M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage

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M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage
TM-9-335-8in-HMC-M43-1.jpg
M43 HMC
Type Self-propelled artillery
Place of originFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Service history
In service1945 – 1953
Used byFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Wars World War II
Korean War
Production history
Designer Ordnance Department
Designed1944 – 1945
Manufacturer Pressed Steel Car Company
Produced1945
No. built24 (+ 24 converted from
155 mm GMC M40)
Specifications
Mass83,000 lb (38 t)
Length289 in (7.3 m)
Width124 in (3.1 m)
Height129 in (3.3 m)
Crew8 (Commander, driver, 6 gun crew)

Shell separate loading, bagged charge
Caliber 8 in (203 mm)
Rate of fire Sustained:
Muzzle velocity 1,925 ft/s (587 m/s)
Effective firing rangeConventional:
Maximum firing range16,800 m
Feed systemhand
SightsM13 or M6

Main
armament
8-inch Howitzer M2
Engine Continental R-975-C4
400 hp (300 kW)
SuspensionHVSS (Horizontal Volute Spring Suspension)
Operational
range
107 mi (172 km)
Maximum speed 24 mph (39 km/h)

The 8-inch Howitzer Motor Carriage M43 was an American self-propelled artillery vehicle built on a widened and lengthened medium tank M4/M4A1 chassis, with a Continental engine and HVSS that was introduced at the end of World War II. The M43 shared the same chassis as the more widely produced M40 Gun Motor Carriage, which instead mounted a 155 mm gun, and were designed by the Pressed Steel Car Company. A production run of 576 was planned originally, but in the end only 24 were produced and another 24 were converted from M40 hulls. [1] The M43 went on to serve in the Korean War, and was retired after its conclusion.

Contents

History

Equipped with a M115 203 mm (8-inch) howitzer, it was designed to replace the earlier M12 gun motor carriage. Its prototype designation was the T89, but this was changed to the M43 in March 1945. The 41.5-ton vehicles struggled to keep up with mechanized formations, but were successful when employed in more stationary roles.

Operational service

A single pilot vehicle was deployed in Europe before the end of World War II and was used in action by the 991st Field Artillery Regiment, first seeing action as part of Zebra Force in February 1945 in the capture of Cologne.

M43s were used in action in the Korean War, where they were well suited to the static fighting there, their high angle of fire permitting them to hit the rear slopes of hills. [2]

Variants

Surviving vehicles

M43 Howitzer at Ft. Sill, OK. US Army Artillery Museum - 163.jpg
M43 Howitzer at Ft. Sill, OK.

Despite its small production run, the M43s are featured in the computer games World of Tanks and R.U.S.E.

See also

Notes

  1. "M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage". Military Factory. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  2. "M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage". Military History Encyclopedia of the Web. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 "Surviving US Self-propelled Artillery / Gun Motor Carriage" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 October 2013.