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The 90mm Gun T8 was an attempt to produce a powerful anti-tank gun based on a 90mm anti-aircraft gun, but arrived after towed anti-tank guns had been discredited and only one example reached Europe during the Second World War.
In December 1942 Ordnance began work on using the 90mm anti-aircraft gun as an anti-tank gun, inspired by the success of the German 88mm. The new weapon combined the M1 90mm gun with a M2 recoil mechanism taken from the 105mm howitzer. In the anti-tank role it was designated as the 90mm gun T8 on carriage T5. The carriage caused significant problems. The combination of the 90mm gun and the T5 carriage was very long, so the trails of the carriage could be folded back to reduce their length, while the gun could rotate by 180 degrees so the barrel was facing back over the trails when being towed. However trials in January 1944 showed that this design didn’t work. A more conventional carriage T5E1 was designed, but this failed trials in June 1944. Finally the T5E2 passed its trials, ready to be used on a batch of 600 guns that had been ordered.
The T8 90mm gun with T5E2 was classified as limited standard on 7 September 1944. A dedicated prime mover, the Cadillac T39 light tractor, was developed but not placed into production.
The first three T8s were completed in 1944 and the entire rune of 200 by June 1945. Only one actually reached Europe during the war, with the Zebra mission, which took a number of experimental weapons to the front. However by this point towed anti-tank guns had been discredited and there is no record that the T8 every saw any combat.
After the war the 90mm gun was used by the anti-tank batteries of the Airborne Divisions, even though they were too large to be carried in any of the available aircraft. They were replaced in the early 1950s.
The original 90mm gun was capable of being turned into an effective anti-tank weapon, and the developed 90mm gun M3 was used on the M36 90mm GMC and the Pershing tank.
Name |
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Calibre |
90mm |
Bore Length |
L/50 |
Weight for transport |
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Weight in action |
7,750lb |
Elevation |
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Traverse |
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Shell Weight |
24.1lb |
Muzzle Velocity |
2,670ft/s |
Maximum Range |
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Penetration |
278mm at 500yds (M304 HVAP ammo) |
Books,
Zaloga, Steven J., US Anti-tank Artillery 1941-45