Any T30 HMCs left?

[ILH]

Hello,

 

For a few years now I've been trying to find a Whites T30 Howitzer Motor Carriage to look at (Not the M3 75mm GMC).

 

Does anyone know of one still on this mortal plane?

 

It's an M2 halftrack with a 75mm Pack Howitzer on it; infantry suport/anti-tank. Around 500 were built. Used in the Aleutians, North Africa and Sicily by the Americans, but then then they replaced it.

About 300 got converted back to infantry carriers just before D-Day. The rest were given to the British in Italy, French for D-Day, and?

 

In hope,

Jim.

[steveo578]

I doubt there is a T30 in existance, they were still in use in Italy to mid 1944 by USA. As far as I am aware this type was only used by the U.S. there were 312 initally built and 108 were imediately reconverted to M3 personel carriers a further 188 were finished bringing the number actually built to 500 but minus 108 makes 392 available.

 

The British in Italy received the M3 (1897mle armed M3) which they called the Autocar 75mm SPG, as the the French they may have received a few T30s to train with pending being issued with M8HMC which is the full tracked 75mm pack gun in an open topped turret on an modified M5 light tank hull. The M8 deployed with the French AD tasked with liberating Paris in August 1944 and the French Armoured forces did not land until well after D.Day. There may have been some use of T30 in France by U.S. Forces -possibly including units from Italy -at least one U.S. artillery unit brought T19 105mm HMCs into Southern France, For the most part French (and British) use of half tracks is quite well documented for example 8 T28s were transfered to the French in France.

 

However just to keep your hopes alive, a T48 57mm GMC pitched up in the Indian Armoured Corps museum, which was quite a surprise, so you never know.