M103 heavy tank
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| M103 Heavy tank | |
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| General characteristics | |
| Crew | 5 (commander, gunner, driver, 2 loaders) |
| Length | 6.99 m |
| Width | 3.76 m |
| Height | 3.23 m |
| Weight | 57 tonnes |
| Armour and armament | |
| Armour | 180 mm |
| Main armament | 120 mm gun M58, 34 rounds |
| Secondary armament | 2×.30-cal (7.62 mm) M1919A4E1 (co-axial) 1×.50-cal (12.7 mm) M2 AA machine gun |
| Mobility | |
| Power plant | 12-cyl. air-cooled gasoline, Continental AV1790 810 hp (604 kW) |
| Suspension | torsion bar |
| Road speed | 40 km/h (25 mph) |
| Power/weight | 14 hp/tonne |
| Range | 130 km (80 mi) |
The M103 heavy tank, at 65 tons, was the heaviest and most heavily armed tank in service in the United States Army and the US Marines during the Cold War. It was manufactured at the Detroit Arsenal Tank Plant and the first units were accepted in 1957. The last units left service in 1974. Only a few hundred were built.
Like the British Conqueror tank the M103 was designed to counter Soviet heavies such as the Josef Stalin tank or the T-10. It was never used in combat.
The successive versions of the M103 shared many components with the M47, the M48 Patton tank and the M60, which were all considered medium tanks. Tracks, rollers and suspension elements were the same with some modification to take into account the greater weight. The engine and transmission though were never modified enough to give the extra power needed for the greater weight of the M103, and as a result the tank was relatively underpowered and the drive systems were fragile.
The turret of the M103 was larger than that of the M48 or the M60 to make room for the huge 120 mm gun and the two loaders assigned to it, in addition to the gunner and the commander. The driver sat down in the hull. The gun was capable of elevation from +15 to -8 degrees.
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[edit] Armour
The armour is made from welded rolled and cast homogeneous steel of varying thickness.
- Hull front: 100 mm to 130 mm.
- Hull side: 76 mm.
- Hull top: 25 mm.
- Turret mantlet: 250 mm.
- Turret front: 180 mm.
- Turret side: 76 mm.
- Turret top: 38 mm.
[edit] List of surviving examples
There are several M103's in existence including the late M103A2 version.
- Ordnance Center and Museum at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, USA,
- Radcliffe, Kentucky (M103)
- Fort Hood, Texas (M103)
- Fort Lewis, Washington (M103)
- 4th Infantry Division Museum
- Fort McClellan, Anniston, Alabama (M103A2)
- 45th Infantry Museum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (M103A2)
- Marine Corp reserve armor unit, Syracuse,New York (M103A2)
- M103 Heavy Tank at Credit Island Park, Davenport, Iowa
- M103A2 at the Military Vehicle Technology Foundation in Portola Valley, California
- T43/M-103 at 4th Infantry Division Museum, Fort Hood, Texas
- Marine Corps Mechanized Museum, Camp Pendleton, CA
[edit] Variants
- M103 1957. 400 built.
- M103A1 1959. 219 converted or rebuilt. New sight (Steroscopic T52) and T33 ballistic computer. Removed one coax MG. New turret electric amplidyne system traverse. Turret basket.
- M103A2 1964. 153 converted or rebuilt. New 750 hp (559 kW) diesel engine from the M60, increasing the road range to 480 km at the expense of a lower maximum speed of 37 km/h. New sight coincidence XM2A.
