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An artillery tractor, also referred to as a gun tractor, is a specialized heavy-duty form of
tractor unit A tractor unit, also known as a truck unit, lorry unit, power unit, prime mover, ten-wheeler, semi-tractor, semi-truck, semi-lorry, tractor cab, truck cab, lorry cab, big rig tractor, big rig truck or big rig lorry or simply a tractor, truck, ...
used to tow
artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...
pieces of varying weights and calibres. It may be wheeled, tracked, or
half-track A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. A half-track combines the soft-ground traction of a tank with the Car handl ...
ed.


Traction

There are two main types of artillery tractors, depending on the type of traction: wheeled and tracked. * Wheeled tractors are usually variations of
lorries A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...
adapted for military service. * Tracked tractors run on
continuous track Continuous track or tracked treads are a system of vehicle propulsion used in tracked vehicles, running on a continuous band of treads or track plates driven by two or more wheels. The large surface area of the tracks distributes the w ...
; in some cases are built on a modified
tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...
chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of a manufactured object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...
with the superstructure replaced with a compartment for the gun crew or
ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...
. In addition,
half-track A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. A half-track combines the soft-ground traction of a tank with the Car handl ...
tractors were used in the
interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...
and in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, especially by the
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...
. This type of tractor was mostly discontinued postwar.


History


World War I

The first artillery tractors were designed prior to the outbreak of
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, often based on agricultural machines such as the
Holt tractor The Holt tractors were a range of continuous track haulers built by the Holt Manufacturing Company of Stockton, California which were named after company founder Benjamin Holt. Between 1908 and 1913, twenty-seven of the first 100 Holt caterpi ...
. Such vehicles allowed the tactical use of heavier guns to supplement the light horse drawn
field gun A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances (field artillery ...
s. "Horseless artillery" available prior to World War I weighed 8 tons, had 70 horsepower and could go 8 mph. For example, in the British Army it allowed the heavy guns of the
Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Artillery, Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse ...
to be used flexibly on the battlefield.


World War II

In World War II the
draft horse A draft horse (US) or draught horse (UK), also known as dray horse, carthorse, work horse or heavy horse, is a large horse bred to be a working animal hauling freight and doing heavy agricultural tasks such as plowing. There are a number o ...
was still the most common source of motive power in many armies. Most nations were economically and industrially unable to fully motorise their forces. One compromise was to produce general purpose vehicles which could be used in the troop transport, logistics and
prime mover Prime mover may refer to: Philosophy *Unmoved mover, a concept in Aristotle's writings Engineering * Prime mover (engine or motor), a machine that converts various other forms of energy (chemical, electrical, fluid pressure/flow, etc.) into ener ...
roles, with heavy artillery tractors to move the heaviest guns. The British Army had fully mechanized prior to war. During the 1920s and 30s it had used the
Vickers Medium Dragon The Vickers Medium Dragon was a fully-tracked British field artillery tractor made by Vickers Limited, Vickers (later Vickers-Armstrongs), produced in various versions from 1922 to 1937. The Medium Dragon towed a wide range of artillery, from QF 1 ...
and Light Dragon fully-tracked artillery tractors, but they had been mostly replaced with wheeled vehicles, starting with the Morris CDSW. The
Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
persisted with specialist artillery tractors – known as "Field Artillery Tractors" (FAT) – such as the Morris "Quad", Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) "Quad" and
AEC Matador The AEC Matador was a heavy 4×4 truck and medium artillery tractor built by the Associated Equipment Company for British and Commonwealth forces during World War II. AEC had already built a 4×2 lorry, also known as the Matador (all AEC lorries ...
throughout World War II, rather than adopt a general purpose vehicle. Artillery tractors were different from "General Service" (GS) vehicles by having a compartment for the gun detachment immediately behind the cab and separated from the cargo space containing ammunition and gun stores. German forces used
half-track A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. A half-track combines the soft-ground traction of a tank with the Car handl ...
s as artillery tractors, such as the Sd.Kfz. 7. Half-tracked tractors were not commonly used in this role in other nations. Compared to wheeled vehicles they had better off-road capabilities, but were slower on roads and were more prone to breakdowns. However, for Germany horses remained the most common way of towing artillery throughout the war.


