Half Track History

Throughout the evolution of the track-wheeled vehicle during peace and wartime, there was one vehicle that combined the effectiveness of a large truck and a fully track-wheeled vehicle. The Half-Track was widely used during World War II on both sides of the lines. The Half-Track was highly versatile, making it the premier selection for the United States Army for nearly every function throughout the wars. There have been hundreds of uses of the Half-Track, including supply movement, crew movement, and anti-air protection. The effectiveness of the Half-Track as an all-purpose vehicle can be broken down into several areas. However, making the Half-Track into an Anti-air protection (Air Defense Artillery), was a pivotal changing point in the

There were multiple variations and uses throughout the entirety of the war. To be considered a Half-Track, the vehicles were required to have wheels in the front and tank tracks in the rear. The American-used Half-Tracks were some of the fastest Half-Tracks in World War II, reaching speeds up to 47mph. The shorter tracks on the rear helped reach higher speeds and drove and handle more like a truck. The German Half-Tracks had a longer rear track that allowed them to operate and handle more similarly to their counterpart, the Panzer tank (Britannica 2017). Half-Tracks have many different variations of war fighting vehicles. In World War II there was a total of 41,000 M3s built for War, and another 2,000 M5s were built by International Harvester. The M3 had multiple variants and capabilities, from troop carriers to self-propelled guns (M3 Half-Track). The Half-Tracks that were used as personal carriers could carry a crew of up to twelve soldiers. The battle-ready Half-Tracks usually weighed over 9 tons, and had a fuel range of about 175 miles. Most Half-Tracks would have a roller wheel off of the front bumper that would be used to move across and to prevent them from becoming stuck in the impassable trenches. The Half-Tracks used for Air Defense included the M13, M14, M15, M16, and the M17. All of the variants were on the M2, M3, or the M5 Half-Track chassis. Variations of the Half-Track up to the M15 only had duel mounted .50 caliber machine guns. The M16 and M17 had four .50 caliber anti-aircraft machine guns. The Quad Mount .50 caliber machine gun, nicknamed the Meat Chopper, was mounted on the back of the M16 Half-Track. When the Half-Track was not being used as an anti-aircraft weapon, it would be utilized for destroying sniper positions, thusly earning the nickname Meat Chopper. When units were pinned down by enemy sniper fire, the Quad Mounted .50 caliber machine gun would be