War Thunder Wiki - User contributions [en]

Magach 2

2023-07-25T01:47:22Z

U142279858: fill out usage in battles and pros and cons

{{About
| about = Israeli medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| usage = other versions
| link = Magach (Family)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=il_magach_2
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} Israeli medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Wind of Change"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''

'''Armour type:''' 


{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || ___ mm || ___ mm ''Top'' ___ mm ''Bottom'' || ___ mm || ___ - ___ mm
|-
| Turret || ___ - ___ mm ''Turret front'' ___ mm ''Gun mantlet'' || ___ - ___ mm || ___ - ___ mm || ___ - ___ mm
|-
| Cupola || ___ mm || ___ mm || ___ mm || ___ mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:''' 


=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1,279|rbMinHp=730}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|M41 (90 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M41 (90 mm)|90 mm M41]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 64 || rowspan="2" | -9°/+19° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | N/A || 22.8 || 31.6 || 38.4 || 42.5 || 45.2 || rowspan="2" | 9.75 || rowspan="2" | 8.63 || rowspan="2" | 7.95 || rowspan="2" | 7.50
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 14.3 || 16.8 || 20.4 || 22.6 || 24.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{{:M41 (90 mm)/Ammunition|M332 shot, T142E3, M82 shot, M431 shell, M71 shell, M313}}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks_M48A2_C.png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the M48A2 C (identical).]]

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''64''' || 57 ''(+7)'' || 46 ''(+18)'' || 28 ''(+36)'' || 21 ''(+43)'' || 1 ''(+63)'' || No
|-
|}
'''Notes''':

* Shells are modeled by sets of 2 and disappear from the rack after you've fired both shells in the set.
* Racks 4 and 5 are first stage ammo racks. They total 27 shells and get filled first when loading up the tank.
** These racks are also emptied early: the depletion order at full capacity is: 4 - 5 - 1 - 2 - 3.
** Full reload speed will be realized as long as shells are available in the ready racks 4 and 5. If both ready racks are empty, a penalty to reload speed will occur.
** Simply not firing when the gun is loaded will move ammo from racks 1 to 3 into rack 5 then 4. Firing will interrupt the restocking of the ready racks.
* If you pack 21 ''(+43)'' shells, it will keep the front hull and the turret bustle empty of ammo.

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|M2HB (12.7 mm)|M73 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|12.7 mm M2HB]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,400 (200) || 577 || -9°/+60° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M73 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm M73]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 5,500 (250) || 500 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==
The Magach 2 is best used in a urban environment when stock due only having apcr and HE and no rangefinder modification. the magach is good when your with your teammates and good for ambushing. if you have all power train mods installed you are able to move quite fast so you can keep up with most other tanks at its br. your most noteworthy enemy is the t-54 or t-55

=== Pros and cons ===

''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".''

'''Pros:'''
* Range finder modification greatly increases the speed to range find a target
* HESH round can be used to over pressure tanks if the round hits a weak spot like the roof
* Good HEAT round can pen just about anything at its br
* Commander override can save you if your gunner gets killed
* Good-ish turret armor can save you sometimes if someone misses and hits to far left, right or high they will no-pen

'''Cons:'''
* Weak hull armor cant reliably bounce shots and stop them so watch out for that
* Stock apcr round does not like angles and will most of the time bounce of the target
* Ammo is in the left side of the turret and will most of the time get detonated if shot in the turret

== History ==

''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).''

== Media ==


;Skins
* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=il_magach_2 Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

== See also ==


;Related development
* [[Magach (Family)]]

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.''

{{TankManufacturer Israeli Ordnance Corps}}
{{Israel medium tanks}}

F-84F (Israel)

2023-07-25T01:13:47Z

U142279858: filled out usage in battles and added a bit to pros and cons

{{About
|about= Israeli strike aircraft '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
|usage= other versions
|link= F-84 (Family)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=f-84f_israel_iaf
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a premium rank {{Specs|rank}} Israeli strike aircraft {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Wind of Change"]].

== General info ==
=== Flight performance ===
{{Specs-Avia-Flight}}


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="70%"
! rowspan="2" | Characteristics
! colspan="2" | Max speed (km/h at 0 m - sea level)
! rowspan="2" | Max altitude (metres)
! colspan="2" | Turn time (seconds)
! colspan="2" | Rate of climb (metres/second)
! rowspan="2" | Take-off run (metres)
|-
! AB !! RB !! AB !! RB !! AB !! RB
|-
! Stock
| 1,090 || 1,067 || rowspan="2" | {{Specs|ceiling}} || 29.7 || 30.9 || 30.7 || 28.8 || rowspan="2" | 2,000
|-
! Upgraded
| 1,111 || 1,102 || 26.5 || 28.0 || 45.9 || 38.0
|-
|}

==== Details ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="6" | Features
|-
! Combat flaps !! Take-off flaps !! Landing flaps !! Air brakes !! Arrestor gear !! Drogue chute
|-
| ✓ || ✓ || ✓ || ✓ || X || ✓ 
|-
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="7" | Limits
|-
! rowspan="2" | Wings (km/h)
! rowspan="2" | Gear (km/h)
! colspan="3" | Flaps (km/h)
! colspan="2" | Max Static G
|-
! Combat !! Take-off !! Landing !! + !! -
|-
| {{Specs|destruction|body}} || {{Specs|destruction|gear}} || 533 || 515 || 417 || ~11 || ~3
|-
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="4" | Optimal velocities (km/h)
|-
! Ailerons !! Rudder !! Elevators !! Radiator
|-
| < 630 || < 600 || < 650 || N/A
|-
|}

==== Engine performance ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="3" | Engine
! colspan="4" | Aircraft mass
|-
! colspan="2" | Engine name || Number
! colspan="2" | {{Annotation|Basic mass|Mass of the aircraft with pilot and engine oil, but no fuel or weapons load}} || colspan="2" | Wing loading (full fuel)
|-
| colspan="2" | Wright J65-W-7 || 1
| colspan="2" | 6,667 kg || colspan="2" | 279 kg/m2
|-
! colspan="3" | Engine characteristics
! colspan="3" | Mass with fuel (no weapons load) || rowspan="2" | Max Takeoff Weight
|-
! Weight (each) || colspan="2" | Type
! 8m fuel || 20m fuel || 29m fuel
|-
| 1,260 kg || colspan="2" | Axial-flow turbojet
| 7,177 kg || 7,838 kg || 8,368 kg || 8,935 kg
|-
! colspan="3" | {{Annotation|Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB)|The maximum thrust produced by each engine, while mounted in the aircraft. NOTE: Thrust varies significantly depending on speed & altitude.}}
! colspan="4" | Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (100%)
|-
! Condition || 100% || WEP
! 8m fuel || 20m fuel || 29m fuel || MTOW
|-
| ''Stationary'' || 3,470 kgf || N/A
| 0.48 || 0.44 || 0.41 || 0.39
|-
| ''Optimal'' || 3,470 kgf (0 km/h) || N/A
| 0.48 || 0.44 || 0.41 || 0.39
|-
|}

=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Avia-Armour}}

The F-84F has decent armour surrounding the pilot including bulletproof glass and steel plates. However there is no armour for critical systems and everything is packed together in the middle of the aircraft. A few hits to the middle of the aircraft will most likely destroy it.