Modern warfare

In
modern warfare Modern warfare is warfare that diverges notably from previous military concepts, methods, and technology, emphasizing how combatants must modernize to preserve their battle worthiness. As such, it is an evolving subject, seen differently in dif ...
, towed artillery has given way in part to
self-propelled artillery Self-propelled artillery (also called locomotive artillery) is artillery equipped with its own propulsion system to move toward its firing position. Within the terminology are the self-propelled gun, self-propelled howitzer, self-propelled mo ...
. It is also common to find
auxiliary power unit An auxiliary power unit (APU) is a device on a vehicle that provides energy for functions other than propulsion. They are commonly found on large aircraft and naval ships as well as some large land vehicles. Aircraft APUs generally produce 115&n ...
s built into the gun carriage to provide power while the propulsion engine is offline. Traditional towed artillery can still be found in units where complexity and weight are liabilities: e.g. airmobile, amphibious and other light units. In such units, where organic transport is usually limited, any available transport can double as artillery tractors in order to reposition guns when needed. For example, engineer vehicles of a different primary purpose such as the U.S. Marines' light capacity rough terrain forklift (LCRTF), a versatile telehandler
forklift A forklift (also called industrial truck, lift truck, jitney, hi-lo, fork truck, fork hoist, and forklift truck) is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances. The forklift was developed in the early 20th c ...
capable of towing gear from either end.


List of artillery tractors

The following are a few examples of artillery tractors, classified by its traction system and era.


Wheeled


Pre- and First World War

* Thornycroft "steamer" – UK,
Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...
*
Thornycroft Thornycroft was an English vehicle manufacturer which built coaches, buses, and trucks from 1896 until 1977. History In 1896, naval engineer John Isaac Thornycroft formed the Thornycroft Steam Carriage and Van Company which built its f ...
Gun Tractor – UK, World War I * Latil TAR – France, World War I * Renault EG – France, World War I (also used in World War II as a heavy artillery tractor) *
Tracteur Panhard-Châtillon The Tracteur Panhard-Châtillon ( was a conventional-cabin, all-wheel drive truck produced between 1911 and 1918 by the French manufacturer Panhard. It was one of the first all-wheel drive trucks used by the French military. History In the early ...
– France, World War I


