The  90 mm Gun Motor Carriage, M36, was an American tank destroyer used during World War II. The M36 was essentially an up-gunned M10 tank destroyer, replacing the former’s indifferent 76 mm gun with a powerful 90 mm gun. The advent of larger, better armoured German tanks with 88mm guns led to US studies into a more powerful tank destroyer. One of the pilot models of the M10 was tested with a 90mm anti-aircraft gun in mid-1942 and, although it fitted, balance problems were exacerbated. There was also a lack of space to carry the large shells, so a new turret was designed, with work beginning in early 1943. The new unit had power traverse and a revised layout so that the gunner sat on the right side and the loader on the left. The turret had rounded sides, rather than the lozenge shape of the M10. A contract to convert M10A1 s on the production line was given in November 1943 and the new vehicle, which had the test designation of T71, became the M36 GMC in June 1944. A shortage of M10A1 chassis available for conversion led to the M36B1, which was simply the new turret on the hull of an M4A3. The M36B1 retained the hull machine gun and had much better armour protection. The M36B2 was created from M10 hulls when all available MIOAls had been used up, and had folding armoured sheets as standard to cover the top of the hull when necessary. About 2,324 of all models were constructed or converted. M36s started to arrive in France in September 1944 and sported the best AFV-mounted US gun on the battlefield at that time. Capable of firing M71 HE, T33 APC-T, T30E16 (M304) HVAP-T or smoke ammunition, the 90mm (3.54in) gun had a muzzle velocity of l,02lm/sec (3,350ft/sec) with High Velocity Armour Piercing Tracer (HVAP-T) ammunition. The M36 could defeat the armour of the Tiger and Panther without closing to point-blank range; its gun had a maximum range of 17,885m (19,560yd) firing HE. The M36 fought in Korea and was supplied to many nations under the post-war MAP programme. With the break-up of Yugoslavia, Croatian and Serbian forces acquired the Army’s M36s.

Technical specifications

Christopher F. Foss: The Encyclopedia of Tanks and Armored Fighting Vehicles: The Comprehensive Guide to over 900 Armored Fighting Vehicles from 1915 to the Present Day