T-34 / SU-76 Hybrid

People’s Republic of Poland (1955) Tank – Probably Fake The release of declassified historical documents from the archives of the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has produced some interesting, unusual, and often rather odd intelligence reports relating to tanks. With much of what was happening behind the Iron Curtain, especially in terms of military …

Giacomini Tank

France (1956) Tank – Patent Only Post-World War Two Europe was a continent rich in the legacy of the war. A legacy which took the form of an abundance of tanks, both in the form of legacy leftovers of the war, and a ready supply of new tanks from Britain (Centurion) or the United States …

Alvis Shadow ‘Offensive Action Vehicle’

United Kingdom/United States of America (1998-2000) Reconnaissance Vehicle – 2 Built In the late 1990s, the specialist versions of the Land Rovers used by British Special forces and other reconnaissance troops were showing their age, with some units still using Series III vehicles – a vehicle which ended production in 1985. With an eye to …

Bloomfield’s ‘Tortoise’ Single Track Heavy Tank

Commonwealth of Australia (1942) Heavy Tank – None Built Post WW1, most tanks follow a common enough shape, with a rigid armored body, a pair of track units, with one on each side, an engine located within the body, and either a fixed casemate gun or a turret with some secondary guns in the hull. …

Goede’s New Tank

Hungary (2002) Tank – Patent Only Dr. Gabor Goede (Hungarian: Gábor Göde), a resident of Budapest, Hungary, filed a patent for a ‘New Type of Tank’ on 16th July 2002. In it, Goede was clear that in his view tanks would “continue to act [as] an important and indispensable part in modern warfare”, but that …

McNaier’s Armored Truck

United States of America (1919) Armored Truck – None Built On 29th March 1919, Joseph Treanor McNaier submitted a patent design for a centrifugal gun. This was no ordinary firearm and was not merely a design for a weapon in isolation. When he filed his design on 2nd April, McNaier was proposing a new way …

Biemmi Naval Tank

Kingdom of Italy (1930) Amphibious Tank – None Built The problem of tanks getting over water, rivers, small lakes, or flooded ground has plagued tank designs right from WW1. A variety of solutions have been tried over the years, depending on how much water needs to be waded through or how wide the waterway is. …

Tanks from The Shape of Things to Come

United Kingdom (1936) Science Fiction Tank The classic film Things to Come hit the big screen in 1936. Right at the outset of what would become WW2, this film, directed by William Menzies, predicted a devastating conflict in Europe which would last for years and destroy the very fabric of society. It was based on …

Blacksher Armored Automobile

United States of America (1916) Armored Car – None Built In 1916, there was one war sucking up all of the attention – the war in Europe, which was seeing the largest European empires battling it out at extreme costs. The USA did not enter the war until April 1917, and, in the meantime, already …

M998 GLH-L ‘Ground Launched Hellfire – Light’

United States of America (1987-1991) Missile Tank Destroyer – 5 Built The AGM-114 ‘Hellfire’ missile was developed by the US Army specifically to counter modern Soviet main battle tanks in a potential clash of superpowers during a Cold War-turned-hot scenario. Thankfully for all concerned, such a conflict did not erupt, the Cold War ending with …