Interwar and Second World War

*
Thornycroft Hathi The Thornycroft Hathi (Hindi: "elephant") was an early four wheel drive lorry built by Thornycroft in the 1920s. It was used by the British Army as an artillery tractor. Development There was a lack of British-developed four-wheel-drive vehic ...
– UK, 1924; early 4x4 * Krupp Protze – Germany, 1933; towed the 3.7 cm PaK *
Scammell Pioneer The Scammell Pioneer was a British 6×4 (drivetrain), 6×4 tractor unit used in World War II as an artillery tractor, recovery vehicle and tank transporter. Development Designed as a 6×4 (drivetrain), 6×4 Off-roading, off-road vehicle for use ...
– British, 1937; lorry used for heavy artillery *
Morris C8 The Morris Commercial C8 FAT (Field Artillery Tractor), commonly known as a ''(Beetle-back) Quad'', is an artillery tractor used by the British and Commonwealth (including Canadian forces), during the Second World War., first published in Classi ...
– UK, 1938; the "Quad" British tractor; towed the 25-pdr gun, 6-pdr AT gun, and 40-mm Bofors AA gun *
Karrier Karrier was a British marque of motorised municipal appliances and light commercial vehicles and trolley buses manufactured at Karrier Works, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, by Clayton and Co. (Huddersfield) Limited. They began making Karrier moto ...
KT4 – UK; for the
British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...
*
AEC Matador The AEC Matador was a heavy 4×4 truck and medium artillery tractor built by the Associated Equipment Company for British and Commonwealth forces during World War II. AEC had already built a 4×2 lorry, also known as the Matador (all AEC lorries ...
– UK, World War II; lorry used for pulling medium artillery such as the 5.5 inch gun and 3.7 inch AA Gun * Fiat-SPA T.L.37 – Italy, World War II; four-wheel steering tractor for 75/27 Mod.06 and 100/17 mod.14 field guns. * Breda 51 – Italy, 1936; 6x4 truck used for moving equipment/units, pulling artillery. * Breda 52 – Italy, 1938; 6x4 truck with stronger chassis that could also be mounted with Cannone da 90/53 *
Laffly V15 The Laffly V15T was a French light 4WD artillery tractor used during World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of W ...
T – France, World War II; towed 25 mm AT guns *
Laffly S15 The Laffly S15 was a family of all-terrain military vehicles from French manufacturer Laffly that shared the same six-wheel drive chassis. They were used by French forces during World War II. Variants * The Laffly S15T was a light artillery tra ...
T – France, World War II; towed the French 75 and short 105 mm field guns *
Mack NO Mack may refer to: People *Mack (given name) * Mack (surname) *Reinhold Mack, German record producer and sound engineer, often credited as simply "Mack" * Richard Machowicz (1965–2017), host of ''FutureWeapons'' and ''Deadliest Warrior'', known ...
– USA, World War II; 6x6 truck used to tow the 155mm “Long Tom”
field gun A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances (field artillery ...
and similar medium artillery pieces * Dodge WC4 & WC22 – USA, World War II; 4x4 truck designed to tow the M3 anti-tank cannon, its crew and ammunition * White Scout Car – USA, 1941; 4x4 utility armored car * CMP FAT – Canada, World War II *
Radschlepper Ost ''Radschlepper Ost'', literally "wheeled tractor east", also known as Škoda RSO or Porsche 175, was a German heavy Four-wheel drive military tractor used during World War II. It was designed by Ferdinand Porsche in 1941 and produced by Škoda i ...
– Germany, 1942 * C2P - Poland, 1939 and captured Germany 1940-1945 * C7P - Poland, 1939 and captured Germany 1940-1941


Postwar

* Bedford 4x4 Gun Tractor – UK, introduced in the late 1950s to tow the 25-pdr * Leyland Martian (FV1103) – UK, Medium Artillery Tractor, 10-ton, 6x6; replaced the Matador in the late 1950s. *
Pinzgauer High Mobility All-Terrain Vehicle The Pinzgauer is a family of high-mobility all-terrain 4WD (4×4) and 6WD (6×6) military utility vehicles. The vehicle was originally developed in the late 1960s and manufactured by Steyr-Daimler-Puch of Graz, Austria, and was named after ...
– UK, 1971 * Land Rover 101 Forward Control – UK, 1972 * Coyote 6x6 TSV – UK, 2009


Half-tracked

* Unic P107 – France, 1934; towed the French 75 and short 105 mm field guns *
SOMUA MCG The SOMUA MCG was a half-track artillery tractor and recovery vehicle of the French forces during World War II. Manufactured by the Somua company it was used to tow medium artillery pieces such as the Canon de 155 C modèle 1917 Schneider, 155 m ...
– France; towed the French long 105 and short 155 mm field guns *
C4P Samochód półgąsienicowy wz. 34 (literally "Half-track car, year 1934 model") was a Polish halftrack lorry. It was produced in a variety of variants, the best-known of them being the C4P artillery tractor used by the Polish Army in the period b ...
– Poland, 1935 * Sd.Kfz. 7 – Germany, 1938; 8-ton half track often towed the Flak 36 88 mm *
Sd.Kfz. 9 The Sd.Kfz. 9 (also known as "Famo") was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II, and the heaviest half-track vehicle of any type built in quantity in Nazi Germany during the war years. Its main roles were as a prime mover ...
– Germany, 1938; used for heavy towed guns such as the 24 cm Kanone 3 * Sd.Kfz. 10 – Germany, 1938; also basis for the Sd.Kfz. 250 armored light half-track * Sd.Kfz. 11 – Germany, 1938; 3-ton tractor for medium towed guns, including the 3.7 cm FlaK 43 anti-aircraft gun and the 10.5 cm leFH 18 field howitzer *
M2 Half Track Car The M2 half-track car was an armored half-track produced by the United States during World War II. Its design drew upon half-tracks imported from France in the 1930s, employing standard components supplied by U.S. truck manufacturers to speed p ...
– USA, 1940 * M3 Half-track – USA, 1940