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Avia-Armaments}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="4" | [[Ballistic Computer]]
|-
! CCIP (Guns) !! CCIP (Rockets) !! CCIP (Bombs) !! CCRP (Bombs)
|-
| {{Tick}} || {{Cross}} || {{Cross}} || {{Tick}}
|-
|}
=== Offensive armament ===
{{Specs-Avia-Offensive}}

{{main|M3 Browning (12.7 mm)}}

The '''''{{PAGENAME}}''''' is armed with:

* 4 x 12.7 mm M3 Browning machine guns, nose-mounted (300 rpg = 1,200 total)
* 2 x 12.7 mm M3 Browning machine guns, wing root-mounted (300 rpg = 600 total)

=== Suspended armament ===
{{Specs-Avia-Suspended}}


The '''''{{PAGENAME}}''''' can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! !! width="5%" | 1 !! width="5%" | 2 !! width="5%" | 3 !! width="5%" | 4 !! width="5%" | 5 !! width="5%" | 6 !! width="5%" | 7 !! width="5%" | 8
| rowspan="9" width="30%" | <div class="ttx-image">[[File:Hardpoints_F-84F.png]]</div>
|-
! [[LDGP Mk 81 (250 lb)|250 lb LDGP Mk 81]] bombs
| || || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || ||
|-
! [[LDGP Mk 82 (500 lb)|500 lb LDGP Mk 82]] bombs
| || || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || ||
|-
! [[LDGP Mk 83 (1,000 lb)|1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83]] bombs
| || || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || ||
|-
! [[LDGP Mk 84 (2,000 lb)|2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84]] bombs
| || || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || ||
|-
! [[BLU-1 incendiary]] bombs
| || || 1 || 1 || 1 || 1 || ||
|-
! [[FFAR Mighty Mouse]] rockets
| 7 || 7 || 7 || || || 7 || 7 || 7
|-
! [[HVAR]] rockets
| 2 || 2 || 2 || 6 || 6 || 2 || 2 || 2
|-
| colspan="9" | Maximum permissible loadout weight: 2,700 kg Maximum permissible wing load: 1,350 kg Maximum permissible weight imbalance: 700 kg
|-
|}

{{Navigation-Start|Default weapon presets}}
{{Navigation-First-Simple-Line}}
* Without load
* 24 x HVAR rockets
* 42 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets
* 4 x 250 lb LDGP Mk 81 bombs (1,000 lb total)
* 4 x 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs (2,000 lb total)
* 4 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs (4,000 lb total)
* 2 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs (4,000 lb total)
* 4 x BLU-1 incendiary bombs
* 42 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets + 2 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs (2,000 lb total)
* 42 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets + 2 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs (4,000 lb total)
* 4 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 8 x HVAR rockets (4,000 lb total)
* 28 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets + 4 x BLU-1 incendiary bombs
{{Navigation-End}}

== Usage in battles ==
The f-84f is used best to bomb bases or ground pound because of its high speed. the best tactic is to beeline straight to the nearest base and bomb it, then immediately head back to base and rearm and repeat. enemies you should keep not of are the f-86 (any variant) and the g.91 (also any variant) reason being is because of higher top speed and air-to-air missiles.

=== Radars ===

The F-84F is equipped with an AN/APG-30 rangefinding radar, located in the nose of the aircraft. It will automatically detect other planes within the scanning area and display the range to the closest target. It is linked with a gyro gunsight and can help with aiming at close range.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="4" | AN/APG-30 - Rangefinding radar
|-
! {{Annotation|Maximum Tracking Range|The maximum range at which a target can be tracked}}
! {{Annotation|Minimum Tracking Range|The range below which targets cannot be tracked by the radar}}
! {{Annotation|Azimuth Tracking Angle|How far to each side the radar can track a target}}
! {{Annotation|Elevation Tracking Angle|How far up and down the radar can track a target}}
|-
| 2,750 m || 300 m || ±9° || ±9°
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Gets an airspawn as a strike aircraft
* Six .50 caliber machine guns with a lot of ammo and a high fire rate as main armament gives plenty of firing time to get a hit in
* Diverse payload options in rockets or bombs
* Top speed matches that of other contemporary aircraft

'''Cons:'''

* .50 caliber armament is not very powerful, requires longer hit times to do sufficient damage to enemy aircraft
* Rate of climb is rather poor
* Payload restricted to one type of ordnance, rockets or bombs
* Turn time is worse than other contemporary fighters
* slow acceleration gives time for most enemies to catch up to you

== History ==


In 1956, Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser made plans to construct a dam across the river Nile at Aswan - a massive project that could radically change the Egyptian economy and solve many dire problems he had been facing. However, the World Bank refused his request for a loan, without which the project could not proceed. In retaliation, Nasser declared his country's sovereignty over the Suez Canal - the artificial waterway connecting the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea - which until that point had been co-owned by the UK government and the French public. While Egypt's army moved to take the canal from its European civilian operators, Egyptian naval forces moved to block the Straits of Tiran at the mouth of the Red Sea to prevent any Israeli ships from entering it. This move marked the beginning of an event known today as the "1956 Suez Crisis".

The United Kingdom and France were determined to retake the canal; however it was clear to the leaders of both countries that the world (and particularly the United States) would see such action as an unwarranted invasion, or even as an attempt by the Europeans to re-colonize Egypt. Fortunately for them, Nasser's manoeuvre to block the Straits of Tiran violated the 1949 cease-fire agreement with Israel and provided it with a legitimate casus belli. As such, Israel, France, and the UK began a series of clandestine meetings in which their leaders discussed a tripartite operation. It was finally decided that Israel would use its casus belli to attack the Suez Canal, whereupon France and the UK would invade under the pretence of a "peace-keeping operation" and retake the canal for themselves.

Israel, however, had one major problem with the operation - the Israeli Air Force (IAF) was still relatively weak, especially compared to the Soviet-equipped Egyptians; it had only been established less than a decade earlier, and half of its combat planes were still World War II-era prop-driven fighters. With most of the IAF's jet fighters busy supporting the planned airborne invasion of the Sinai Peninsula, the IAF would not be able to defend Israel itself against any Egyptian attempt to bombard Israeli cities using [[IL-28]] jet bombers. Therefore, in one of the final meetings with the French and British representatives, Israel's Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion made a key demand: the French Air Force would have to take over the duties of protecting the skies over Israel. France agreed to this demand.

Shortly before the start of the operation, three French air squadrons were relocated to bases in Israel. Totalling 36 jet fighters, these squadrons would be tasked solely with protecting the Israeli airspace against any incursions by Egyptian aircraft. However, in order to mask France's involvement in the Israeli invasion, the planes would have to be disguised as IAF planes. Three new IAF squadrons were "invented" for them, and the planes themselves were repainted in IAF colours and markings. On their way to Israel, the planes had to make a stop-over at Brindisi, Italy; the Italian authorities were told that these were Israeli jets being flown back from repairs in France.

