Microsoft Close Combat - Manual (Page 111)

110 Close Combat
SdKfz 250 Light Armored
Troop Carrier
Weight 5,909 kg (13,000 lbs)
Maximum speed 74 km/h (45 mph)
Armament MG 34 machine gun
Armor 6 to 10 mm (.24 to .4 in.)
The SdKfz 250 was a light halftrack troop carrier
with light sloping armor based on the SdKfz 10
one-ton prime mover chassis. It provided a lower
profile than its predecessor and omitted its wind-
shield. This model, which carried a crew of eight,
was one of several variants based on the one-ton
chassis; others included an armored ammunition
carrier and an armored observation post. A similar,
but heavier, vehicle was the SdKfz 251 medium
halftrack troop carrier, based on the SdKfz 11 three-
ton prime mover chassis.
M3A1 Halftrack
Weight 6,660 kg (14,800 lbs)
Maximum speed 74 kph (45 mph)
Armament Various
Armor 6 mm (.24 in.)
The American military used a variety of halftracks
during World War II; these half-tank, half-truck
vehicles were used both as infantry carriers and
weapons carriers because halftracks could traverse
terrain that trucks could not, and they enabled
infantry to be moved into combat with relative
safety. The two most widely used were the M2
(later M5) and M3 (later M9). The M3 (M3A1)
was powered by a White 147-hp engine. This
model could carry 13 soldiers.
Halftracks were also used extensively as weapons
carriers, mounting machine guns (both .30 and .50
caliber), mortars (81 mm and 4.2 in.), antitank guns
(37 and 57 mm), and other armaments (40-mm
antiaircraft, and 75- and 105-mm howitzers).