Tracked, tank chassis

* Dragon, Medium Mark IV – British army, 1928; developed from the Vickers 6-Ton mark E. *
T-24 The T-24 was a Soviet medium tank built in 1931. Only twenty four were built, and none saw combat. This was the first tank produced at the KhPZ factory in Kharkov, which was later responsible for the very successful BT tank, BT series, T-34 an ...
chassis ** Komintern ** Voroshilovets *
M2 light tank The M2 light tank, officially Light Tank, M2, was an American light tank of the interwar period which saw limited service during World War II. The most common model, the M2A4, was equipped with one M5 gun and five .30 cal M1919 Browning mac ...
chassis ** M4 high-speed tractor – USA, 1943 *
M3 Stuart The M3 Stuart/light tank M3, was a US light tank of World War II, first entered service in the British Army in early 1941 and saw action in the North African campaign in July 1941. Later an improved version of the tank entered service as the ...
chassis **
M5 high-speed tractor The M5 13-ton high-speed tractor was a World War II era artillery tractor that was used by the US Army from 1942 to tow medium field artillery pieces. Design The M5 high-speed tractor was a fully tracked artillery tractor designed to tow artill ...
– USA, 1942 *
M3 Lee The M3 Lee, officially Medium Tank, M3, was an American medium tank used during World War II. The turret was produced in two different forms, one for US needs and one modified to British requirements to place the radio next to the commander. ...
chassis ** M33 prime mover – converted by removing turret and recovery gear from M31 TRV. 109 converted in 1943–44. *
M4 Sherman The M4 Sherman, officially medium tank, M4, was the medium tank most widely used by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. I ...
chassis ** M34 prime mover – converted by removing recovery gear from M32B1 TRV (M4A1 Sherman tank chassis built as an
Armoured recovery vehicle An armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) is typically a powerful tank or armoured personnel carrier (APC) chassis modified for use during combat for military vehicle recovery (towing) or repair of battle-damaged, stuck, and/or inoperable armoured f ...
) and adding air brakes to tow heavy artillery. 24 converted by Chester Tank Depot in 1944. ** M35 prime mover – converted by removing turret from M10A1 tank destroyer (M4A3 Sherman tank chassis) and adding air brakes to tow 155 mm and 240 mm artillery. ** Sherman Gun Tower – British field conversion in Italy by removing turrets from old M4A2 Sherman tanks to tow 17 pdr AT gun and carry crew with ammunition ** Wolverine Gun Tower – British M10 (M4A2 chassis) or M10A1 (M4A3 chassis) converted by removing turret, 1944–45 * Crusader II, gun tractor Mk I – British army, variant of the
Crusader tank Crusader, in full "Tank, Cruiser Mk VI, Crusader", also known by its List of tanks of the United Kingdom#General Staff numbers, General Staff number A.15, was one of the primary British cruiser tanks during the early part of the World War II, ...
*
M41 Walker Bulldog The M41 Walker Bulldog, officially 76-mm gun tank M41, was an American light tank developed for armed reconnaissance purposes. It was produced by Cadillac between 1951 and 1954 and marketed successfully to the United States Army as a replaceme ...
chassis ** M8 high-speed tractor – USA, 1950


Tracked, other chassis


Pre- and First World War

* Hornsby tractor – British Army, 1910 *
Holt Tractor The Holt tractors were a range of continuous track haulers built by the Holt Manufacturing Company of Stockton, California which were named after company founder Benjamin Holt. Between 1908 and 1913, twenty-seven of the first 100 Holt caterpi ...
*
Best Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...


