Armament
Armament centered around the 90mm M36 series main gun of which 71 x 90mm projectiles were allotted. Secondary armament included a .50 caliber heavy Browning M2 air-cooled machine gun for anti-aircraft defense on a pintle mount along the turret roof and manned by the tank commander. This was further complimented by a co-axially mounted .30 caliber M1919A4 machine gun (controlled by the gunner) and an additional .30 caliber M1919A4 machine gun in a bow-mount for anti-infantry defense (the latter was later removed to make space for additional 90mm projectiles, therefore making the M47 the last American tank to feature the bow-mounted machine gun and its extra crew position).
Power and Performance
Power was derived from a Continental AVDS-1790-5B V-12 air-cooled, twin-carbureted gasoline engine delivering up to 800 horsepower. The engine was mated to an Allison/General Motors CD-850-4 transmission allowing for two modes of forward travel and one mode of reverse travel. Performance specifications included a top speed of 30 miles per hour and an approximate range of 81 miles. Gradient traverse was limited to 60 percent and vertical obstacle crossing at 3 feet. Trench crossing was limited at 8 feet, 6 inches while onboard fuel capacity was a reported 232 gallons.
The M47 Lives on Through Export
The Military Assistance Program (MAP) of the Cold War ensured that the tank lived a hearty existence within the ranks of NATO allies throughout the 1950s. Once in foreign service, the type would survive well into the 21st Century thanks to special locally-introduced modernization programs - some introducing diesel engines and all-new transmission systems or proposed 105mm main gun armament. West Germany and Turkey were quantitative users of note, each receiving some reported 1,120 and 1,347 examples respectively. The Turkish examples were themselves made up of former American and West German M47 models no longer of value.
Combat Ultimately Finds the M47
Though missing out in American actions of the Korean War, the M47 was nonetheless fielded by other export nations in anger. The Pakistani Army unleashed the M47 on India in the Indo-Pak War of 1965 while Jordan used the type in the 1967 Six Day War with Israel. Iran used the M47 against Iraq in their cross-border war. In 1974, some 200 Turkish M47s were used in the invasion of the island of Cyprus. More recently, Croatian M47s were used against Serb forces in the Croatian War of Independence but did not fare well against the more-capable Soviet-produced T-55 main battle tanks. After all was said and done, the M47 became the only Patton-named tank in American service to never see direct combat actions for the United States.
Limited Production Equals Limited Variants
Despite the M47's "newness" at the time of inception, the system led a relatively short service life with the United States military for the excellent and all-new M48 tank design came online to quickly replace the type. Beyond the M46E1 pilot model, the Patton II was revealed in two major production forms. "M47" was used to note the base series designation and was essentially a re-turreted M46 with a revised hull and three track return rollers per track side (down from five). The tank was later improved in the "M47M" model of the 1960s which fitted the fire control system and engine of the M60A1 Patton main battle tank and deleted the bow-mounted machine gun position. None of these newer "M" models were utilized by the US Army, which had already moved on to other more capable main battle tank products by this time. The M6 became an M47 fitted with a bulldozer kit for battlefield excavation. The T66 was a proposed flamethrower tank but never placed into production.
The USMC and the M47
Beyond use of the tank in the US Army, the US Marine Corps operated the M47 for a time before these too were soon replaced by the M48A1 main battle tanks and M103 heavy tanks. USMC M47s were removed from service in 1959.
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