Tank
From Conservapedia
A Tank is a large armoured and (typically) tracked military vehicle, designed to engage enemy troops, vehicles and fortifications with direct fire. They were first invented during World War I by the British. They were a direct result of the advances in motorized transport. The tank was to be able to cross trenches, crush barbed wire, and were invulnerable to small arms and machine gun fire, although bombs and artillery fire could destroy or disable them. Armored cars had already seen use, but their somewhat limited combat ability persuaded Major Ernest Swinton to develop a tracked fighting vehicle. A committee was formed to oversee the project. The first tank created by this committee was a tank that was nicknamed Little Willie. This tank was tested by the British military in 1915 and was first called a landship. Becaue of the secretive nature of the project, the first tanks were shipped to the front in crates marked 'water carriers'. This later evolved into 'tank'. The French also developed a tank that was based off a Holt caterpillar. This tank was first used in 1917. Tanks eventually made trench warfare obsolete and would later become one of the best fighting machines on the planet.
The use of tanks in warfare was revolutionised by the German Army in the opening years of the Second World War. German Blitzkrieg tactics, using concentrated tank formations with air support, enabled the rapid conquest of France and the Low Countries in May-June 1940 and in 1941 helped the Germans to reach the edge of Moscow. Ironically, the Germans were using a military philosophy that had been devised by a British tactician, Major Basil Liddell-Hart, but ignored by the British War Office. Tank warfare formed a crucial part of the conflict in North Africa, and on the eastern front the Battle of Kursk in 1943 - the largest tank engagement ever fought - spelled the end of German dreams of conquest in the USSR.
Modern tanks combine speed, manouverability, armour and firepower to ensure maximum survavability on the battlefield. The combination has resulted in one of the most effective land weapon systems. Tanks remain vulnerable to airstrikes and helicopters, as well as other tanks, anti-tank missiles, heavy artillery and mines or other booby traps. A modern tank typically has a crew of four, a commander, a gunner, a loader and a driver. Tanks require considerable logistical support to operate effectively. Modern tanks typically mount a single 120mm gun with both armour piercing (for use against other tanks) and high explosive (for use against light vehicles, infantry and buildings) ammunition as well as one or more machine guns. Tank armour is strongest and thickest on the front of the tank, with lesser protection on the sides, rear, top and underneath.
The rise of effective infantry anti-tank weapons has since eroded the dominance the tank enjoyed during the middle of the 20th century. Unsupported Israeli armored units suffered heavy losses at the hands of Egyptian troops with modern ATGMs in the Sinai. It is now considered essential for tanks to be supported by infantry at all times.