Interwar and Second World War

*
Renault UE Chenillette The Renault UE Chenillette is a light tracked armoured carrier and prime mover produced by France between 1932 and 1940. In 1930 the Commission de Vincennes decided to develop a light armoured vehicle able to tow and supply small cannon and mo ...
– France, 1932 * C7P – Poland, 1934 * STZ-5 – Soviet Union *
Universal Carrier The Universal Carrier, a development of the earlier Bren Gun Carrier from its light machine gun armament, was one of a family of light armoured tracked vehicles built by Vickers-Armstrongs and other companies. The first carriers – the Br ...
– British, 1936; "Bren Gun Carrier", armoured utility tractor *
Loyd Carrier The Loyd Carrier was one of a number of small tracked vehicles used by the British and Commonwealth forces in the Second World War to transport equipment and men about the battlefield. Alongside the Bren, Scout and Machine Gun Carriers, the ...
– UK, 1940 * M6 high-speed tractor – USA, 1944 *
Raupenschlepper, Ost ''Raupenschlepper Ost'' (German: "Caterpillar Tractor East", more commonly abbreviated to RSO) was a fully tracked, lightweight vehicle used by the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was conceived in response to the poor performance of wheeled and ...
(RSO) – Germany, 1942


Postwar

*
Snow Trac The Snow Trac is a small personal Snowcat that is roughly the size of a modern compact car. Aktiv Snow Trac were manufactured in Sweden between 1957 and 1981, with additional vehicles manufactured in Scotland. Origins and description In 1954, La ...
– 1957, UK Royal Marines Light
WOMBAT Wombats are short-legged, muscular quadrupedal marsupials of the family Vombatidae that are native to Australia. Living species are about in length with small, stubby tails and weigh between . They are adaptable and habitat tolerant, and are ...
gun carrier * AT-L – Soviet Union * ATS-59 – Soviet Union * AT-S – Soviet Union *
AT-T Artilleriyskiy Tyagach Tyazholiy, or AT-T (, meaning "heavy artillery tractor") was a Soviet Cold War-era artillery tractor. The AT-T is based on the chassis and drive system from the T-54 tank. However, the hull has been rotated 180 degrees, wi ...
– Soviet Union *
MT-LB The MT-LB (, literally "multi-purpose towing vehicle light armored") is a Soviet Union, Soviet multi-purpose, fully amphibious vehicle, amphibious, tracked Armoured fighting vehicle, armored fighting vehicle in use since the 1970s. It was also ...
T – Soviet Union, mid-1970s, variant of the MT-LB armoured personnel carrier. *
Mazur D-350 The Mazur D-350 is a Continuous track, tracked artillery tractor produced in the Polish People's Republic in the late 1950s. History Work on the design of a Polish artillery tractor began in 1956 at the Bumar-Łabędy, Mechanical Plant in Łabęd ...
– Poland, 1957 * Hitachi Type 73 – Japan, 1974


See also

*
Self-propelled artillery Self-propelled artillery (also called locomotive artillery) is artillery equipped with its own propulsion system to move toward its firing position. Within the terminology are the self-propelled gun, self-propelled howitzer, self-propelled mo ...
*
Ballast tractor A ballast tractor is a specially weighted tractor unit of a heavy hauler combination. It is designed to utilize a drawbar to pull or push heavy or exceptionally large trailer loads which are loaded in a hydraulic modular trailer. When feasi ...
*
G-numbers This is the Group G series List of the United States military vehicles by (Ordnance) supply catalog designation, – ''one'' of the alpha-numeric "standard nomenclature lists" (SNL) that were part of the overall list of the United States Army ...
*
Tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a Trailer (vehicle), trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or constructio ...
*
Tractor unit A tractor unit, also known as a truck unit, lorry unit, power unit, prime mover, ten-wheeler, semi-tractor, semi-truck, semi-lorry, tractor cab, truck cab, lorry cab, big rig tractor, big rig truck or big rig lorry or simply a tractor, truck, ...


References


Notes


Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Cite book , title=The Illustrated Guide to Military Vehicles , first=Pat , last=Ware , year=2010 , publisher=Hermes House , location=London , isbn=978-1846815850


Further reading

* TM 9-2800 military vehicles


External links


Olive-Drab website, US Army tractors
* Carriages and mountings