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US Tank accuracy in WWII


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R. Atkinson, on p. 251 of his tome "Crusade", claims that, on average, a stationary American tank in WW2 had to fire around 17 rounds of ammo to hit another tank at 700m. Does anyone know if this claim is accurate? Its hard to imagine that it took 17 rounds on average to hit another tank. Did german tankers fare much better (or British, or Polish) than the Yanks or did this merely reflect the technology of the time??

Take care,

Jerry

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Atkinson is talking about the development of the tank as a lead-in to his discussion of the M1A1 in the Gulf War. The sentence mentioned above compares the accuracy of a stationary American tank in WW II to a Abrams on the move, which according to Atkinson can hit a target at 2000 m with one round. The source he cites is the draft version of a US Army publication called Certain Victory: The American Army in the Gulf War (1993).

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Helo polytropos ... :D

Here's a thread in the CMBB section that may help you. Go to the bottom of the thread and see the footnote relating to "The Range and Angular Distribution of A.P. Hits on Tanks, Ballistic Research Laboratories, Aberdeen Proving Ground MD, December 1951 (Project TB3-1224B, Memorandum Report # 590)"

This study was an analysis of the range and angular distribution of casualties and hits on tanks in WW II (NW Europe). It notes number of reported tank losses for 1st US Army, 3rd US Army, and the reports from the British Army.

CMBB Thread (Click Here)

Regards,

Badger

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