Knaust Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 ok...in my infamous fight with SS_PanzerLeader I saw that my Tiger is worthy more than his 3 Hellcats...(btw..SSPL where are you?....are you returning to Washington?)... but I tried also to get some cats by 105mm artillery fire..with no result... but looking at those Hellcats from the top they closed hatch and seemed to have a top armour.. are Hellcats really open topped? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 Well, in my 3,476th playing of LD, I just had two!! Hellcats knocked out in one turn by 81mm mortar fire, so I would say yes, they are open topped. Craig (wishing the U.S. would buy Saskatchewan) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fionn Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 Yes they are. The crew compartment is open-topped. ------------------ ___________ Fionn Kelly Manager of Historical Research, The Gamers Net - Gaming for Gamers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike D Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 Yup. And mighty susceptible to artillery fire, gernades, arrows, etc. So too are some of the earlier German tank destroyers, as well as many self-propelled artillery vehicles on all sides. Mike D aka Mikester Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Big Time Software Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 Knaust, all US TD style tanks were open topped. This includes the M10, M18, M36, and variants. Just a reminder that we have toned down the chance of KO'ing an open topped vehicle by artillery fire. Knockouts should be fairly uncommon, but in LD it is clear that it is far too common. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kid Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 I was just wondering if anyone knows why US TD's were open topped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest L Tankersley Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 kid, I'm fairly sure the basic doctrine was that tanks were supposed to engage infantry targets and TDs enemy tanks. Since a TD wouldn't be facing infantry and only had to worry about killing tanks, they were made open-topped so the crew could see better (giving them a better chance to get the first shot off) and also to improve the rate of fire since they weren't crowded in quite as tight. That was the plan, anyway. Leland J. Tankersley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekStrikeDestroy Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 I believe the main reason was to give an edge to TD's in observation over regular tanks. Many recon vehicles tended to be open topped. It also had the benefit of making the vehicle lighter and hence more maneuverable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Christensen Posted December 16, 1999 Share Posted December 16, 1999 For what it's worth, the M18's top was a little less open than the stock M10 and M36, with the gunner being under partial roof. The 7th Army, at least, got around to rigging armoured covers for some of their M10s, pictures of which can be seen in the Zaloga and Squadron books on US TDs. Also, my father took a picture of an M36 in his battalion (the 813th, which got refitted from M10s to M36s after Nordwind and the intense encounters at Hatten and Ritterschoffen) with a similar armoured roof added. Kevin Christensen Lawrence, KS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Posted December 17, 1999 Share Posted December 17, 1999 Remember that the doctrine was to "hit and run" and lighness (i.e. speed)was a major feature of it. But in facts things were less obvious! My grand father served in a TD french regiment (with M10 I believe) and he alway told me that they used their destroyers in the same manners as other tanks. Moreover they fighted more often against infantry than against armored troop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mike Posted December 17, 1999 Share Posted December 17, 1999 Many TD's had tops fitted later in the war, but these were just thin things to keep hand grenades out. I've seen photo's showing them raised above the turret rim, so there's a gap al the way around - possibly the turrets weren't fitted with ventilation systems of any type so they need some "natural" air conditioning! Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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