One of these French squadrons, renamed "IAF Squadron 200" for the duration of the operation, brought 18 F-84F fighter jets. It was stationed at Lod Air Force Base (next to Israel's main international airport) and was tasked with providing the first line of defense. However, by the end of the short war it turned out that Ben-Gurion's worries had been unfounded: the Egyptians were either reluctant or incapable of sending bombers into Israeli airspace, and the three French squadrons saw no action during the war. With the exception of one false alarm, none of the French planes stationed in Israel ever took off.

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==


* [[F-84 (Family)]]
** [[F-84F (France)]] - Same aircraft in the French tree

== External links ==


* [https://forum.warthunder.com/index.php?/topic/510660-f-84f-thunderstreak/ Official data sheet - more details about the performance]

{{AirManufacturer Republic}}
{{Israel jet aircraft}}
{{Israel premium aircraft}}

M901

2023-07-24T05:56:38Z

U142279858: better wording in some of the paragraphs

{{Specs-Card
|code=us_m901_itv
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a squadron rank {{Specs|rank}} American tank destroyer {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced during [[Update 1.89 "Imperial Navy"]]. Based on the M113 chassis, this vehicle is equipped with the BGM-71C I-TOW ATGM missile launcher.

Upon release, M901 ITV was nicknamed Wall-E (due to it's shape), after the Waste Allocation Load-Lifter: Earth-Class robot, the main protagonist of the 2008 Pixar's computer-animated science fiction film of the same name.

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}


[[File:M901 X-ray.png|thumb|x250px|right|Interior layout of the {{PAGENAME}} showing the location of ammo racks, crew and critical components.]]

The {{PAGENAME}} is based off the M113. It may look like a lightly armoured vehicle, but it features 44 mm of alloy 7039 on the sides and 38 mm on the front. The front is angled to make frontal armour effective thickness to match the flat sides. Overall, This counts as about 21 mm of RHA. However, there is a hatch on front which is much about 40% thinner and make this effort rather fruitless, which is compensated by the engine block being there to block some shots.

Overall, head-on this is only enough to stop 12.7 mm calibre machine gun fire from 600 m away and if angled correctly able to stop some low-calibre SPAAs from penetrating the hull and any APHE of its rank will detonate upon hitting it. Keep in mind, that SPAA have high fire rate and you must park it at least 600 m away and at an angle, or they will still manage some partial penetrations. The 30-35 mm SPAA and light tanks will penetrate this tank indefinitely at almost any range.

The top is also quite strong with 38 mm of alloy, which is equivalent to about 18 mm RHA, which means hull might be able to sustain some inaccurate fighter strafe, but most of their 30 mm cannons or top-down attacks will still ruin the tank. If small Bombs or rockets miss, they might fail to penetrate, but armour will not save M901 when receiving a direct hit.

The crew, however, has excellent survivability when the vehicle is placed in a hull-down position. Two crew members, the loader and the commander, are located in the back part of the hull and there are no other critical components located there, so there is little reason to target them first. In the middle of the tank is the gunner operating the tower. Since the I-tow missile is launched from a launcher mounted on top of a tower, it is next to impossible to hit the tower base when hull-down and so the gunner is not exposed to direct fire. The driver is located at the front of the vehicle and is next to the engine block, which might block the shot.

Behind the engine block is the ammunition storage, if hit from the front with SPAA rounds or some types of conventional rounds, the engine block will eat up (absorb and protect the rest of the vehicle) most of the shots, however, if shot from the side or from the front with HEAT, pure AP, APDS and APFSDS rounds, this usually ends in disaster as it will go through the engine and cause an ammunition explosion or destroy a majority of the crew, knocking out the vehicle with a single shot.

When played from a hull-down position with only the launcher exposed, this vehicle is practically immune to kinetic damage, however, being hit with a chemical shell or ATGM into the turret might cause the ATGMs to explode and destroy the carrier. Crossing open areas may also result in taking a hit, thus losing an engine, a crew member or resulting in an ammo-rack explosion.

'''Armour type:'''

* Aluminum Alloy 5083 - Main
* Structural Steel - Front and Rear Fenders
* Rubber-Fabric Screens - Fenders/Sideskirts
* Gun Steel - Launcher

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38 mm (45°) ''Upper glacis'' 38 mm (26°) ''Lower glacis'' 29 mm (45°) ''Engine maintenance hatch'' || 44 mm ''Top''
32 mm ''Bottom''
| 38 mm || 38 mm
|-
| Turret
| colspan="4" | 10 mm ''Launcher'' 17 mm ''Launcher frame''
|-
| Cupola|| 20 mm || 20 mm || 20 mm || 16 mm
|-
|}

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=301|rbMinHp=188}}

The mobility of the {{PAGENAME}} is okay. The power-to-weight ratio is 17.45 HP/ton. The top speed for the {{PAGENAME}} is 64 km/h, though there are not many circumstances you will reach these speeds. Offroad, the {{PAGENAME}} will reach 20 km/h quite fast due to its high power-to-weight ratio and will reach its top speed of 38 km/h. In reverse it will easily reach -14 km/h, allowing you to get out of a bad situation.

This vehicle does not have neutral traverse, but still does turn quite fast.

However, the {{PAGENAME}} suffers in traversing hills with high angles such as getting up the west side of point "C" on the El Alamein map. This does limit the ability of this vehicle to get to good positions without being spotted and fired upon.

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|BGM-71C I-TOW}}

The main weapon on the {{PAGENAME}} is the BGM-71C I-TOW ATGM. It has up to 630 mm of penetration at 0 degrees at any distance since it carries a HEAT warhead. The post-penetration of this missile is not amazing and in some circumstances, a follow-up missile may be needed. The missile is a second-generation ATGM so it is mouse controlled. It travels at a speed of 296 m/s. Due to the fuse sensitivity of 0.01 mm, any bush, fence or object in the way will trigger the missile into detonation and the lack of a machine gun means that these obstacles will become quite a nuisance.

The turret can angle down 30 degrees, which means it can fire down from almost any mountain or fire horizontally even when standing on a steep cliff. It also does not have an arming distance, therefore it can fire at tanks even if they are in your immediate surroundings.

The vehicle is trying to put the launcher on the pad whenever it is moving, however, it is still possible to keep it unfolded by using cruise control or moving short distances at a time and stopping between them. Keep in mind that the vehicle will attempt to stow the launcher even when pushed by the enemy, making it impossible to shoot back, therefore all care should be taken to avoid such situations.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[BGM-71C I-TOW]] ATGM || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 10 (2 preloaded in launcher) || rowspan="2" | -30°/+35° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | N/A || 46.62 || 46.62 || 56.61 || 62.60 || 66.60 || rowspan="2" | 13.00 || rowspan="2" | 11.50 || rowspan="2" | 10.60 || rowspan="2" | 10.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 31.50 || 31.50 || 38.25 || 42.30 || 45.00
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
BGM-71C I-TOW ATGM is a relatively potent missile, having above average penetration values and an excellent flight velocity. Its close Soviet counterpart, [[IT-1]], has {{#expr: (1-(500 / 630)) * 100 round 0}}% lower penetration and {{#expr: (1-(224 / 296)) * 100 round 0}}% lower velocity, on the other hand [[RakJPz 2 (HOT)]] has {{#expr: abs((1-(800 / 630)) * 100) round 0}}% higher penetration, but {{#expr: (1-(240 / 296)) * 100 round 0}}% lower velocity.

