Artillery tractor

Last updated
Wheeled British WWII Scammell Pioneer towing an 8-inch howitzer 8inchHowitzerTowedByScammellPioneer12Jan1940.jpg
Wheeled British WWII Scammell Pioneer towing an 8-inch howitzer
Tracked Finnish WWII Komsomolets (captured from USSR) Komsomolets armored tractor helsinki 2.jpg
Tracked Finnish WWII Komsomolets (captured from USSR)
Half-tracked German Sd.Kfz. 7 towing an 8.8cm Flak Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-783-0109-19, Nordafrika, Zugkraftwagen mit Flak (cropped).jpg
Half-tracked German Sd.Kfz. 7 towing an 8.8cm Flak

An artillery tractor, also referred to as a gun tractor, is a specialized heavy-duty form of tractor unit used to tow artillery pieces of varying weights and calibres. It may be wheeled, tracked, or half-tracked.

Contents

Traction

There are two main types of artillery tractors, depending on the type of traction: wheeled and tracked.

In addition, half-track tractors were used in the interwar period and in World War II, especially by the Wehrmacht. This type of tractor was mostly discontinued postwar.

History

World War I

The first artillery tractors were designed prior to the outbreak of World War I, often based on agricultural machines such as the Holt tractor. Such vehicles allowed the tactical use of heavier guns to supplement the light horse drawn field guns. "Horseless artillery" available prior to World War I weighed 8 tons, had 70 horsepower and could go 8 mph. [1] For example, in the British Army it allowed the heavy guns of the Royal Garrison Artillery to be used flexibly on the battlefield.

World War II

German RSO artillery tractor towing 105 mm howitzer, Albania, 1943 Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-203-1696-25, Albanien, Raupenschlepper Ost mit Kanone.jpg
German RSO artillery tractor towing 105 mm howitzer, Albania, 1943

In World War II the draft horse was still the most common source of motive power in many armies. [ citation needed ] Most nations were economically and industrially unable to fully motorise their forces. One compromise was to produce general purpose vehicles which could be used in the troop transport, logistics and prime mover roles, with heavy artillery tractors to move the heaviest guns.

The British Army had fully mechanized prior to war. During the 1920s and 30s it had used the Vickers Medium Dragon and Light Dragon fully-tracked artillery tractors, but they had been mostly replaced with wheeled vehicles, starting with the Morris CDSW. The Royal Artillery persisted with specialist artillery tractors – known as "Field Artillery Tractors" (FAT) – such as the Morris "Quad", Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) "Quad" and AEC Matador throughout World War II, rather than adopt a general purpose vehicle. Artillery tractors were different from "General Service" (GS) vehicles by having a compartment for the gun detachment immediately behind the cab and separated from the cargo space containing ammunition and gun stores.

German forces used half-tracks as artillery tractors, such as the Sd.Kfz. 7. Half-tracked tractors were not commonly used in this role in other nations. Compared to wheeled vehicles they had better off-road capabilities, but were slower on roads and were more prone to breakdowns. However, for Germany horses remained the most common way of towing artillery throughout the war.[ citation needed ]

Modern warfare

In modern warfare, towed artillery has given way in part to self-propelled artillery. It is also common to find auxiliary power units built into the gun carriage to provide power while the propulsion engine is offline.

Traditional towed artillery can still be found in units where complexity and weight are liabilities: e.g. airmobile, amphibious and other light units. In such units, where organic transport is usually limited, any available transport can double as artillery tractors in order to reposition guns when needed. For example, engineer vehicles of a different primary purpose such as the U.S. Marines' light capacity rough terrain forklift (LCRTF), a versatile telehandler forklift capable of towing gear from either end.

List of artillery tractors

The following are a few examples of artillery tractors, classified by its traction system and era.

Wheeled

Fiat artillery tractor in the journal Horseless Age, 1918 Fiat artillery tractor in Horseless Age v43 n4 1918-02-15 p50.png
Fiat artillery tractor in the journal Horseless Age, 1918
AEC Matador towing a 3.7 inch gun, Caen, 1944 Ruinedcaenconvoy.jpg
AEC Matador towing a 3.7 inch gun, Caen, 1944

Pre- and First World War

Interwar and Second World War

Postwar

Half-tracked

Sd.Kfz. 10 towing 5cm AT gun, Russia, 1942 Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-216-0406-31, Russland-Mitte-Nord, Zugkraftwagen mit Pak.jpg
Sd.Kfz. 10 towing 5cm AT gun, Russia, 1942

Tracked, tank chassis

Voroshilovets artillery tractor, Soviet Union Voroshilovets artillery tractor.jpg
Voroshilovets artillery tractor, Soviet Union

Tracked, other chassis

A Holt tractor used by the French Army in the Vosges, Spring 1915. Artillery tractor in France Vosges Spring 1915.jpg
A Holt tractor used by the French Army in the Vosges, Spring 1915.
An American M6 tractor, on display Allis Chalmers M 6 High Speed Tractor from Wo-II.jpg
An American M6 tractor, on display
Soviet AT-S in Finland AT-S towing a field gun from sky.jpg
Soviet AT-S in Finland

Pre- and First World War

Interwar and Second World War

Postwar

  • Snow Trac – 1957, UK Royal Marines Light WOMBAT gun carrier
  • AT-L – Soviet Union
  • ATS-59 – Soviet Union
  • AT-S – Soviet Union
  • AT-T – Soviet Union
  • MT-LBT – Soviet Union, mid-1970s, variant of the MT-LB armoured personnel carrier.
  • Hitachi Type 73 – Japan, 1974

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armoured fighting vehicle</span> Combat vehicle with both armament and armour

