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DDs were used on a much smaller scale in several more operations in Europe. Each required a considerable amount of crew training beforehand. For Operation Dragoon, this was conducted at the Invasion Training Center at Salerno, Italy. Starting on July 10 1944, crews received about 30 days of instruction from a British DD team sent from England. The DDs arrived somewhat later, and in the meantime, crews practiced various swimming techniques with DUKWs. Escape drills were conducted using a giant vat located in a warehouse in the nearby town of Battipaglia. Crews were to remain in the hull of a salvaged Sherman, as the vat was flooded with water to 18 feet. They then evacuated the tank with the aid of a "Monson Lung" device. With the arrival of the DDs, crews received about 18 hours of instruction in LCT launching and 12 hours in beach operations. Two DDs were lost with one fatality when their screens were ripped "by a projection on the ramp of an LCT" just as they launched. The small hatch M4A1 DD at Piana Dell Orme would be one of these, and there may still be another on the seabed off  Salerno.




The 191st, 753rd and 756th Tank Battalions had trained personnel sufficient to operate 16 DDs each during the invasion. Only 36 were actually used due to "LCT loading space available". It is thought that the 48 DDs sent to Italy all came from the group of 76 unused M4A1s that remained in the UK after D-Day "with no operational need at this time". Unlike the Normandy Invasion, the Mediteranean Sea was calm on August 15 1944, and the table above shows the outcome for Operation Dragoon.







DDs were used by US units in several river crossing operations in the ETO in 1945. In one example, C Company of the 736th was attached to the 743rd Tank Battalion. Due to his prior experience, William Duncan, now a Lt. Colonel and commanding officer of the 743rd, supervised the crossing of the Rhine by the DDs of C Company on March 24 1945. Based on the experience of the Staffordshire Yeomanry at the Scheldt, it became obvious that DDs required a suitable landing place on the far shore, and one was located near the town of Ork, and improved by engineers about an hour beforehand. The first DD crossed at 0345, and all 17 made it across safely by 0554. They then "marched to the sound of the guns" in support of the 30th Infantry Division, which had preceded them in the assault. It is to be noted that elements of Col. Duncan's 743rd crossed the Rhine near Wallach, ferried by two Bailey rafts, later that same day. Some of the DDs used by US units for the Rhine crossings were British conversions. The space between the roadwheels on the unit pictured above suggests that it was a Sherman V (M4A4) DD. Based on the road sign locations, this DD is thought have been with the 748th Tank Battalion. The battalion had 51 DDs, but only a small number were still "floatable," due to wear and tear. One sank immediately upon entering the water because of a torn screen, but 7 of their DDs managed to swim across the Rhine at Oppenheim on March 23. Photo courtesy of Recon Military Photos.


   

   

The records emphasized the importance of a good landing place on the far shore during river crossing, and mention that a couple of the 736th's DDs missed the "ramp", but were able to turn around and make a second attempt thanks to the slow current that day. The photo sequence above shows a similar mishap involving USA 3070200 of the 781st Tank Battalion. The crew, which was training on the Neckar River in April, overshot the landing ramp and dropped the DD's "sides a trifle soon". The crew averted disaster by re-inflating, backing off and coming back in for a successful landing. By the USA Number, this tank would have been made by Pressed Steel Car, and accepted in November, 1943. It can be seen to have "small" drivers' hatches, along with an improved low bustle turret with factory installed loader's hatch. The DDs would have been over a year old by then, and one can see the extensive patching of the canvas.






The British Sherman DD conversion program ended in December 1944 after 693 units had been produced. This would seem like a sufficient number for training and further amphibious Operations after D-Day. However, the British ordered an additional 300 US produced DDs as part of their 1945 Lend Lease requirements. These were offered to them based on the M4A2(76)HVSS, since that was the only Sherman being built for Lend Lease at the time. Presumably, these were wanted for "Operation Zipper" the invasion of Malaya, since US plans for the invasion of Japan did not include much Commonwealth participation, at least not on the ground. In any case, the DD order was negotiated down to 200 units, and two pilot models (British nomenclature "Sherman IIIAY DD III") were completed in the Summer of 1945 at the Firestone Plant in Burlington, North Carolina. Production was scheduled at 50 per month starting in September, but the program was terminated due to the end of the war. One of the pilots was retained by the Ordnance Museum at Aberdeen Proving Ground for historic purposes and was on display there for many years. It is S/N 69278, accepted in May 1945, the final month of Fisher M4A2 production. It is now thought to be in storage at the Anniston Army Depot in Alabama. Both photos courtesy of Neil Baumgardner.




