The Light Tank T1 of 1926 was a two-man tank with a single 37mm machine gun and the engine at the front. The Combat Car M1 emerged from a series of experimental light tanks. By 1940 when it became the Light Tank M1 it was obsolete, but it was still a useful training vehicle and was used at the training centre at Fort Knox. The Combat Car M1 entered service with the US Cavalry in 1937. The Combat Car M1 became the Light Tank M1A2 and the Combat Car M2 became the Light Tank M1A1. After this the pretence could be dropped. In July 1940 the Armored Force was created, merging the infantry and cavalry tank units into a single force. This pretence can't have been taken all that seriously but it did last for most of these vehicles' active service. As the cavalry wasn't allowed tanks, its new vehicles were designated as Combat Cars. General MacArthur, chief of staff of the US Army in 1931, decided that the cavalry also needed tanks if it was to be effective on a modern battlefield.
The combat car designation was intended to bypass the National Defense Act of 1920, which had given responsibility for tanks to the infantry. Alongside the infantry's Light Tank M2 it was the basis of most American light tanks until 1944, although it was only produced in fairly small numbers and never saw combat. The Combat Car M1 and M2/ Light Tank M1 was a light tank that was produced for the US Cavalry.
0 kommentar(er)
