The U.S. Army used the M2/M3 halftrack extensively in all theaters throughout World War II.
This popular and versatile chassis offered a variety of uses, including as a Gun Motor Carriage (GMC), a half-track vehicle that mounted a 75mm anti-tank gun.
In 1940, as the United States observed the devastating power of German blitzkrieg tactics, an urgent call was made for the production of tank destroyers.
The GMC M3 with an M1897A4 75 mm cannon was an interim solution that was standardized in October 1941.
More than 2,200 of these vehicles were manufactured, of which only 842 were in use as the rest were converted back into standard troop transports.
The GMC M3 was used by the US Army in the Philippines (where some captured examples were actually used against American forces in 1944), in Tunisia and North Africa (e.g. at the Battle of Kasserine Pass), and in Sicily.
They were then phased out in favor of the far more effective M10 tank destroyer, although many continued to fight with the USMC in the Pacific theater well into 1945. Other nations also used them, including Great Britain and France.
Plastic model kit
- Driver figure
- Photo-etched parts
Scale 1:35
unbuilt / unpainted
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