The Sherman IIIAY DD III had a higher screen than earlier models, so the tiller (item 1) and the steadying bar (item 2) were extended, and the commander (pilot) stood directly on top of the turret. Note the addition of armor skirts to protect the suspension (item 3). Major Duncan and his staff had suggested that on future designs "a cutwater or tin shield be added so vehicle may ram [underwater obstacles] without serious damage to itself." This was never incorporated, and leads us to suspect that, under most swimming circumstances, a crewman may have been stationed forward as lookout. Standing on the front support crossbar in order to see over the screen, he would have warned of any obstacles in the water that might endanger the canvas.




The British continued development work on the DD into 1946. A Department of Tank Design nomenclature document dated February 27, 1945 has it that some DDs were “brought up to late DD I Standard. I.E. with turret struts (1) self locking struts (2) and rear screen.” The first two items are seen on the Sherman III DD at Bovington.




The turret mounted struts are rare in period photos, but can be seen on the 44th Royal Tank Regiment DD above. It was photographed on March 25, 1945 following Operation Plunder, the crossing of the Rhine by the 21st Army Group. Again the nomenclature doc has it that some Sherman III DD MK Is were redesignated MK IIs when they were fitted with conversion kits that included the addition of power steering and an air compressor. At present, it is not known if the Bovington DD is equipped with these features.




The "Topee" was a hinged armored cover that protected the canvas screen when in the down or traveling position. This was designed in response to user recommendations after many screens had been torn when they brushed against various objects on the road. Concurrently, tests were conducted whereby remotely controlled machine guns and / or recoilless rifles were mounted at the top of the screen frame to give DDs some firepower when swimming in. While both of these modifications were recommended following trials, it is not thought that either went into production. Note that the Sherman III DD pictured on the left is built to the late DD I standard as evidenced by the turret mounted struts. For what it is worth, the records of Allied Land Forces South East Asia, dated 28 August 1945, record that "it had been hoped" to modify the DDs of the 25th Dragoons "to Mk. II standard and to fit Topee." However, the Mk.II kits had not arrived from the UK, and "India were unable to make Topee from the material available."




British planners felt that an Armored Personnel Carrier was needed for future amphibious operations, and that the unarmored US built LVT and DUKW amphibians were not suitable for the assault role. They created an APC DD by removing the turret from a Sherman DD and replacing it with "a mushroom-shaped cover...raised above the turret ring to provide an all-round firing slit." It may have been intended to employ large numbers of APC DDs in future operations against the Japanese homeland. These would have been converted from existing stocks of DDs, and may explain why the British ordered 300 DDs from the US for 1945. The drawing above is speculative. The photos were missing from the APC Report in the Hunnicutt files, formerly at the Patton Museum. If any readers have APC DD images, we would be pleased to have the opportunity to see them.




The DDs were no longer a secret after D-Day. Another British design, referred to as "Counter DD Equipments", "enabled DD tanks to swim through a sea of fire" should the enemy attempt to create such a defense. A series of nozzles were plumbed around the top of the screen, and misted the canvas with sea water, thereby preventing it from catching fire. Also known as the "Belch Apparatus", it appears to be the only British modification that actually went into production. Correspondence dated 2 August 1945, states that "120 sets were ordered in May 1944 and were completed". It was further noted that there were 86 DDs in India, with plans to send over 100 more. It was intended to equip all of these with the Counter DD modification and was noted that the design would not fit the 200 US made DDs the British had ordered. These activities apparently ceased with the surrender of Japan.