{{:BGM-71C I-TOW/Ammunition|I-TOW}}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks_{{PAGENAME}}.png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the {{PAGENAME}}]]

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''5''' || 4 ''(+1)'' || 3 ''(+2)'' || 2 ''(+3)'' || 1 ''(+4)'' || No
|-
|}
'''Notes:'''

* The ammunition is modelled as 5 sets of 2 missiles.
* The ammo counter when full will display 2/4, meaning that 2 missiles are loaded in the launcher while 4 sets of 2 missiles remain in the M901..

== Usage in battles ==


;Hull down

In a battle, this vehicle is best played hull-down, preferably behind a rock so that rounds won't dip and hit the main chassis, if this is not possible, try to find a ridge to hide behind or a depression in the terrain. Since your launcher is the only thing exposed, expect for your launcher to get hit and receive a 10-second repair. (Note for stock vehicles, you will still be able to fire). Some players will be smarter and will shoot HESH rounds at you, the splash damage could be enough to knock out the crew. Since you only have 10 missiles (2 in the launcher, 8 stowed away) you will have to be patient and skilled at using this missile. If in the right hands, it is incredibly strong and can hold an important spot and single handily deny the enemy any chance of taking an area. This will reward you a large number of targets destroyed as well as gaining a large number of points from people shooting at your launcher.

However, there is a couple of issues. The launcher can only be deployed when stationary and has a deployment time before you are able to train the gun sights on the target and open fire. The reload also requires the launcher to traverse to the rear of the vehicle and further lengthening the reload. one way to combat this is to have the rear end of the vehicle to the target, therefore reducing the time taken to traverse the launcher back to the firing position.

;SPAA duty

Apart from shooting at tanks, the ATGM can also be used on helicopters as there is no drop on ATGMs. If playing hull down, it might also be quite hard for helicopters to spot you, therefore making it a potent weapon against an enemy helicopter. Planes will be harder to hit as they will be moving at a faster speed.

'''Urban combat'''

The M901 does not fare too well in urban combat - due to the speed of the ATGM it is quite hard to readjust the missile direction in case of a miss and having to stop to fire the ATGM will result in an unpleasant experience. However, if you are forced to take this vehicle out in an urban environment, the best strategy will be to follow your teammates, hide behind cover and wait for your teammates to bait the enemy out.

'''Enemies worth noting:'''

* [[M113A1 (TOW)]]: this is a similar vehicle based on the M113 hull, with a much slimmer TOW launcher. The launcher only has 90 degrees horizontal rotation and 20 degrees gun depression meaning it adapts terrains slightly worse than the M901. Also, its launcher has a very small profile meaning it is harder to spot so you must deal with the M113A1 (TOW) carefully. However, its gunner is fully exposed and is prone to being knocked out or detonating chemical shells. In a battle, your M901 and the M113A1 (TOW) might be at similar spots which is kind of a sniper vs sniper scenario. Try to spot it first and fire at the gunner/launcher. Its gunner/launcher will detonate your missile and cause overpressure damage, killing all the crew. But watch out for its 12.7 mm MG, it might damage your launcher or penetrate the hull in some cases.

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* I-TOW ATGMs have good penetration
* Launcher holds two missiles, which allows for a quick follow-up attack if the first missile misses or fails to completely destroy the target
* Has the best launcher depression of all horizontal ATGM launchers in the game at -30 degrees
* The missile launcher is very tall, and combined with its amazing depression of -30 degrees, it can allow for players to abuse terrain features to go completely hull-down and reduce their chance of being spotted at range
* Has access to 1st generation thermal sights that allow you to increase your situational awareness and spotting ability once unlocked
* Access to two salvos of smoke grenades

'''Cons:'''

* Very thin overall armour that can be penetrated by even heavy machine guns
* The missile launcher is very tall and does not fully retract when hull-down, which can lead to situations where it is easily destroyed and must be repaired, or worse, you get ammo-racked while reloading your missiles by players with good aim or luck
* While the vehicle is traveling, the launcher is retracted and will be stowed away facing backwards and will take about 4 seconds for it to deploy and face the hull front, which means any vehicle that catches the M901 while it is relocating can dispatch it with ease
* The launcher only reloads after the second missile has registered a hit
* The gun sight is located in the launcher, so when the launcher is reloading, it moves together with it and forces the operator to switch over to the binoculars to scan their surroundings
* Limited ammo count

== History ==

[[File:M901 TOW missile vehicle (1985).jpg|thumb|right|M901 in Germany during the Reforger "Central Guardian" 1985 exercise]]
M901 ITV (Improved TOW Vehicle) is a variant of the M113 Armored Personnel Carrier introduced in 1979 as a highly mobile tank destroyer that could engage not only armoured targets but also fortifications while offering maximum protection for the crew. The vehicle could be transported by air, parachute-dropped and ford water up to 1 m deep with no preparation. Last vehicle of the series was produced in 1998, totaling 3,315 units built over the years.

It's called "improved" due to being an upgrade over the [[M113A1 (TOW)|M113A1 with TOW launcher mounted]] instead of the standard [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|M2 Browning]] for the chassis. Its SEI 901 TUA launcher was capable of rapid deployment, could accurately hit targets with the first missile and fire the second one as soon as the first impacted the target. It was reloaded manually within 40 seconds. That said though, it had to be stowed when moving above 8 km/h (5 mph) to avoid damage to the launcher. As a secondary weapon M901 carried [[M60D (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm M60 machine gun]] operated by the gunner. A total of 10 missiles and 2,000 machine gun rounds were stored.

A number of variants of the M901 existed, notably:

* M901 - equipped with first-generation TOW missiles, M113A1 chassis (in-game variant)
* M901A1 - equipped with TOW 2, M113A2 chassis
* M901A3 - equipped with TOW 2, M113A3 chassis

The in-game launcher uses the BGM-71C I-TOW missiles, which were the most advanced missiles available on the M901, featuring an increased range and an improved shape-charge warhead. The missile could be fired at targets up to 3,750 m away, with an arming distance of 65 m. The missile's average speed at the maximum range was 187.5 m/s.

Currently, the largest operators of the M901 ITV are Saudi Arabia (335 units), Greece (320) and Egypt (262), a total of 1313 units remains in operation between 10 countries.

{{Clear|right}}
[[File:M901 details.png|800px|center|thumb|Details of the M901 ITV in the A3 variant]]

== Media ==


;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=us_m901_itv Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|qoZv-sA80aI|'''Squadron Vehicles''' discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 00:38 - ''War Thunder Official Channel''|4_cJ1CpEatw|'''Best gun depression''' discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 4:42 - ''War Thunder Official Channel''}}

== See also ==


* [[M113 (Family)]]

== External links ==


* [https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=106 [Military Factory<nowiki>]</nowiki> M901 ITV (Improved TOW Vehicle)]

{{TankManufacturer Emerson Electric Company}}
{{USA tank destroyers}}
{{Squadron ground vehicles}}

[[Category:ATGM vehicles]]

M4A3 (76) W

2023-07-24T05:35:42Z

U142279858: change the cons a little bit

{{About
| about = American medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| other
| usage-1 = other M4 Shermans
| link-1 = M4 Sherman (Family)
| usage-2 = other uses
| link-2 = M4 (Disambiguation)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=us_m4a3e8_76w_sherman
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' (also known as the '''M4A3E8''') is a rank {{Specs|rank}} American medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was one of the first American tanks to be released with the American ground tree in [[Update 1.45 "Steel Generals"]]. This tank gives the M4 Sherman the best upgrades possible, with a new suspension and a high-penetrating [[M1 (76 mm)|76 mm cannon]] with access to APCR rounds.

