GMW Photography from the world armies past and present

[AAR Galileo]

I saw some never seen photos here

https://bmashine.tumblr.com/

T31

 

[Bombardier]

This is a T31 Demolition tank and was an anti-fortification modification tested by the U.S. Army. It was armed with a 105mm howitzer (akin to the M4A3 105) and 2x 1833 7.2in revolving Rocket launchers on each side. I couldn't find decent sources on the 1833 launchers, but suspect they are similar to the 7.2in rockets used on the Sherman T40.

Developed on the M4A3 HVSS Chassis but with a much heavier turret, this vehicle would have been sluggish, but boasting huge firepower. The vehicle was developed in 1945, canceled due to the foreseeable end to the war and the introduction of the M26 with it's 90mm, able to complete the job nearly as well without a complete overhaul.

Some posts I have read suggest the 105mm gun was a dummy and it was actually only armed with the rocket launchers

 

[AAR Galileo]

According to Hunnicutt's book, the howitzer is just a dummy, it was only to be fitted with the rocket launchers.
The rocket launchers are T94 7.2" launchers. It was a revolver type launcher, each cylinder containing 5 rockets. They could be reloaded from within the turret, with the tank carrying a minimum of 30 rockets. The tank was also fitted with a e12r3 periscope flamethrower on either the assistant driver's hatch, or the commander's cupola. Armour on the front and sides of the turret was 61mm, armour on the rear doors was 38mm.
A single pilot model was completed in August 1945. The launchers did not work well during tests: The left froze entirely, and the right had to be rotated by hand. As the war was over and the M4 was out of production, it was decided to cancel the vehicle in January 1946, with no additional pilots constructed.

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