Germans Laughed at Sherman Tanks Until One Tank Exposed Their Industrial Doom скачать в хорошем качестве

Germans Laughed at Sherman Tanks Until One Tank Exposed Their Industrial Doom

Discover the classified story of War Daddy 2—a single M4A1 Sherman tank captured intact at Sidi Bou Zid, Tunisia in February 1943 that triggered a crisis of confidence among German engineers at the secret Kummersdorf testing facility and revealed that Germany had already lost the industrial war despite possessing superior tank specifications on paper. This meticulously researched historical account exposes how German test engineers subjected this American tank to months of comprehensive automotive examination, discovering that Sherman reliability, herringbone-cut transmission gears, synchronized shifting requiring no double-clutching, and Continental R-975 radial engines maintained consistent performance under conditions that would disable German Panthers and Tigers. Through declassified Wehrmacht technical reports, armaments minister Albert Speer's memoirs documenting the June 1943 Hillersleben demonstration where a Sherman climbed test slopes easily while the 65-ton Ferdinand tank destroyer stalled in embarrassment, and field reports from German Panzer units operating captured Shermans, this comprehensive documentary investigation reveals how American automotive engineering maturity developed through decades of civilian industry experience fundamentally surpassed German theoretical sophistication. Featuring devastating statistics—Panther operational readiness averaging below 40 percent through 1943 with some units reporting only 16 percent tanks functional at Kursk while Shermans maintained substantially higher availability, Panther final drives failing within 100-200 kilometers while Sherman final drives operated for 2,000+ kilometers without major maintenance, and January 1945 Panzer Commission reports documenting 500 defective Panzer IV final drives, 370 defective Panther final drives, and complete loss of troop confidence in vehicle reliability. The story demonstrates how 49,324 Shermans produced by American factories exceeded total German tank production of all types combined, how German engineers at Kummersdorf reached correct conclusions about American industrial advantages by mid-1943 but lacked capacity to retool production while fighting on multiple fronts, and why the 10th SS Panzer Division eagerly formed entire companies using captured Shermans because American tanks simply worked when