Compared to the previous Shermans, this one presents better mobility than the last few due to the new horizontal volute suspension system (HVSS). The suspension, like in real life, also seems to give the vehicle a much smoother ride across terrain, making it easier to acquire targets while on the move due to the stability. Another feature about this Sherman is the access to the HVAP rounds (APCR) for the 76 mm gun. The HVAP rounds give the tank a much greater firepower boost to fight the tanks at its rank.

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}


'''Armour type:'''

* Rolled homogeneous armour (Front, Side, Rear, Roof)
* Cast homogeneous armour (Turret, Gun mantlet, Transmission area)

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 63.5 mm (47°) ''Front glacis'' 63.5-107.9 mm (13-77°) ''Transmission housing'' || 38.1 mm || 38.1 mm (22°) ''Top'' 38.1 mm (13-44°) ''Bottom''|| 19.5 mm
|-
| Turret || 63.5 mm (10-62°) ''Turret front'' 88.9 mm (1-74°) ''Gun mantlet'' || 63.5 mm (1-72°) || 63.5 mm (0-80°) || 25.4 mm
|-
| Cupola || colspan="3" | 63.5 mm (55-56°) || 25.4 mm
|-
|}
'''Notes:'''

* Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick, bogies are 10 mm thick, and tracks are 20 mm thick.

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=775|rbMinHp=442|AoAweight=0.65}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|M1 (76 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M1 (76 mm)|76 mm M1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 71 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+25° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | {{Annotation|Vertical|up to 24 km/h}} || 20.0 || 27.7 || 33.6 || 37.2 || 39.5 || rowspan="2" | 7.67 || rowspan="2" | 6.79 || rowspan="2" | 6.25 || rowspan="2" | 5.90
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 12.5 || 14.7 || 17.9 || 19.7 || 21.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{{:M1 (76 mm)/Ammunition|M79 shot, M42A1 shell, M62 shell, M93 shot, M88}}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks M4A1 (75) W (China).png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the M4A1 (75) W (China) (identical)]]

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''71''' || 66 ''(+5)'' || 31 ''(+40)'' || 1 ''(+70)'' || No
|-
|}
'''Note''':

* Shells are modeled individually and disappear from the rack after having been shot or loaded.

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|M2HB (12.7 mm)|M1919A4 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|12.7 mm M2HB]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 600 (200) || 577 || -10°/+30° || ±60°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M1919A4 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm M1919A4]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 3,000 (250) || 500 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

Playing as the M4A3 can be tricky since it features armour that can't stop most calibres at its rank such as the German 8.8 cm or the Soviet 85 mm, including the fact that it isn't the fastest tank. The M4A3 plays more of a support role, use its powerful 76 mm as you assist your teammates during an advance or defense. The number one rule of this tank is to never fight alone with it, always be with a teammate and use cover when available since it will give you a great advantage.

Use manual transmission, as using "Cruise Control 1" will give you a speed that is 1 km/h above the speed the stabilizer works at. A gear level of 2 will land you at 9 km/h but allows the stabilizer to do its job.

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Good handing thanks to HVSS suspension and wide tracks
* Single-plane gun stabilizer allows firing on the move (below a certain speed)
* Very fast turret traverse
* Short reload time for the 76 mm gun
* The M62 shell has explosive filler, which deals good post-penetration damage
* Wet ammo storage (indicated by the "W" in its name) greatly reduces the chance of ammo rack detonation
* Access to APCR round for increased penetration and smoke shells
* Top-mounted .50 cal machine gun is useful against aircraft and open-topped or lightly-armoured vehicles

'''Cons:'''

* Armour is very weak against most cannons at it's battle rating
* 76 mm gun has trouble frontally penetrating armoured opponents (such as the Tiger II and T-44)
* It's tall profile makes it a big target

== History ==

===Development===
The [[M4|M4 Sherman]] has become a proven and well-respected tank design by 1944. It was highly reliable, adequately armoured, and could be produced in a very large number with a dedicated support arm to ensure that all of the ones in the field could be kept operational. It was also by 1944 that the Sherman's faults were becoming a more defining trait than its advantages, namely with the increased prevalence of German anti-tank weaponry and tanks, such as the [[Panther A|Panther]] tank. The German anti-tank abilities, ranging from rocket launchers, anti-tank guns, mines, and tank guns, all became more capable of penetrating the frontal armour or disabling the Sherman. This resulted in an increased Allied tank attrition rate of nearly double during the Normandy Campaign than that of the Allies' previous campaigns. Criticisms were raised on the Sherman's inability to destroy the heavier tanks with its [[M3 (75 mm)|75 mm gun]], the tendency of catching fire easily when a penetrating round hits an ammo stowage bin scattered in the Sherman interior, and the lack of mobility on the muddy terrain due to the track design. The first and second criticism was addressed with the [[M1 (76 mm)|high-velocity 76 mm gun]] and a "wet stowage" ammo containers, but mobility became a big issue especially once the Allied front in France reached the Siegfried Line on the border of Germany, where the ground became very muddy in the fall season. An attempt to fix this was improvising "extensions" on the tracks, but these were difficult to add and there were never enough to go around. The problem had to be addressed in the manufacturing plant and Ordnance Department set to work finding a better solution to fix the track flotation for better mobility.

The result was to be the basis of the next generation of Sherman models. Under the E8 program, new suspension was trialled on the Sherman, one was the horizontal-volute suspension system (HVSS) taken from the [[T20]] program. The trials showed that the new suspension gave the Sherman a ground pressure that is even less than the heavier Panther, and this model was approved for production in March 1944, beginning in August 1944. Despite the time of production, the distance of the Atlantic Ocean between the American factories and Europe cause the delivery time of the first batch of the new models to be three months, meaning they would not see service until December 1944 the soonest. Nevertheless, the new Sherman, dubbed the '''M4A3 (76) W HVSS Sherman''' on papers and shortened as the '''M4A3E8''', was considered the best overall Sherman design with its new upgrades.

===Design===
Aside from the enlarged T23 turret, the Sherman interior layout was largely unchanged from the original design. The driver and bow gunner still sat in the front, the three-man turret crew in the center, and the engine compartment in the back. The exterior was changed with the new horizontal-volute suspension system (HVSS), which presented a different bogie system with larger road wheels that allow the usage of a wider track for better mobility cross-country. The new suspension system helped defeat the problems the Sherman's original tracks had with sinking in the mud from poor flotation and poor traction on slippery terrain. Another advantage the HVSS gave was the ability to change out individual road wheels on the bogie rather than replace the entire bogie, easing maintenance and repairs. The suspension was also reported to be a very smooth ride in comparison with the vertical-volute suspension system (VVSS), leading tankers to nickname the tank the "Easy Eight" from the tank's experimental designation M4A3E8, with the E8 corresponding to the usage of the HVSS.

