M5 Half-track

M5 Half-track
A preserved M5 Half-track
Type	Half-track armored personnel carrier
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1943–67
Used by	See list of operators
Wars	World War II, 1948 Arab-Israeli war, Suez Crisis, Six-Day War
Production history
Designer	Ordnance Department
Designed	1942
Manufacturer	International Harvester
Produced	1942–43
Number built	7484 (not including M9 or anti-aircraft variants)
Specifications
Weight	21,500 lb (9.8 t) loaded
Length	20.8 ft (6.3 m)
Width	7.3 feet (2.23 m)
Height	9 feet (2.74 m) overall
Crew	3+10 troops
Armor	79–15.8 mm (3.11–0.62 in)
Main armament	1 × 0.5 in (13 mm) M2 machine gun
Secondary armament	2 × 0.3 in (7.6 mm) M1919 machine gun
Engine	IHC RED-450-B, 451 in^3 (7,390 cc), 6-cylinder, compression ratio 6.35:1 142 hp (106 kW)
Transmission	Constant mesh
Suspension	Semi-elliptical longitudal leaf springs (wheels) vertical volute springs (rear)
Fuel capacity	60 US gal (230 l)
Operational range	125 mi (201 km)
Speed	42 mph (68 km/h)

The M5 Half-track (officially the Carrier, Personnel Half-track M5) was an American armored personnel carrier in use during World War II. It was developed in 1942 when existing manufacturers of the M2 Half Track Car, and M3 Half-track could not keep up with production demand. International Harvester (IH) had capacity to produce a similar vehicle to the M3 but some differences from it had to be accepted. The M5 was produced by IH from December 1942 to October 1943.

Using the same chassis as their M5, IH could produced an equivalent to the M2, which was the M9 Half-track. There are also variants of the M13 and M16 MGMCs based on the M5. The variants were exported to the United Kingdom and to Soviet Union respectively. It was supplied to Allied nations (the British Commonwealth, France, and the Soviet Union) under the Lend-Lease. After the war, it was leased to many countries in the NATO. It served with Israel in multiple different wars and was developed by the country into the M3 Mark A and the M3 Mark B.

Specifications

The specifications of the M5 were almost identical to the specifications of the M3 Half-track. It was 20.8 feet (6.3 m) long, 7.3 feet (2.23 m) wide, 9 feet (2.74 m) high, and weighed 21,500 pounds (9.8 t). It had vertical volute springs for the tracks and semi-elliptical longitudal leaf springs for the wheels. It was powered by a 142 hp (106 kW) White 160AX, 386 cubic inch (6,330 cc), 6-cylinder engine, with a compression ratio of 6.35:1. It had a fuel capacity of 60 US gallons (230 l), a range of 125 miles (201 km), and a speed of 42 miles per hour (68 km/h). It had constant mesh transmission, 6.5–13.5 mm (0.26–0.53 in) of armor, one 0.5 in (12.7 mm) M2 machine gun and two 0.3 in (7.6 mm) M1919 machine guns, and crew of three with up to ten passengers.^[1][2][3]

Development

An M5 Half-track at the Yad La-Shiryon Museum in Israel

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the demand for U.S. produced armored vehicles grew and the existing production capacity was stretched by the need to equip the expanding U.S. military as well as its allies. As a result, the war munitions industry in the U.S. rapidly expanded. While the existing manufacturers of M3 half-tracks could not meet the increased demands,^[4] International Harvester (IH) could build them but changes in components and construction were necessary.^[4] Prototype vehicles were provided designated as the M3E2 and the M2E5. After testing at General Motors, they were accepted for production under the designations M5 and M9 respectively.^[5]

Due to a lack of face-hardened armor, homogeneous armor was used instead. Although thicker at ⁵⁄₁₆ inch (7.9 mm) to the M3's 0.25 inches (6.4 mm), it was effectively less protection – armor-piercing rifle-caliber bullets could penetrate it at 300 yds rather than 200 yds for the M3.^[4] At the same time IH was to produce a version of the M2 Half Track Car, the M9 Half-track.^[6]

Service history

The first production run of the M5 was completed in December 1942. Changes to the demand for half-tracks led to reduced orders within the U.S. Army, and the M5 became "limited standard" for the U.S. A total of 7484 were produced before production was stopped in October 1943. Almost all M5s were sent to U.S. allies for further use. The added weight of the armor reduced the speed to 42 mph, and range was reduced to 125 mi.^[7] The final vehicles were completed in September 1943.^[4]

In the UK, it was used as an artillery tractor for towing the British 6-pounder and 17-pounder guns, due to the Universal Carrier already fulfilling the infantry transport role. Some were also retained in the U.S. for training purposes.^[8]

The M5 later saw service with the Israeli army in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. It was commonly painted red to disguise them as agricultural tractors. In 1955, M5s were used to make the M3 Mark A and the M3 Mark B. The former was a M3 or M5 with a few modifications and the latter was a M5 converted into a command carrier. Regular M5s were simply designated "M3 IHC". It was later used in the Suez Crisis and the Six-Day war. By the Yom Kippur War, the M3/M5 was replaced by the M113 armored personnel carrier.^[9]

