Tthe M18 헬캣(officially designated the 76 mm Gun Motor Carriage M18 or M18 GMC) was an American tank destroyer of World War II, also used in the Korean War. It was the fastest U.S. tank on the road. The speed was attained by keeping armor to a minimum, using the innovative Torqmatic automatic transmission, and by equipping the relatively light vehicle with the same main gun used on the much larger Sherman tank.
The Hellcat was the most effective U.S. tank destroyer of World War II. It had a higher kill to loss ratio than any other tank or tank destroyer fielded by U.S. forces in World War II.
Tthe M18 헬캣was a tank destroyer developed and used by the United States during World War II. It was designed to be fast and agile, with a top speed of 55 mph (89 km/h) on road and 26 mph (42 km/h) off road. It had a thin armor of 25.4 mm (1 inch) at most, which made it vulnerable to enemy fire but also reduced its weight and improved its mobility. It was armed with a 76 mm gun M1A1, M1A1C, or M1A2, which could penetrate most German tanks at medium range. The M18 Hellcat had a crew of five: commander, gunner, loader, driver, and assistant driver.
M18 Hellcat은 1943 년 7 월에 생산에 들어갔으며 1944 년 봄에 첫 전투 서비스를 보았습니다. 주로 서유럽에서 봉사했지만 이탈리아와 태평양에서도 봉사했습니다. 제2차 세계 대전 당시 가장 효과적인 미국 구축전차였으며 킬 대 패킹 비율은 2.4 대 1이었습니다. 총 526명을 사살했는데, 이 중 498명은 유럽, 17명은 이탈리아, 11명은 태평양에서 발생했다. 그러나 주로 탱크 전투에 사용되지 않고 보병 또는 정찰 임무를위한 직접 사격 지원에 사용되었습니다. M18 Hellcat은 제 2 차 세계 대전 이후 미국에서 퇴역했지만 일부 변형은 1995 년까지 다른 국가에서 계속 사용되었습니다.