The M4A3(76)W HVSS ran on a gasoline Ford GAA V8 engine, which was the standard engine used in all M4A3 Sherman variants. The tank construction was welded and had a frontal armour plate sloping at a 47 degree angle. The (76) in the name indicated that the tank was armed with the more powerful 76 mm gun as a counter to the heavier German armour. The "W" designation on the Sherman indicated that the vehicle had the "wet stowage" feature in response to complaints that the Sherman can easily catch fire due to exploding ammunition. The "wet stowage" encased the ammo containers in a liquid mixture that would douse the flames when penetrated or block flaming shrapnels due to penetrating shots from hitting the ammunition. The containers also placed all the ammunition in the bottom center of the tank, reducing the likeliness of it being hit by a shell as the penetrating shell must go through every armour and obstacle to hit the tank center. This feature was only present after February 1944 and severely decreased the rate of Sherman fires. The "HVSS" indicated the usage of the horizontal-volute suspension system on the tank. The M4A3E8 started production in August 1944 and its production life ended around the end of World War II, probably September 1945. M4A3(76)W HVSS production consisted of 4,542 tanks out of the total 49,234 Shermans produced in its production life.

===Combat usage===
As a newly developed Sherman late in the war, the M4A3E8 did not see much use in the European theater until near the end of the war. Earlier deployment of such tanks did not take priority as military commanders did not take the 76 mm gun with much enthusiasm as the 75 mm gun could fire a much better high-explosive round to fight softer targets, which consists of more than half of the engagements the Shermans typically face. Another reason why these tanks did not see service earlier was the lack of battle need. The 75 mm gun was doing its job well and there were already a few [[M4A1 (76) W|76 mm Shermans]] going around fine with the older VVSS. These opinions changed with the Battle of the Bulge, where the German offensive with large numbers of their heavy tanks such as the [[Panther G|Panthers]] and [[Tiger II (H)|Tiger IIs]] decimated armoured units stationed in the Ardennes. The M4A3E8 saw its first service in the Battle of the Bulge in low numbers, but their prevalence increased after December 1944 when the Battle of the Bulge urged many military commanders, even Eisenhower, to request further deliveries of Shermans to only be armed with the 76 mm cannons. The new units deploying in Europe afterwards had exclusively 76 mm Shermans and as standardization in the suspension went on, the HVSS became more and more common in the European theater.

When World War II ended, many tank units and their Shermans were decommissioned and put out of service, distributed out to NATO allies. Of the 10,000 Shermans the US Army had in 1945, only about 3,202 units were left by 1950 with almost half unserviceable. The need of such tanks returned with the advent of the Korean War in 1950, which had the US military scrounge up whatever tanks they had in their storage to assist the South Koreans and their troops on the ground. This allowed them to build up units with the M4A3E8 and the heavier, but better armed [[M26|M26 Pershing]], building up around five tank battalions. The 8072nd Tank Battalion was raised from Shermans from the occupational forces of Japan and were the first to be sent to Korea in July 1950. By the end of the year, 1,326 tanks were on the ground, of which half were the M4A3E8. The M26 Pershing and M4A3E8 served alongside in the tank battles ensuing from August to October 1950. The most common enemy tank the Allies faced were the Soviet-supplied [[T-34-85]] medium tank. Between the M4A3E8 and the T-34-85, they were nearly identical in statistics as both were able to take each other out easily. Of the two, the Shermans prevailed with the better crew training and gun optics, allowing for an edge in a combat scenario. After these months, tank-vs-tank combat dropped significantly and the tank soon returned to the role of infantry support. It was this role that the Sherman won out against the M26 Pershing as the Pershing suffered from mechanical issues due to weighing ten tons more than a Sherman, but used the same engine. The Sherman was a proven design and was easier to maintain, more mobile, and reliable. It wasn't until the [[M46|M46 Patton]], an upgraded Pershing with improved reliability, that the Shermans were formally replaced in US service.

While the Shermans were finally replaced in American service, many other countries that received the Shermans still used them all the way to the turn of the century. The most famous is Israel, who received a large handful of Shermans from the British to fight for its war of independence in 1948. When the Soviet started aiding the Middle East countries with tanks like the [[T-34-85]], [[PT-76B|PT-76]], and even the [[T-54 (1951)|T-54s]], Israel launched a program with cooperation with France to upgrade the Shermans. The result was the implementation of the AMX-13's 75 mm gun, based off the [[Panther G|Panther]]'s [[KwK42 (75 mm)|KwK42]] gun, onto the Sherman turret. Another program in the 1960s attached the larger 105 mm Modèle F1 French gun from their AMX-30 into the Sherman. The upgraded 75 mm and 105 mm Shermans were designated the M-50 and [[M-51]] respectively, both more well known as the "Super Sherman" abroad. These tanks served in the Middle East conflicts that Israel had to deal with such as the 1956 Suez Crisis, 1967 Six-Day War, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, where the "Super Shermans" proved itself as adequate against the superior and more modern Soviet tanks. These Shermans serve as a symbol of how desperate Israel's situation is with their neighbors, and also an example of how the Sherman is a proven design able to keep up with the arms race with adequate upgrades in its armaments.

{{break}}
{{Navigation-Start|{{Annotation|Archive of the in-game description|An archive of the historical description of the vehicle that was presented in-game prior to Update 1.55 'Royal Armour'}}}}
{{Navigation-First-Simple-Line}}
Installing heavy weaponry and making other changes increased the tank's weight, also sacrificing manoeuvrability. In 1943 builders widened the T80 track to 23" and added a ridge down the center. The new HVSS suspension with its horizontal volute springs replaced the VVSS and its vertical alignment. Bogies had two paired wheels, and the supporting rollers were attached to the side of the hull. The HVSS suspension was developed such that individual wheels could be replaced without taking apart the entire bogie. The new suspension was installed beginning in the mid-1944. Wide-tracked tanks equipped with the new suspension were also fitted with wings and shelves with screens above the tracks.

The initial M4 tracks got a rubber-coated internal band, though the rubber shortage forced the use of two types of steel tracks, all of which were interchangeable. There were three types of tracks on the M4, and they could be fitted with spikes to make traveling across soft earth easier. The spikes were not used with the T80 tracks at the beginning, though they were later developed for them as well.

The prototypes were designated M4E8, M4A1E8, M4A2E8, and M4A3E8. Their weight grew somewhat, though widening the tracks to 584 mm counteracted that by spreading the weight across a wider surface. As a result, manoeuvrability not only did not decrease, it actually enjoyed an uptick. At the end of March 1945 all M4 Shermans began to be fitted with the new suspension.

Between August 1944 and May 1945, 1,217 M4A3E8 (76) Ws were produced.

M4A3 (76) Ws fought on the Western Front in 1945 and in the Korean War from 1950 to 1953.
{{Navigation-End}}

== Media ==


;Skins
* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=us_m4a3e8_76w_sherman Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

== See also ==


;Other M4A3 tanks in the game

* [[M4A3 (105)]]
* [[M4A3 (105) (France)]]
* [[M4A3 (76) W (Japan)]]

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.''