An armoured fighting vehicle or armored fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, assault guns, self-propelled artilleries, infantry fighting vehicles (IFV), and armoured personnel carriers (APC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Self-propelled artillery</span> Artillery mounted on a vehicle for mobility and protection

Self-propelled artillery is artillery equipped with its own propulsion system to move toward its firing position. Within the terminology are the self-propelled gun, self-propelled howitzer, self-propelled mortar, and self-propelled rocket artillery. They are high-mobility vehicles, usually based on continuous tracks carrying either a large field gun, howitzer, mortar, or some form of rocket/missile launcher. They are usually used for long-range indirect bombardment support on the battlefield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German armored fighting vehicle production during World War II</span>

This article lists production figures for German armored fighting vehicles during the World War II era. Vehicles include tanks, self-propelled artillery, assault guns and tank destroyers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Half-track</span> Land vehicle with both regular wheels and continuous tracks

A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cross-country capabilities of a tank and the handling of a wheeled vehicle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sd.Kfz. 251</span> Half-track armored personnel carrier

The Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track was a World War II German armored personnel carrier designed by the Hanomag company, based on its earlier, unarmored Sd.Kfz. 11 vehicle. The Sd.Kfz. 251 was designed to transport the Panzergrenadier into battle. Sd.Kfz. 251s were the most widely produced German half-tracks of the war, with at least 15,252 vehicles and variants produced by seven manufacturers. The utility of this vehicle led the German Army to develop the similar looking but shorter and lighter Sd.Kfz. 250 as a supplement.

<i>Sd.Kfz. 250</i> Half-track armoured personnel carrier

The Sd.Kfz. 250 was a light armoured half-track, very similar in appearance to the larger Hanomag-designed Sd.Kfz. 251, and built by the DEMAG firm, for use by Nazi Germany in World War II. Most variants were open-topped and had a single access door in the rear.

<i>Sd.Kfz. 6</i> Half-track

The Sd.Kfz. 6 was a half-track military vehicle used by the German Wehrmacht during the Second World War. It was designed to be used as the main towing vehicle for the 10.5 cm leFH 18 howitzer.

<i>Sd.Kfz. 7</i> Half-tracked artillery tractor

The Sd.Kfz. 7 was a half-track military vehicle used by the German Army, Luftwaffe and Waffen-SS during the Second World War. Sd.Kfz. is an abbreviation of the German word Sonderkraftfahrzeug, "special purpose vehicle". A longer designation is mittlerer Zugkraftwagen 8t, Sd.Kfz. 7, "medium towing motor vehicle 8t".

<i>Sd.Kfz. 10</i> Light half-track

The Sd.Kfz. 10 was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II. Its main role was as a prime mover for small towed guns, such as the 2 cm Flak 30, the 7.5 cm leIG, or the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun. It could carry eight troops in addition to towing a gun or trailer.

The British Army made extensive use of a variety of combat vehicles during the Second World War. This article is a summary of those vehicles.

<i>Raupenschlepper Ost</i> German light tracked vehicle

Raupenschlepper Ost was a fully tracked, lightweight vehicle used by the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was conceived in response to the poor performance of wheeled and half-tracked vehicles in the mud and snow during the Wehrmacht's first autumn and winter on the Soviet Front.

<i>Sd.Kfz. 9</i> German half-track family

The Sd.Kfz. 9 was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II, and the heaviest half-track vehicle of any type built in quantity in Nazi Germany during the war years. Its main roles were as a prime mover for very heavy towed guns such as the 24 cm Kanone 3 and as a tank recovery vehicle. Approximately 2,500 were produced between 1938 and 1945.

<i>Sd.Kfz. 8</i> Heavy half-track

The Sonderkraftfahrzeug 8, usually abbreviated to Sd.Kfz. 8, was a German half-track designed by Daimler-Benz that saw widespread use in World War II. Its main roles were as a prime mover for heavy towed guns such as the 21 cm Mörser 18, the 17 cm Kanone 18 and the 10.5 cm FlaK 38. However, it was also capable of serving as an infantry transport. Approximately 4,000 were produced between 1938 and 1945. It was used in every campaign fought by the Germans in World War II, notably the Invasion of Poland, the Battle of France, the Balkans Campaign, the Eastern Front, the North African Campaign, the Battle of Normandy and the Italian Campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reconnaissance vehicle</span> Military vehicle used for forward reconnaissance

A reconnaissance vehicle, also known as a scout vehicle, is a military vehicle used for forward reconnaissance. Both tracked and wheeled reconnaissance vehicles are in service. In some nations, light tanks such as the M551 Sheridan and AMX-13 have also been used by scout platoons. Their armament ranges from a medium machine gun to a large cannon. Modern examples are often fitted with ATGMs and a wide range of sensors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian Armour and Artillery Museum</span> Armour & Artillery Museum in Cairns, Queensland

The Australian Armour and Artillery Museum is a privately owned museum in Smithfield, Cairns, Queensland, Australia. It is dedicated to tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery from the Second World War and post war periods. It was officially opened in 2014.

References

Notes

  1. "Horseless Artillery". The Independent. Jul 13, 1914. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
  2. Vauvillier, François (2018). Tous les Renault militaires (1914–1940) : Volume 1, les camions[All military Renaults (1914–1940): Volume 1, the trucks] (in French). Histoire et Collections. p. 23. ISBN   978-2-35250-498-6.
  3. Sumner, Ian (2012). "Opposing Forces". The First Battle of the Marne 1914: The French "miracle" halts the Germans. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 17. ISBN   978-1-84603-502-9.
  4. Ministry of Defence (22 April 2009). "200 new armoured vehicles for front line operations". Archived from the original on 13 May 2009.
  5. "Coyote / Jackal 2 Tactical Support Vehicles, United Kingdom". Army Technology. 2009.

Bibliography

Further reading