M3 Medium Tank vs Panzer III: Kasserine Pass, 1943 (Duel) [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Right up front, the reader may suspect the problematic nature of M3 Medium Tank vs. Panzer III: Kasserine Pass 1943, volume 10 in Osprey's new Duel series, when the author repeatedly refers to the German PzKpfw III as a "light tank." No other reputable source on Second World War armor concurs with this label and it is unclear why the author went astray. However the real problem with this volume is, simply put, that there is a very minimal level of detail presented about specific M3 vs. Pz III actions and the author is content to fill out much of the volume with boilerplate material from previous Osprey volumes. Steven Zaloga already did an excellent volume in the Campaign series on Kasserine Pass -which readers should prefer over this recycled hash. Finally, the author doesn't seem to grasp the "Duel" concept and fails to make any real effort to assess the specific results of the tank vs. tank battles in Tunisia. Despite its nice graphics, this is a very, very weak volume.

The opening sections are fairly tepid. For example, the Chronology section has 33 references, but only 10 are specific to either tank. Details like "18 January 1943. Tiger tanks are committed for first time (inaccurate as well, since Tigers were first used at Leningrad in 1942)" are irrelevant to this duel. The section on Design and Development covers the kind of basics already existent in Osprey New Vanguard titles, with no new insight. Forgetting about Pz IIIs and M3s for a bit, the author then launches into a highly uninformative section on the Strategic Situation, which spends three tedious pages recounting the war in North Africa since 1940, skims over the first use of M3 tanks by the British at Gazala in 1942 without giving any details and then adding 5 more pages on the overall situation in Tunisia in early 1943. There is nothing that I dislike more in military history than authors who waste space rehashing old material ad naseum, dumbing it down to the Reader's Digest level, then failing to add anything that is either relevant or fresh. In this section, the author failed to outline the actual parameters in the upcoming tank vs tank duel, since he did not specify where the US and German units equipped with these tanks were located, how many they had of each and what their specific missions were.

The section on Technical Specifications has the kind of detail one might find in "My Big Book of Tanks" and includes useless information on variants such as Pz III diving tanks and M3 CDL tanks that never served in North Africa or fought each other. Readers may also note the unattributed photo of a Pz III on page 37, which is the same as appears in the Wikipedia article on the same subject. Likewise, the 15-page section on The Combatants is rather fluffy and appears to mimic content from two earlier Osprey Warrior series volumes on US and German tankers. There are some interesting bits and pieces in this section, just not much that is specific to the M3 or Pz III. Plenty on diet, almost nothing on tactics. The author profiles two tankers; a German soldier who was a radio operator on in a Pz III tank in II/Panzer Regiment 7, 10th Panzer Division and an American gunner on an M3 in 2-13 AR, 1st Armored Division. The material derived from these two individuals is interesting, but the author acknowledges that Kirby is a pseudonym and neither account is footnoted in any way, so it is difficult to know where these accounts come from. Furthermore, neither participant was in a position to observe much that occurred beyond his tank, which really limits their perspective.

The section on Combat - only 12 pages of text - appears mostly as an afterthought. Much of it focuses on actions at Sidi Bou Zid (mostly US M4s versus German 88mm and Pz IV) and Sbeitla. The actual Grant vs. Pz III content is limited to a few paragraphs, although these offer a tantalizing feel for what the volume could have been with proper research. Unlike earlier volumes that can cite specific actions and say "so many tanks of this type engaged their opposite numbers and destroyed x," this volume cannot offer even the foggiest details on M3 vs. Pz III combat. Take out the couple of first-person paragraphs mentioned and there really is no specific duel content here. As if to highlight the lack of content, in the final section on Statistics & Analysis, the author offers no relevant statistics or analysis (other than generic casualty figures for Kasserine Pass). No statistics are presented on the number of M3 Grants or Pz IIIs lost in combat in February 1943, which shouldn't have been too hard to come by. He opines that, "it is difficult to say which of the two tanks, the M3 or the PzKpfw III, was the better one." Really? You mean, you're not even going to take a stab at it? Wasn't that the point of this whole volume?! Instead, he offers the generic conclusion that, "what it really came down to was the skills of the crew and small unit commanders and who was the quickest." Doesn't that apply to virtually any crew-served weapon? In point of fact, the M3 Grant was being phased out in the US Army in early 1943 and played only a secondary role in Tunisia compared to the M4 Sherman tank, so there probably wasn't very much M3 vs. Pz III combat to begin with. It is certain that even for the small number of M3 vs. Pz III engagements that did occur, that they had little bearing on the outcome of the campaign.

"Kirby could see the panzers coming through his periscope, which was just high enough to see over the wadi's edge. His gun could not be brought to bear -- yet. The firing order blared over the radio, and US guns began to crack, including their own 37mm -- for what it was worth."

Gordon L. Rottman is the author of "M3 Medium Tank vs. Panzer III: Kasserine Pass 1943", the 10th book in Osprey's popular Duel series. The veteran author does a suitable job of analyzing and contrasting the American built M3 medium tank and the German Mark III. "Duel 10" is clearly written, well illustrated and is a fast read.

