America's Munitions 1917-1918United States. War Department
History
America's Munitions 1917-1918
United States. War Department
United States. Army -- Supplies and stores; Weapons; World War, 1914-1918 -- United States -- Equipment and supplies
Finished machines of this type started to come through in October. When
the armistice was signed 64 of these 6-ton Renault tanks, each designed
to carry two men and a machine gun, were completed, while up to the end
of December the number of those finished amounted to 209, with 289 in
the process of assembly. There is every reason to believe that had the
armistice not been signed, the entire original program would have been
completed by April.
During the summer and fall of 1918 our tank program had been augmented
by the development of two entirely new types of tanks. One was a
two-man tank weighing 3 tons, built by the Ford Motor Co. and costing
in the neighborhood of $4,000. This tank, mounting one machine gun, has
a speed of about 8 miles an hour. Of this type 15 had been built; and,
up to the 1st of January, 1919, 500 were to have been finished, after
which they were to have been turned out by the Ford Co. at the rate of
100 a day.
[Illustration: SIX-TON TANK BEING MOUNTED ON A 10-TON TRAILER.]
[Illustration: VIEW OF 35-TON TANK. SHOWING THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY
OF WAR, PRESIDENT OF THE BALDWIN LOCOMOTIVE WORKS, AND ARMY OFFICERS
INSTRUMENTAL IN DESIGNING THIS MACHINE.
The tank has 400 horsepower, a speed of 6 miles an hour, and can climb
a 45° grade. It carries a crew of 11 men and is equipped with two
6-pounders and seven machine guns.]
The other new tank developed was a successor to the French Renault,
designed for production in great volume. This tank was to carry three
men, instead of two, as the original Renault machine, and mount two
guns, one a machine gun and the other a 37-millimeter gun. Some Renault
tanks were equipped with 37-millimeter cannon instead of machine guns.
Cost of production of this machine would have been very much less than
that of the original Renault, while the weight of the machine would
have been substantially the same and its fighting power much greater.
An outlay of about $175,000,000 was projected in the tank program, but
this, of course, was greatly reduced upon the signing of the armistice.
This outlay would have included, besides the cost of the machines,
expenses at various plants for increased facilities for operation.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account