Breaking The Mold: Tanks In The Cities [Illustrated Edition]

Breaking The Mold: Tanks In The Cities [Illustrated Edition]
Author: Kendall D. Gott
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
Total Pages: 145
Release: 2014-08-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1782894446

Illustrated with 30 maps. Few lessons are as prevalent in military history as is the adage that tanks don’t perform well in cities. The notion of deliberately committing tanks to urban combat is anathema to most. In Breaking the Mold: Tanks in the Cities, Mr. Ken Gott disproves that notion with a timely series of five case studies from World War II to the present war in Iraq. This is not a parochial or triumphant study. These cases demonstrate that tanks must do more than merely “arrive” on the battlefield to be successful in urban combat. From Aachen in 1944 to Fallujah in 2004, the absolute need for specialized training and the use of combined arms at the lowest tactical levels are two of the most salient lessons that emerge from this study. When properly employed, well-trained and well-supported units led by tanks are decisive in urban combat. The reverse is also true. Chechen rebels taught the Russian army and the world a brutal lesson in Grozny about what happens when armored units are poorly led, poorly trained, and cavalierly employed in a city. The case studies in this monograph are high-intensity battles in conflicts ranging from limited interventions to major combat operations. It would be wrong to use them to argue for the use of tanks in every urban situation. As the intensity of the operation decreases, the second and third order effects of using tanks in cities can begin to outweigh their utility. The damage to infrastructure caused by their sheer weight and size is just one example of what can make tanks unsuitable for every mission. Even during peace operations, however, the ability to employ tanks and other heavy armored vehicles quickly can be crucial. A study on the utility of tanks in peace operations is warranted, and planned.- Timothy R. Reese Colonel, Armor

Breaking the Mold

Breaking the Mold
Author: Kendall Gott
Publisher:
Total Pages: 146
Release: 2019-06-24
Genre:
ISBN: 9781075859922

Few lessons are as prevalent in military history as is the adage that tanks don't perform well in cities. The notion of deliberately committing tanks to urban combat is anathema to most. In Breaking the Mold: Tanks in the Cities, Mr. Ken Gott disproves that notion with a timely series of five case studies from World War II to the present war in Iraq.

Breaking the Mold

Breaking the Mold
Author: Kendall D. Gott
Publisher: Department of the Army
Total Pages: 148
Release: 2006
Genre: History
ISBN:

Contains five case studies from World War II to the present war in Iraq analyzing the utility of tanks and heavy armored forces in urban combat. "Breaking the Mold "provides an up-to-date analysis of the utility of tanks and heavy armored forces in urban combat. The case studies in this monograph are high-intensity battles in conflicts ranging from limited interventions to major combat operations. As the intensity of the operation decreases, the second and third order effects of using tanks in cities can begin to outweigh their utility. The damage to infrastructure caused by their sheer weight and size is just one example of what can make tanks unsuitable for every mission. Even during peace operations, however, the ability to employ tanks and other heavy armored vehicles quickly can be crucial. These cases demonstrate that tanks must do more than merely "arrive" on the battlefield to be successful in urban combat. From Aachen in 1944 to Fallujah in 2004, the absolute need for specialized training and the use of combined arms at the lowest tactical levels are two of the most salient lessons that emerge from this study. When properly employed, well-trained and well-supported units led by tanks are decisive in urban combat. The reverse is also true.

Breaking the Mold

Breaking the Mold
Author: Kendall D. Gott
Publisher:
Total Pages: 132
Release: 2010-11
Genre:
ISBN: 9781437937862

There is an adage that tanks don¿t perform well in cities. Gott disproves that notion with a series of five case studies from World War II to the war in Iraq. These cases demonstrate that tanks must do more than merely ¿arrive¿ on the battlefield to be successful in urban combat. From Aachen in 1944 to Fallujah in 2004, the absolute need for specialized training and the use of combined arms at the lowest tactical levels are two salient lessons. Gott provides an up-to-date analysis of the utility of tanks and heavy armored forces in urban combat. The U.S. Army will increasingly conduct combat operations in urban terrain, and it will therefore be necessary to understand what it takes to employ tanks to achieve success in that battlefield. Illustrations.

Block by Block

Block by Block
Author: William Glenn Robertson
Publisher: www.Militarybookshop.CompanyUK
Total Pages: 484
Release: 2003
Genre: History
ISBN:

First published by the Combat Studies Institute Press. The resulting anthology begins with a general overview of urban operations from ancient times to the midpoint of the twentieth century. It then details ten specific case studies of U.S., German, and Japanese operations in cities during World War II and ends with more recent Russian attempts to subdue Chechen fighters in Grozny and the Serbian siege of Sarajevo. Operations range across the spectrum from combat to humanitarian and disaster relief. Each chapter contains a narrative account of a designated operation, identifying and analyzing the lessons that remain relevant today.