{{TankManufacturer Ordnance Department}}
{{USA medium tanks}}

M4A3 (76) W

2023-07-24T05:22:15Z

U142279858: changed change to chance

{{About
| about = American medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| other
| usage-1 = other M4 Shermans
| link-1 = M4 Sherman (Family)
| usage-2 = other uses
| link-2 = M4 (Disambiguation)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=us_m4a3e8_76w_sherman
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' (also known as the '''M4A3E8''') is a rank {{Specs|rank}} American medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was one of the first American tanks to be released with the American ground tree in [[Update 1.45 "Steel Generals"]]. This tank gives the M4 Sherman the best upgrades possible, with a new suspension and a high-penetrating [[M1 (76 mm)|76 mm cannon]] with access to APCR rounds.

Compared to the previous Shermans, this one presents better mobility than the last few due to the new horizontal volute suspension system (HVSS). The suspension, like in real life, also seems to give the vehicle a much smoother ride across terrain, making it easier to acquire targets while on the move due to the stability. Another feature about this Sherman is the access to the HVAP rounds (APCR) for the 76 mm gun. The HVAP rounds give the tank a much greater firepower boost to fight the tanks at its rank.

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}


'''Armour type:'''

* Rolled homogeneous armour (Front, Side, Rear, Roof)
* Cast homogeneous armour (Turret, Gun mantlet, Transmission area)

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 63.5 mm (47°) ''Front glacis'' 63.5-107.9 mm (13-77°) ''Transmission housing'' || 38.1 mm || 38.1 mm (22°) ''Top'' 38.1 mm (13-44°) ''Bottom''|| 19.5 mm
|-
| Turret || 63.5 mm (10-62°) ''Turret front'' 88.9 mm (1-74°) ''Gun mantlet'' || 63.5 mm (1-72°) || 63.5 mm (0-80°) || 25.4 mm
|-
| Cupola || colspan="3" | 63.5 mm (55-56°) || 25.4 mm
|-
|}
'''Notes:'''

* Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick, bogies are 10 mm thick, and tracks are 20 mm thick.

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=775|rbMinHp=442|AoAweight=0.65}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|M1 (76 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M1 (76 mm)|76 mm M1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 71 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+25° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | {{Annotation|Vertical|up to 24 km/h}} || 20.0 || 27.7 || 33.6 || 37.2 || 39.5 || rowspan="2" | 7.67 || rowspan="2" | 6.79 || rowspan="2" | 6.25 || rowspan="2" | 5.90
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 12.5 || 14.7 || 17.9 || 19.7 || 21.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{{:M1 (76 mm)/Ammunition|M79 shot, M42A1 shell, M62 shell, M93 shot, M88}}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks M4A1 (75) W (China).png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the M4A1 (75) W (China) (identical)]]

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''71''' || 66 ''(+5)'' || 31 ''(+40)'' || 1 ''(+70)'' || No
|-
|}
'''Note''':

* Shells are modeled individually and disappear from the rack after having been shot or loaded.

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|M2HB (12.7 mm)|M1919A4 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|12.7 mm M2HB]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 600 (200) || 577 || -10°/+30° || ±60°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M1919A4 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm M1919A4]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 3,000 (250) || 500 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

Playing as the M4A3 can be tricky since it features armour that can't stop most calibres at its rank such as the German 8.8 cm or the Soviet 85 mm, including the fact that it isn't the fastest tank. The M4A3 plays more of a support role, use its powerful 76 mm as you assist your teammates during an advance or defense. The number one rule of this tank is to never fight alone with it, always be with a teammate and use cover when available since it will give you a great advantage.

Use manual transmission, as using "Cruise Control 1" will give you a speed that is 1 km/h above the speed the stabilizer works at. A gear level of 2 will land you at 9 km/h but allows the stabilizer to do its job.

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Good handing thanks to HVSS suspension and wide tracks
* Single-plane gun stabilizer allows firing on the move (below a certain speed)
* Very fast turret traverse
* Short reload time for the 76 mm gun
* The M62 shell has explosive filler, which deals good post-penetration damage
* Wet ammo storage (indicated by the "W" in its name) greatly reduces the chance of ammo rack detonation
* Access to APCR round for increased penetration and smoke shells
* Top-mounted .50 cal machine gun is useful against aircraft and open-topped or lightly-armoured vehicles

'''Cons:'''

* Armour is very weak against most cannons
* 76 mm gun has trouble frontally penetrating armoured opponents (such as the Tiger II and T-44)
* Tall profile makes it a big target

== History ==

===Development===
The [[M4|M4 Sherman]] has become a proven and well-respected tank design by 1944. It was highly reliable, adequately armoured, and could be produced in a very large number with a dedicated support arm to ensure that all of the ones in the field could be kept operational. It was also by 1944 that the Sherman's faults were becoming a more defining trait than its advantages, namely with the increased prevalence of German anti-tank weaponry and tanks, such as the [[Panther A|Panther]] tank. The German anti-tank abilities, ranging from rocket launchers, anti-tank guns, mines, and tank guns, all became more capable of penetrating the frontal armour or disabling the Sherman. This resulted in an increased Allied tank attrition rate of nearly double during the Normandy Campaign than that of the Allies' previous campaigns. Criticisms were raised on the Sherman's inability to destroy the heavier tanks with its [[M3 (75 mm)|75 mm gun]], the tendency of catching fire easily when a penetrating round hits an ammo stowage bin scattered in the Sherman interior, and the lack of mobility on the muddy terrain due to the track design. The first and second criticism was addressed with the [[M1 (76 mm)|high-velocity 76 mm gun]] and a "wet stowage" ammo containers, but mobility became a big issue especially once the Allied front in France reached the Siegfried Line on the border of Germany, where the ground became very muddy in the fall season. An attempt to fix this was improvising "extensions" on the tracks, but these were difficult to add and there were never enough to go around. The problem had to be addressed in the manufacturing plant and Ordnance Department set to work finding a better solution to fix the track flotation for better mobility.

The result was to be the basis of the next generation of Sherman models. Under the E8 program, new suspension was trialled on the Sherman, one was the horizontal-volute suspension system (HVSS) taken from the [[T20]] program. The trials showed that the new suspension gave the Sherman a ground pressure that is even less than the heavier Panther, and this model was approved for production in March 1944, beginning in August 1944. Despite the time of production, the distance of the Atlantic Ocean between the American factories and Europe cause the delivery time of the first batch of the new models to be three months, meaning they would not see service until December 1944 the soonest. Nevertheless, the new Sherman, dubbed the '''M4A3 (76) W HVSS Sherman''' on papers and shortened as the '''M4A3E8''', was considered the best overall Sherman design with its new upgrades.

===Design===
Aside from the enlarged T23 turret, the Sherman interior layout was largely unchanged from the original design. The driver and bow gunner still sat in the front, the three-man turret crew in the center, and the engine compartment in the back. The exterior was changed with the new horizontal-volute suspension system (HVSS), which presented a different bogie system with larger road wheels that allow the usage of a wider track for better mobility cross-country. The new suspension system helped defeat the problems the Sherman's original tracks had with sinking in the mud from poor flotation and poor traction on slippery terrain. Another advantage the HVSS gave was the ability to change out individual road wheels on the bogie rather than replace the entire bogie, easing maintenance and repairs. The suspension was also reported to be a very smooth ride in comparison with the vertical-volute suspension system (VVSS), leading tankers to nickname the tank the "Easy Eight" from the tank's experimental designation M4A3E8, with the E8 corresponding to the usage of the HVSS.