We can't confirm that 86 DDs were actually shipped to India, but that is the number that comes up in a few British documents. The veterans of the 25th Dragoons completed their tour of duty in Burma, turned in their tanks, and returned to India during the second week of June 1945. The War Diary suggests that their first DDs were "T.O.S." [taken on strength] on 25 June 1945, when "6 Cruiser Tanks Sherman Mk. III D.D." arrived at the unit's base at Cocanada [Kakinada] on the Bay of Bengal. On 30 June, an additional 10 arrived from the Tank Depot at Kirkee, "completing the War Establishment," which we take to mean "the War Establishment for a single DD Squadron." As best we have been able to determine from available documentation, the DDs were wanted for Operation Zipper, a series of amphibious landings planned to recapture Malaya and Singapore. D-Day seems to have been set for late August. The only mission involving DDs appears to have been planned for D plus 3 at the Port Dickson Beaches in Malaya and would have involved an assault by half of the DD Shermans (~ 9 DDs) of B Squadron, 25th Dragoons in support of the 49th Indian Infantry Brigade of the 23rd Indian Infantry Division. Duplex Drive Shermans were to be used because "of the impossibility of landing any other vehicles on that beach, and the vital necessity that that particular assault should succeed." On D plus 22, the rest of the 25th Dragoons were to land at Port Dickson and go into reserve with the original B Squadron contingent. Although it was planned to use other armored units for various landings, it doesn't appear that there were any other DD operations scheduled. It is not noted in the War Diary, but John Leyin of B/25th Dragoons, relates that his DDs were actually loaded aboard LSTs in Madras harbor, preparing to set sail, but when the Hiroshima bomb was dropped on 6 August, "we were ordered to get our tanks off the LSTs and to assemble in the harbour." All DD operations were said to have been aborted at that time. After the surrender, Commonwealth troops did make unopposed landings based on some of the Operation Zipper plans, and the photo above, dated 12 September 1945, shows a Sherman III DD disembarking from an LST in Singapore. The Dragoons' War Diary for 16 September vaguely mentions, "Preparation of tanks for Victory Parade. Final loading and stowing." And on the 17th, "Singapore Victory Parade on beach. Inspection of men and vehicles." Thus, we can only assume that elements of the 25th Dragoons had been shipped the 3500 miles to Singapore to have the honor of taking part in the Victory Parade. We could not find any Singapore newsreel footage showing DDs, so the photo above seems to be unique. Note the commander's split hatch cupola (1) of the original Sherman design. Additionally, this unit can be seen with the rear mounted drive sprockets (2) of the original DD design.




With the end of WW II, elements of the British Army, including the 25th Dragoons, were stationed in various places throughout India until 1947, at which point British colonial rule ended and the country was partitioned into two independent nations: India and Pakistan. We believe that the photo above was taken in Ramgarh on 12 July 1946 during a review by Field Marshall Claude Auchinleck, Commander-in-Chief, India. At that time, C Squadron of the 43rd Royal Tank Regiment equipped with approximately 14 Canal Defence Lights (1) was under command of the 25th Dragoons "Group." The Sherman seen here was stripped of its DD apparatus, leaving only the skirt. On occasion, the War Diary lists "Sherman IIIs" as opposed to "Sherman III DDs" so it may be that some knocked down DDs were being considered as regular "Sherman III" gun tanks. From trying to interpret the War Diary, we would guess that the 25th Dragoons never had more than 2 Squadrons (~30 units) of operational DDs on strength. In April 1946, it was noted that "B Squadron revert to dismounted role." In any case, this tank looks to be a late production M4A2 with M34A1 Gun Mount (2), upturned return roller arms (3) and a full suite of applique armor (4). Note that a US made commander's vision cupola (5) can be seen to have been retrofitted, with the anti-aircraft machine gun pedestal mount (6) fitted in a non-standard, forward position. When the British pulled out of India, they left behind great quantities of military equipment which were "inherited" in one way or another by the Indians and Pakistanis. At least 4 ex-Sherman III DDs are on display as monuments or museum pieces in India. Many thanks to Craig Moore for providing us with the 25th Dragoons War Diaries from the British National Archives.


