World War Photos

Click on thumbnail images to enlarge

The US Army was thus late to realize the requirement in the Second World War for heavy tanks, armed with high velocity guns of larger calibre than 75-76 mm, to counter the enemy’s Panthers and Tigers. As stated above in the section on medium tanks, it was not until 1943 that approval was given for the procurement of ten T26 “heavy” medium tanks, and these were not available until March/June 1944. An order for production of some 500 vehicles would have been given in September 1943 had the Armored Force Board not preferred that the 90-mm M3 gun be mounted instead on the M4 medium tank, and the commander of Army Ground Forces not considered that a 90-mm gun was “undesirable in a tank, since it would encourage tank units to stalk enemy tanks”, a role assigned to tank destroyers in the US Army’s doctrine of the time. It was not until June 1944 that the Medium Tank T26 was redesignated as the Heavy Tank T26 and it was recommended by the Ordnance Department for standardization and production in December of that year. Army Ground Forces had tried another delaying tactic in July by requesting that it be redesigned with a 76 mm gun, and it was thus not until December of that year that the T26 was approved limited for procurement. Production of twenty prototypes had begun in November 1944 and Ordnance Department recommended that these should be shipped immediately to Europe for battle testing. Again prejudice against heavy tanks surfaced in Army Ground Forces, who asked that they first go to the Armored Force for testing of their combat effectiveness. This would have wasted another month but luckily the German attack in the Ardennes on 16 December 1944 spotlighted the inadequacies of the Sherman with its weak armour and 76 mm gun and the US General Staff intervened on the 22nd to order the immediate despatch to Europeof all available T26 tanks. The first twenty arrived in the European Theatre of Operations in January 1945 and were issued to combat units in February. Tank crews were favourably impressed with a tank which was almost a match for the Tiger in firepower and protection but very much more mobile and reliable, and full production was ordered. Over 2,000 had been produced by the end of 1945. The tank having been standardized as the Heavy Tank M26 and named “General Pershing” in March 1945. A few were shipped to the United Kingdom that year for test and evaluation, but the cessation of hostilities limited the number sent. The M26 was armed with the 90 mm (3.54 in) M3 (L/53) gun in a turret, together with a coaxial .30 cal (7.62 mm) Browning MG. Auxiliary armament also comprised another .30 cal MG in the front hull plate and a .50 cal (12.7 mm) AA MG on the turret. Carrying a crew of five (commander, driver, co-driver, gunner and loader), the tank weighed 41.7 tons, had a maximum frontal armour thickness of 102.4 mm and had a maximum road speed of 48 km/h. The M26 was reclassified as a medium tank in May 1946.
There were also attempts to further upgrade the main armament, such as the T15E1 gun, and to increase the armour by welding extra plates on the front of the hull.
It was the most powerful American tank to see combat in World War II.

Source:
Peter Gudgin: Armoured Firepower: The Development of Tank Armament, 1939-45