicles used by germany during ww2 as well as providing information of prototypes and well presented statistics on the vehicles. History, development, service, specifications, statistics, pictures, and 3d model. The book thief by markus zusak, all the light we cannot see by anthony doerr, the nightingale by kristin hannah, sarahs k.
Typhoon tank busters over normandy world war ii today. Hansulrich rudel the flying tank buster who flew more. Hang your posters in dorms, bedrooms, offices, or anywhere blank walls arent welcome. See all 2 formats and editions hide other formats and editions. An independent battalion, it was attached to the 95th, 90th and 87th infantry divisions during world war ii. Somebody that wasnt there, he would think that youre making that story up. Combat aircraft versus armour in wwii operation barbarrosa. Dont expect much, its a brief summary on german tanks, but quite well done. In actual combat, tanks are far more vulnerable than viewers of most blackand white films may realize.
Rare original ww2 us captured german stuka tank buster photograph. The tank busters the history of the 607th tank destroyer battalion in combat on the western front. All these aircraft have the distinction of being called tankbusters and all have the reputation for being able to easily destroy any type of tank in wwii. In late winter, they were then pulled out and sent to belgium near the end of. Nazi tank buster pulled from bottom of the black sea ananova. German figures show that tank losses at kursk were much fewer than the vvs claimed, however, and the soviets ceased production of 37mmarmed il2s after 1943, suggesting that they thought it was rather a failure. An illustrated guide to tank busters arco military book hardcover september 1, 1987 by bruce quarry author, mike spick author 5. I remember the scene you are talking about in real life i think tom hanks would be dead and the tank would rumble on. The heroic wwii mission to capture a deadly tiger tank. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the tank killers. The humor, the gore, the tragedy will unfold as they trek through the nightmare of trying to survive in their m4 sherman tank named betsy. Tank development world war ii university of hawaii.
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