   

In March 1946, 4 of the 25th Dragoons' Sherman III DDs were dispatched to Risalpur on the Northwestern Frontier, now part of Pakistan. They were under command of the 3rd Indian Armoured Brigade and were tasked with demonstrating the capabilities of the swimming tank in a river crossing operation. Trials were carried out in April and May 1946 and deemed successful. Trooper H. V. Phillips, a REME engineer with the 25th Dragoons, took snapshots of a few of the DDs of the "Frontier Force." The photo on the left shows one of the units with fully inflated screen either emerging from or backing into, the Kalpani River. Note that the rear sprockets are not attached in this case. Perhaps this was the last time Sherman DDs ever swam? The photo on the right has the note "Flats at Kirkee, Feb. 1947." By the date, we might assume that these tanks were being turned in at the huge Arsenal at Kirkee near Pune, India. These DDs appear to have US made commander's vision cupolas retrofitted. They can be seen to have been transported on the "depressed centre," 50 ton "Warwell wagons" preferred by the British.




Our globetrotting friend Jim Goetz examined this ex-Sherman III DD in an open field outside of a military base in Belagavi, India. Note that there is another DD (1) within sight of our subject. These tanks do not appear to have been shot up, but simply left in place. At one time, this example had the USA Registration Number 3056470 painted on as seen in the inset. This would indicate that it was built in December 1943, the last month of M4A2 production at Federal Machine & Welder. The tank can be seen with the "usual" FMW or Pullman glacis pattern characterized by the small bow machine gun casting (2) and the antenna bracket (3). It has such late production features as the sharp nosed E8543 differential housing (4) and pads indicating that it once had a gun travel lock (5) and a siren (6) mounted on the glacis.




In this side view, we see the DD skirt without all the other paraphernalia. This affords us a look at the rather substantial box-like structure (1) that was welded onto the upper rear hull plates of M4A2 based DD conversions. This does not appear on M4A4 or M4A1 DD conversions, whose exhausts were directed up with fixtures more like sheet metal wading stacks. The structure continues down and angles in to enclose the area around the exhaust and provides a channel for the gasses to escape upward as shown in the inset. Note that a scorch shield (2) was installed to prevent the hot exhaust from damaging the fragile canvas. We can't help but think that, with the DD screen raised, the diesel exhaust would have been extremely unpleasant for the crew during a long swim. It is thought that FMW would have been factory installing the side applique plates (3) and the bogies with upturned return roller arms (4) by the time this tank was built in December 1943. Its configuration appears very much like the knocked down DD seen in the Auchinleck parade photo. Since it was converted to DD by the British, it would be hard to determine if it retained its original turret, but most of the manufacturers that left the Sherman program at the end of 1943 finished out production with such "no pistol port" turrets. Jim was able to enter this tank and reported spending quite a bit of time attempting to "reveal" the number stamped inside the dataplate frame. His diligence confirms that USA 3056470 is indeed the original Registration Number.


   

We thought we'd show a photo of the top of the turret since it strikes us as unusual that a US made commander's vision cupola was retrofitted. This modification kit was released in September 1944, but doesn't appear to have gone into general circulation until the end of the year. The evidence is that only a handful of 1942/43 production Shermans received the mod during WW II, mostly during remanufacture. The kit came with a "pedestal mount for cal. .50 anti-aircraft machine gun," since, unlike the split hatch cupola it replaced, the all-round vision cupola did not have an integrated pintle mount. The instruction booklet includes diagrams with specific directions about the location of the pedestal mount, which was about where we have placed the number 1. However, on this turret, as well as on the other DD nearby, one can see weld scars (2) showing where the pedestal was actually mounted. Some of Trooper Phillips' snapshots, such as the one on the right, show the vision cupola and pedestal retrofitted in this configuration. We would observe that the other Sherman III DDs that Jim Goetz visited in Ahmednagar and Jaisalmer do not appear to have received the vision cupola modification. In the period photo, the color of the rotatable section of the hatch is somewhat unexpected. It appears to be white or perhaps silver, the color that the British preferred for the interior of their tanks. As built, Shermans had the interior of their hatches painted the same color as the exterior - olive drab. However, a film of a Victory Parade in New Delhi in 1946 has a segment featuring Shermans rolling by with the interiors of the drivers' and commander's hatches painted a very light color. We like to record the turret data when the opportunity presents itself, and since Jim was able to climb on, it was possible to note the turret part number "D50878" followed by "H inside of a C", the logo of Continental Foundry & Machine's East Chicago, Indiana plant. In his fine "Foundry Symbols and Trademarks" piece, author Kurt Laughlin, explains, "This plant was originally the Hubbard Steel Foundry, hence the “H”." The turret serial number of this no pistol port turret is 3595, which we take to be an indication that C-H produced at least that number of turrets.


