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The M24 Chaffee was an American Light Tank used during World War II and in postwar conflicts including the Korean War . It took its name from the pioneer of U.S. tanks, General Adna R. Chaffee, Jr. . DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCTION HISTORY Even before the USA entered World War II it was clear that the US Army needed a new light tank to replace the M3 Stuart , which was quickly becoming inadequate. After the Armored Force rejected the T7/M7 design (which was too heavy to be still considered light), in April 1943 the Cadillac Motor Car division of General Motors started work on new project - the T24. The new design featured a low silhouette, Sloped Armor , Torsion Bar suspension and a new 75 Mm Gun (a derivative of the gun used in the B-25H Mitchell Bomber ) in a three-man Turret . On October 15, 1943 the first pilot vehicle was delivered and production began in 1944 under the designation M24 Light Tank. It was produced at two sites; from April at Cadillac and from July at Massey-Harris . By the time production was stopped in August 1945, 4731 M24s had left the Assembly Lines . Some of them were supplied to the British forces and, according to the British tradition of giving names to tanks, were named '''"Chaffee"'''. COMBAT HISTORY The First M24s reached Europe in December 1944. Two of them took part in the Battle Of The Bulge with the 740th Tank Battalion of the US First Army . The M-24s were intended to replace the M5 Light Tank which were used entirely for scouting and screening along the flanks of the main armored forces. They were slow in reaching the front line combat units, and by the end of the war many armored divisions were still mainly equipped with the M5. Some armored divisions did not receive their first M24s until after the end of the war. Reports from the armored divisions that received them prior to the end of hostilities were generally positive. Crews liked the improved off-road performance and reliability, but were mostly appreciative of the 75mm main gun, as a vast improvement over the 37mm. The M24 was not up to the challenge of fighting German tanks, but the bigger gun at least gave its crews a chance to fight back when it was required. The M24s light armor made it vulnerable to virtually all of the German tanks, anti-tank guns, and hand-held anti-tank weapons. The contribution of the M24 to winning the war in Europe was insignificant, as they arrived too late and in too few numbers to replace the worn out M5s of the armored divisions. In the Korean War , M24s were the first US tanks to see combat against the North Korean T-34-85 s. The M24 faired poorly against these much better-armed and armored medium tanks. M24s were more successful later in the war in their reconnaissance role, when they were supported by heavier tanks such as the M4, M26, and M46. Like other successful World War II designs, the M24 was supplied to many armies around the globe and was used in local conflicts long after it had been replaced in the US Army by the M41 Walker Bulldog . France employed its M24s in Indo-China in infantry support missions, with good results. They employed the M24 in the Battle Of Dien Bien Phu . In December 1953 ten disassembled Chaffees were transported by air to provide fire support to the garrison. They fired about 15,000 shells in the fighting that followed, but couldn't stop the Viet Minh forces from eventually overruning the camp in May 1954 . The last known time the aging tank saw action was in the Indo-Pakistani War Of 1971 , where some 66 Pakistani Chaffees stationed in Bangladesh were easy prey for the Indian Army T-55 s, PT-76 s and anti-tank teams. Although both Iran and Iraq had M24s prior to the Gulf War , there is no account of their use in that conflict. In the mid-70s Norway upgraded some of their M24s, installing a 90-mm French gun and modern fire controls. These vehicles, known as NM-116 , served in the Norwegian Army until 1992-93 and were probably the last active Chaffees in the world. The Chilean Army, fitted the tank with a new cannon in the 70', the IMI-OTO 60mm Hyper Velocity Medium Support (HVMS) gun, because the new weapon have the same penetration than a 90 mm cannon. Chile mantain operative this version until the 90'. VARIANTS
:Engine moved to the center of hull, twin 40 mm M2 AA mounted at hull rear. 904 were ordered in August 1944, but only 285 were delivered.
:Carried a 105 mm Howitzer . Was intended to replace the M7 Priest . 448 ordered, 316 delivered.
:Engine moved to the center of hull, 155 mm howitzer mounted at rear. 250 ordered, 60 delivered.
:Had 6 0.5" Machine Gun s mounted in a new designed turret.
:Had bulldozer kit installed.
:Norwegian complete upgrade from 1974-75.
OPERATORS USA , France , UK , Belgium , Greece , Italy , Norway , Austria , Denmark , Portugal , Spain , Turkey , Japan , Chile , Taiwan , Laos , Cambodia , Republic Of Korea , South Vietnam , Thailand , Pakistan , Iran , Iraq , Saudi Arabia , Ethiopia , Uruguay . SEE ALSO REFERENCES
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