The M10 were, numerically, the most important US tank destroyer of World War II. In its combat debut in the North African campaign, the M10 was successful as its M7 3-inch gun could penetrate most German tanks then in service at long range. The heavy chassis did not conform to the tank destroyer doctrine of employing very light, high-speed vehicles, thus it began to be supplemented by the 76 mm Gun Motor Carriage M18 early in 1944. Later in the Battle of Normandy the M10's gun proved to be ineffective against the frontal armor of the numerous German Panther tanks encountered and by the fall of 1944 the improved 90 mm Gun Motor Carriage M36 was beginning to replace it, though it remained in service until the end of the war. In the Pacific, US Army M10s were used for traditional infantry-support missions and were unpopular due to their open topped turrets. The Japanese tactic of very close-in infantry attacks against US AFVs made the M10 much more vulnerable than a fully-enclosed tank.

Approximately 54 M10s were supplied to the USSR though their usage in Red Army service is largely unrecorded. The M10 also equipped units of the Free French Army; one M10 named "Sirocco", crewed by a regiment composed of French sailors, famously knocked out a German Panther tank on the Place de la Concorde in Paris. British M10s were designated 3 in SP, Wolverine and saw action in Italy and France, including some re-armed with the much more effective 17-pounder guns which gained the designation 17 pdr SP. Achilles.

The M10 had an open-topped turret that left it vulnerable to artillery and mortar fire and infantry assault especially in urban combat and forest areas, where a simple hand grenade could be tossed inside. By the end of the war its armor was too thin to provide protection from the new German tanks and anti-tank guns. The other main disadvantage of the M10 was its very slow turret traverse, the M10 did not have powered traverse and so the crew had to hand-crank the turret to traverse it, taking approximately two minutes to traverse 360 degrees. US tank destroyers fired much more HE than anti-tank ammunition, indicating that they were employed much like the tanks they were supposed to support.

A British variant, designated the "Achilles", was developed to mount the successful 17-pounder anti-tank gun in a modified turret. It was used by the British, Canadian and Polish armies in Italy and northwest Europe.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a British Achilles IIC tank destroyer that was attached to the 75th Anti-tank Regiment, Royal Artillery, 11th Armoured Division, then deployed to Belgium during the winter of 1944-45. Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Length: 4-inches
Width: 1-1/2-inches

Release Date: December 2018

Historical Account: "Hussars" - The 11th Armoured Division landed in France in June 1944, taking heavy casualties in the Battle of Normandy. It spearheaded Operation Epsom, reaching the Odon river between Mouen and Mondrainville. It was again embroiled in Operation Goodwood, its assault on Bourgubus Ridge on the first day of the operation being brought to a halt. After Goodwood, the losses of armour within the division were so high that the 24th Lancers were disbanded and its remnants absorbed by the 23rd Hussars. The Regiment then took part in Operation Bluecoat, intended to secure the key road junction of Vire and the high ground of Mont Pinon, allowing the American exploitation of their breakout on the western flank of the Normandy beachhead. The 11th Armored Division was then attached to XXX Corps, which captured Flers, Putanges and Argentan in the battle of the Falaise pocket.

Once the Falaise pocket was sealed, the Regiment remained with the 11th Armoured Division as it liberated L'Aigle on August 23rd. It crossed the Seine on August 28th and, after an advance of 60 miles in one day, liberated Amiens on September 1st and Antwerp on September 4th. It was not directly involved in the ground operations of Operation Market Garden, but covered the right flank of the advancing XXX Corps.

It was in reserve, being re-equipped with Comet tanks, at the time of the Ardennes Offensive, but was rapidly deployed into a defensive line along the Meuse with its old tanks. In 1945, it took part in Operation Veritable and Operation Blockbuster and liberated Bergen-Belsen concentration camp before crossing the Elbe and capturing Lubeck. It was disbanded at the end of January 1946.