   





Jim spent quite a bit of time walking around the base at Belagavi fruitlessly chasing a rumor of another ex-DD Sherman reported to be lying on its side. As it turned out, the "rumor" was actually in a village a few miles west. Mick Wilson and his sons Mark and Connor went to great lengths to find the mystery DD and documented their adventure in a YouTube video released in December 2023 and entitled "Lost Sherman DD Tanks of India". Here we see it "in somebody's backyard" in the village of Bamanwadi. While going over the tank, the guys stirred up a wasp's nest, so they were not able to get the Serial Number or T-Number from it. We would guess that it was produced in May 1943 since its appearance is very much like SN 26395 in the field at Belagavi. Like 26395, this unit has the little bullet splash (1) protecting the drivers' hood hinge knuckles. This was an "official" part that counting heads suggests was introduced at Fisher in May 1943. Also, like 26395, it does not have the positive hatch lock mechanisms that were reported to have been introduced by Fisher in late June 1943. The part number on the differential housing can be seen as E4186 (2), which is the part number of the earlier type of 1-piece diff. Other casting marks such as "U on a keystone" and "BU" would indicate that the diff was cast by Union Steel for Buick who made Power Trains for Fisher Body. So that is probably the original differential housing, and if so, the tank's serial number should be stamped on the towing lugs. The turret was cast by General Steel, one of Fisher's primary suppliers. As mentioned, we like to record turret serial numbers and this example could be seen as "3584E" (3) with the "E" indicating it was produced at General Steel's foundry in Eddystone, Pennsylvania. As a matter of minutia, 3584 is the lowest Eddystone turret serial we have recorded that has the casting info on the roof. In the Wilson's video, the pistol port can be seen to be welded up like the one on SN 26395. This is another Indian ex-DD that has a US made commander's vision cupola retrofitted with the pedestal mount for the .50 cal. machine gun positioned in a nonstandard forward location as indicated by the weld scars (circled).




Incredibly, the Wilsons "found" another knocked down DD nearby. One wonders, how did they come to be there? This is yet another example that has the telltale Fisher welded drivers' hoods. At some point Fisher Body began to paint the Registration Number on the front sides of their Shermans instead of the usual locations in the rear. Mark Wilson immediately noticed the number and recorded it as "USA 3064766" (inset). Later, the brothers recorded the tank's serial number, 16337, from one of the rear towing lugs. Fisher Production Order T-3318 was for 275 M4A2s built from March through May 1943. The Serial and Registration Numbers assigned were reportedly 16280/USA 3064709 through 16554/USA 3064983. Since the Ordnance docs contain a number of gaps, typos and errors, we like to try to confirm the Serial/Registration Number ranges using information from surviving Shermans along with period documents and photos. This is the first instance encountered of a known good SN and RN together within the given range for PO T-3318, and SN 16337/USA 3064766 fits perfectly, so it is extremely helpful data. SN 16337 would have been produced in March 1943. The ex-DD was almost completely obscured in a thicket and a backhoe operator working in the area agreed to clear it off. It can be seen that, over the course of the years, sections of the tank's armor plate and a good deal of the turret had been cut off and sold for scrap. Still visible on the turret bustle is a caster's logo - "D inside of a C." That is the logo of the Continental Foundry and Machine factory in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. According to Kurt's research, "The plant was originally the Duquesne Steel Foundry, hence the "D."" We have seen a number of C-D differential housings and plenty of C-W (Wheeling) and C-H (Hubbard) turrets, but C-D turrets on surviving Shermans are very rare. Perhaps they only did a limited run? No T-Number was evident on the lower hull. Mick Wilson explained that the stencil along the bottom of the lower hull read something along the lines of "Do Not Stow on Deck." There is some evidence that at least some of the DDs shipped to India may have come from Italy as former 7th Hussars DDs modified for Southeast Asia Command before shipment in June 1945. Photos and information courtesy of Mick, Mark and Connor Wilson.