Operators

During the war the majority of M5 (and M9) production went to the United Kingdom, which then passed them on to Commonwealth forces or other allies operating with the British Army such as Free Polish or Free Czech forces. The Soviet Union received supplies directly. In British service they were used as utility vehicles for Royal Engineers units, or to motor battalions instead of 15cwt trucks for towing anti-tank guns.^[7]

After the war, half tracks were provided under the Military Aid Program (MAP).^[10]

• Brazilian Army – Received 20.^[10]
• Canadian Army – Received 20.^[11]
• Chilean Army – Received 10.^[10]
• Chinese Army – Loaned from the U.S.^[10]
• Czech Army – Loaned from Britain.^[10]
• French Army – Received 1,196^[4]
• Israeli Army – Acquired in 1948–49 from Europe, and directly from U.S. after 1949.^[9]
• Malian Army – Aid from France.^[12]
• Mexican Army– Received two.^[10]
• Wehrmacht – Captured from the U.S.^[13]
• Polish Army – Loaned from Britain.^[10]
• Soviet Army – Received 450 during World War II,^[11] and 401 after the war.^[10]
• United States Army – Used for training purposes only.^[14]
• British Army^[10]

Variants

The rear portion of the M5, at an Israeli museum.

• M3E2/M5 – An IH half-track, that was virtually identical to the M3. The only differences was the thicker armor (up to 20 mm), different engine (IHC RED-450-B), and lower range (125 mi (201 km)). This model was mainly supplied to the Soviet Union, the British Commonwealth, and France. A total 4,625 were produced.^[7]
• M5A1 – M5 with a M49 machine gun mount.^[15] It could fit one 0.5 inch (12.7 mm) M2 Browning heavy machine gun, and two 0.3 inch M1919 Browning machine guns,^[6] and 2,859 were produced.^[7]
• M5A2 – Similar to the M3A2, the M5A2 was a combination of the M5 and M9 Half-tracks. This was a project that was never mass produced.^[7]
• M9 – Same as the M5, stowage arranged as the M2 Half-track, with access to radios from inside (as opposed to outside) and rear doors, plus pedestal machine gun mount,^[6] with 2,026 being produced.^[7]
• M9A1 – Same as the M9, with ring mount and three machine gun pintles,^[6] with 1,407 being produced.^[16]
• M14 Half-track – A version of the M13 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, based on the M5. It had two 0.5 in machine guns mounted in a M33 Maxson turret on the rear of the chassis. Several hundred were produced before it was replaced by the M16 MGMC and M17 MGMC, with a total 1,605 were produced.^[16]
• M17 Half track – M5 with the same quadruple 0.5 inch machine gun turret as the M16 MGMC. All 1,000 were supplied to the USSR.^[17] It saw limited use at end of World War II and was also deployed during the Korean War.^[18]
• M3 Mk. A – A modified M5. The only difference was the variety of machine guns were used in place of the M49 mount.^[9]
• M3 Mk. B – A M5 modified as a command carrier. It had extra radios and a front winch bumper.^[9]

See also

• List of U.S. military vehicles by model number

References

Citations

1. "TM-9-2800-1 Standard Military Motor Vehicles". United States Department of War. 1 September 1943. pp. 34–35. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
2. Hunnicutt (2010), p. 213.
3. Ness (2002), p. 207.
4. Zaloga (1994), p. 12.
5. Hunnicutt (2010), p. 50.
6. Berndt (1993), p. 147.
7. Hunnicutt (2010), p. 52.
8. Zaloga (1994), p. 13.
9. Zaloga (1994), pp. 23–24.
10. Zaloga (1994), pp. 21–22.
11. Zaloga (1994) p. 13.
12. "Trade Registers". Armstrade.sipri.org. Retrieved 2014-11-20.
13. Zaloga (1994), p. 15.
14. Zaloga (1994), p. 3.
15. Berndt (1994), p. 28.
16. Ness (2002), p. 196.
17. Zaloga (1994), p. 39.
18. Green (2014), p. 296.

Bibliography

• Berndt, Thomas (1993). Standard Catalog of Military Vehicles. Iola, WI: Krause Publications. ISBN 0-87341-223-0
• Berndt, Thomas (1994). American Tanks of World War II. Minnesota, MN: MBI Publishing Company. ISBN 0-87938-930-3
• Green, Michael (2014). American Tanks & AFVs of World War II. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-78200-931-0
• Hunnicutt, R.P. (2010). Half-Track: A History of American Semi-Tracked Vehicles. Navato, CA: Presidio Press. ISBN 0-89141-742-7
• Ness, Leland (2002). Jane's World War II Armored Fighting Vehicles. London, UK: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-00-711228-9
• Zaloga, Steven J. (1994). M3 Infantry Half-Track 1940–73. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-85532-467-9

External links

• Half-track Personnel Carrier M5