The M4A3(76)W HVSS ran on a gasoline Ford GAA V8 engine, which was the standard engine used in all M4A3 Sherman variants. The tank construction was welded and had a frontal armour plate sloping at a 47 degree angle. The (76) in the name indicated that the tank was armed with the more powerful 76 mm gun as a counter to the heavier German armour. The "W" designation on the Sherman indicated that the vehicle had the "wet stowage" feature in response to complaints that the Sherman can easily catch fire due to exploding ammunition. The "wet stowage" encased the ammo containers in a liquid mixture that would douse the flames when penetrated or block flaming shrapnels due to penetrating shots from hitting the ammunition. The containers also placed all the ammunition in the bottom center of the tank, reducing the likeliness of it being hit by a shell as the penetrating shell must go through every armour and obstacle to hit the tank center. This feature was only present after February 1944 and severely decreased the rate of Sherman fires. The "HVSS" indicated the usage of the horizontal-volute suspension system on the tank. The M4A3E8 started production in August 1944 and its production life ended around the end of World War II, probably September 1945. M4A3(76)W HVSS production consisted of 4,542 tanks out of the total 49,234 Shermans produced in its production life.

===Combat usage===
As a newly developed Sherman late in the war, the M4A3E8 did not see much use in the European theater until near the end of the war. Earlier deployment of such tanks did not take priority as military commanders did not take the 76 mm gun with much enthusiasm as the 75 mm gun could fire a much better high-explosive round to fight softer targets, which consists of more than half of the engagements the Shermans typically face. Another reason why these tanks did not see service earlier was the lack of battle need. The 75 mm gun was doing its job well and there were already a few [[M4A1 (76) W|76 mm Shermans]] going around fine with the older VVSS. These opinions changed with the Battle of the Bulge, where the German offensive with large numbers of their heavy tanks such as the [[Panther G|Panthers]] and [[Tiger II (H)|Tiger IIs]] decimated armoured units stationed in the Ardennes. The M4A3E8 saw its first service in the Battle of the Bulge in low numbers, but their prevalence increased after December 1944 when the Battle of the Bulge urged many military commanders, even Eisenhower, to request further deliveries of Shermans to only be armed with the 76 mm cannons. The new units deploying in Europe afterwards had exclusively 76 mm Shermans and as standardization in the suspension went on, the HVSS became more and more common in the European theater.

When World War II ended, many tank units and their Shermans were decommissioned and put out of service, distributed out to NATO allies. Of the 10,000 Shermans the US Army had in 1945, only about 3,202 units were left by 1950 with almost half unserviceable. The need of such tanks returned with the advent of the Korean War in 1950, which had the US military scrounge up whatever tanks they had in their storage to assist the South Koreans and their troops on the ground. This allowed them to build up units with the M4A3E8 and the heavier, but better armed [[M26|M26 Pershing]], building up around five tank battalions. The 8072nd Tank Battalion was raised from Shermans from the occupational forces of Japan and were the first to be sent to Korea in July 1950. By the end of the year, 1,326 tanks were on the ground, of which half were the M4A3E8. The M26 Pershing and M4A3E8 served alongside in the tank battles ensuing from August to October 1950. The most common enemy tank the Allies faced were the Soviet-supplied [[T-34-85]] medium tank. Between the M4A3E8 and the T-34-85, they were nearly identical in statistics as both were able to take each other out easily. Of the two, the Shermans prevailed with the better crew training and gun optics, allowing for an edge in a combat scenario. After these months, tank-vs-tank combat dropped significantly and the tank soon returned to the role of infantry support. It was this role that the Sherman won out against the M26 Pershing as the Pershing suffered from mechanical issues due to weighing ten tons more than a Sherman, but used the same engine. The Sherman was a proven design and was easier to maintain, more mobile, and reliable. It wasn't until the [[M46|M46 Patton]], an upgraded Pershing with improved reliability, that the Shermans were formally replaced in US service.

While the Shermans were finally replaced in American service, many other countries that received the Shermans still used them all the way to the turn of the century. The most famous is Israel, who received a large handful of Shermans from the British to fight for its war of independence in 1948. When the Soviet started aiding the Middle East countries with tanks like the [[T-34-85]], [[PT-76B|PT-76]], and even the [[T-54 (1951)|T-54s]], Israel launched a program with cooperation with France to upgrade the Shermans. The result was the implementation of the AMX-13's 75 mm gun, based off the [[Panther G|Panther]]'s [[KwK42 (75 mm)|KwK42]] gun, onto the Sherman turret. Another program in the 1960s attached the larger 105 mm Modèle F1 French gun from their AMX-30 into the Sherman. The upgraded 75 mm and 105 mm Shermans were designated the M-50 and [[M-51]] respectively, both more well known as the "Super Sherman" abroad. These tanks served in the Middle East conflicts that Israel had to deal with such as the 1956 Suez Crisis, 1967 Six-Day War, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, where the "Super Shermans" proved itself as adequate against the superior and more modern Soviet tanks. These Shermans serve as a symbol of how desperate Israel's situation is with their neighbors, and also an example of how the Sherman is a proven design able to keep up with the arms race with adequate upgrades in its armaments.

{{break}}
{{Navigation-Start|{{Annotation|Archive of the in-game description|An archive of the historical description of the vehicle that was presented in-game prior to Update 1.55 'Royal Armour'}}}}
{{Navigation-First-Simple-Line}}
Installing heavy weaponry and making other changes increased the tank's weight, also sacrificing manoeuvrability. In 1943 builders widened the T80 track to 23" and added a ridge down the center. The new HVSS suspension with its horizontal volute springs replaced the VVSS and its vertical alignment. Bogies had two paired wheels, and the supporting rollers were attached to the side of the hull. The HVSS suspension was developed such that individual wheels could be replaced without taking apart the entire bogie. The new suspension was installed beginning in the mid-1944. Wide-tracked tanks equipped with the new suspension were also fitted with wings and shelves with screens above the tracks.

The initial M4 tracks got a rubber-coated internal band, though the rubber shortage forced the use of two types of steel tracks, all of which were interchangeable. There were three types of tracks on the M4, and they could be fitted with spikes to make traveling across soft earth easier. The spikes were not used with the T80 tracks at the beginning, though they were later developed for them as well.

The prototypes were designated M4E8, M4A1E8, M4A2E8, and M4A3E8. Their weight grew somewhat, though widening the tracks to 584 mm counteracted that by spreading the weight across a wider surface. As a result, manoeuvrability not only did not decrease, it actually enjoyed an uptick. At the end of March 1945 all M4 Shermans began to be fitted with the new suspension.

Between August 1944 and May 1945, 1,217 M4A3E8 (76) Ws were produced.

M4A3 (76) Ws fought on the Western Front in 1945 and in the Korean War from 1950 to 1953.
{{Navigation-End}}

== Media ==


;Skins
* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=us_m4a3e8_76w_sherman Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

== See also ==


;Other M4A3 tanks in the game

* [[M4A3 (105)]]
* [[M4A3 (105) (France)]]
* [[M4A3 (76) W (Japan)]]

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.''

{{TankManufacturer Ordnance Department}}
{{USA medium tanks}}