Mr. Rottman's discussion comprises the design, layout, and development of these tanks, their crew assignments, their respective army units, and their deployment. "Duel 10" concludes with a clash between the two rival tanks -- The Battle of Kasserine Pass.

With a total output of 5,688, the Mark III was Germany's most produced panzer. In 1937, for compatibility reasons, the Mark III was assigned the new high velocity 37mm gun. The Mark III was first upgraded to the short 50mm in June 1940 after battling the rugged French Char B tank. Later the main gun was upgraded again to the long 50mm, in response to the threat of the formidable Russian T-34 tank in 1941.

In 1939, realizing that no current tank matched up with the German panzers rolling through Poland, US designers hurriedly began development of the unorthodox high-profile M3 medium tank.

After reports that German panzers had crushed France were analyzed, the US Army Ordinance Committee demanded that a 75mm gun be incorporated into the M3 tank -- somehow.

This cobbled together M3 would serve in the interim until the faster, more reliable M4 Sherman could be made available in February 1942.

The M3 medium tank ably served with the British Army in North Africa, starting in May 1942. While other units had already converted to the M4 Sherman medium tank, the 2nd Battalion, 1st US Armored Division still was using M3s during the Battle of Kasserine Pass. In the Far East Theater, Commonwealth M3s served against the Japanese in India, Burma, and Borneo.

The author is unwilling to name either tank as the superior weapon. In analysis of the tanks, Mr. Rottman argues, "The M3 tank was rife with flaws, some fatal." The most predominate drawback was its very high profile. The M3 was much easier to see and a much larger target than the Mark III.

Another obvious disadvantage of the M3 tank was that the sponson-mounted 75mm main gun could only fire forward and be aimed from side-to-side with 30 degrees of total adjustment. In order to fire the 75mm main gun at a target, over half the M3 must be exposed to the enemy. The M3 commander's job was further complicated by the responsibility for two guns.

Most of the M3 tank's armor plate was riveted on -- if a shell struck a rivet head, the rivet shaft could be turned into deadly shrapnel inside the tank. Also bullets and shell fragments could enter the tank through the seams of the side hatches.

In judging the M3's armament, Mr. Rottman points out that the machine gun in the cupola was unable to track attacking aircraft and the secondary 37mm was of little value against German tanks. On the positive side, both the 37mm and 75mm guns were gyro stablised and the powerful 75mm main gun could knock out any German tank.

The Mark III's design has few flaws in comparison with the M3. Of note, it lacked gyro stabilised guns and could not fire accurately while moving. Also the turret rotation must be done manually.

By having two-way radios in all German tanks, the author feels the Mark III panzers had an advantage over the M3s. Mr. Rottman argues, "By allowing all tanks to transmit, the Germans were more responsive and able to pass information up the chain-of-command which surely enhanced German combined arms tactics."

Through superior logistics, the US Army was able to quickly replace any M3 losses. In contrast, the German Army had no spare tanks, crewmen, or trucks. Often they would use captured equipment.

I found the section on the daily life of tankers to be best part of the book. This is an insider's view of each crewman's day-to-day duties and experiences that I have not seen in other books.

The author gives us an eye witness account of armored combat in North Africa. Through the experiences of German panzer radio operator Baldur Kohler and M3 gunner Paul Kirby, the reader re-lives the opening round of this confusing tank battle.

In summary and analysis of the battle, the author argues that the defeat of the US Army at Kasserine Pass was due to American inexperience at all levels more so than marked inferiority of the M3 tank.

The US armored forces were inadequately prepared to meet the seasoned German panzers. Mr. Rottman believes that US Army units were too scattered on the battlefield to be effective. He states, "American doctrine, tactics, and techniques at the time were guilty of unrealistic expectations with inadequate preparation."

Mr. Rottman argues that by only practicing in staged exercises, the US Army leadership had not developed skills necessary to make timely battlefield decisions -- this comes only with combat experience. "They were unprepared for the speed of events, the confusion, the loss of contact between units, and nonlinear dispositions".

The US Army did learn well -- Kasserine Pass was the last German victory in the North Africa campaign.

"M3 Medium Tank vs. Panzer III: Kasserine Pass 1943" includes a great number of interesting photographs, color illustrations, diagrams, and three adequate maps of the Battle of Kasserine Pass.

This book adds little value to understanding either the M3 or the PzKpfw III at Kassreine or anywhere in the African campaigns. While I can forgive alittle background information up front, it continues throughout the whole book! Glittering generalities with little substance as my English teacher would say. Many captions are wrong and simply repeat the text, typos abound, and I honestly wondered when we would get to Kasserine - never really did. Author's fault? Maybe. I have to believe the editorial staff was asleep at the switch, especially after reading the Firefly VS. Tiger book. If you really want to read about the whole story, "An Army at Dawn" will lead you through the totality of North Africa from both sides. "Pass" on this book - there are many other titles such as the "Tank in Detail" series, AFV visuals, and just about anything Steven Zaloga has written. Rommel's Afrika Korps: Tobruk to El Alamein (Battle Orders) by Pier Paolo Battistelli also provides an excellent view inside the german machine in Africa.