The Sherman III DD on display at the Armoured Corps Museum in Ahmednagar India has retained more of its skirt structure and still has some of its struts and framework attached. This is another conversion based on a Fisher M4A2 with fabricated drivers' hoods. Jim was not permitted to look for the serial number, but from its appearance, our guess is that this unit was produced in January or February 1943. Photos found online show that in 2010, "T15184" was painted on the face of the driver's hood. We wouldn't be surprised if that was the DD's original WD Number, but minus the last digit. We have recorded the "T-Numbers" of about 35 Sherman III DDs from period photos and documents, and at present, they fall in a range from T-150783 through T-152943. Unfortunately, the 25th Dragoons War Diary does not contain any roster listings of the WD Numbers of their DDs and other AFVs. Of the 693 DD conversions done by the British, 293 were based on the M4A2 or Sherman III. These appear to have been converted in the second half of 1944, with the program completed in December. As mentioned previously, Sherman III DDs don't appear to have become available in numbers until early 1945. In any case, the position of the relocated head lights and retrofitted head light guards can be seen on this example. We would note that head lights are not present at all on the Sherman III DD on display at Bovington. The inset shows that electricity was provided by conduit from the original headlight sockets, and additional power was directed by a "T" joint to the sides of the tank, possibly for running lights.




In this view from the left rear, it can be seen that a pair of stowage boxes (1) were shoehorned onto the sponsons. Just in front of them, are what we assume are door bumpers (2) added to protect the stowage boxes and perhaps the DD's struts from being damaged when the heavy engine deck doors were opened. Vestiges of these items appear to be on the other surviving DDs in India; however, they are not present on the Sherman III DD on display at Bovington. The turret may not be original to this tank, but it is appropriate to a 1942/early 1943 Fisher Body M4A2. The company's primary turret supplier was General Steel and their logo (3) is visible on the bustle. "Low" turret lifting rings were standard for the D50878 turret by the Summer of 1942. For whatever reason, Fisher continued to produce its M4A2s with "high" turret lifting rings (4) at least until February 1943. Note that this example is equipped with the split hatch commander's cupola (5) of the original Sherman design.




In their video, the Wilsons tease that they know of two more ex-DDs in India, so we hope they do a "Part II." For the time being, our final Indian example was visited by Jim Goetz at the Jaisalmer War Museum in the state of Rajasthan. Judging by his photos, the Museum appears to be a popular tourist destination. Again, we see a Fisher M4A2 with fabricated drivers' hoods. Jim was not able to detect the tank's serial number through all of the paint layers. Since it does not have the little bullet splash protecting the drivers' hood hinge knuckles, we would guess that it was made between February and April 1943. One of the headlight guards (1) that was added when the headlights were repositioned is still present. There is a stowage box (2) on the left sponson, and weld scar evidence that there was another on the right side. We might interpolate that these boxes were on most or all of the DDs sent to India. This tank does not have either the original commander's split hatch or the vision cupola installed. However, there doesn't appear to be any weld scar evidence that it had the AA MG pintle, so we think it likely that it was shipped with the split hatch. We assume that the Museum added the drooping main gun for effect. The upside-down Pakistani flag suggests that this Sherman and the M4A1E6 (M4A1(75) up-gunned with 76mm) next to it were captured during one of the Indo-Pakistan conflicts. The last line on the signs in front of each tank reads, "India and Pakistan both acquired these tanks from British Army post independence and used them in 1948 war against each other." The Sherman III DD was likely acquired that way, but M4A1E6 Shermans were provided in the 1950s as US sponsored Military Assistance to both India and Pakistan.




One last bit of trivia is that the turret on the Jaisalmer is another example noted with the C-D caster's logo (1). The welded together secondary antenna bracket (2) suggests that the turret was supplied to Fisher Body for use on one of its M4A2s, if not this one. We suspect that the casting info is located on the "roof" in the manner of Continental-Wheeling and Continental-East Chicago (Hubbard) turrets. If our "limited run" theory is accurate, the turret serial number should be 3 digits or less. The bent-up DD deck permits a look at the extension "boxes" on the rear of the M4A2 DD. Enclosure 1 appears to be a substantial armor (?) structure with a scorch shield (2) mounted on it. Enclosure 3 runs the across the width of the lower hull. A pipe or perhaps a strut (4) is seen emerging through a hole in the enclosure. It is present on some of the other Indian DDs, but it is not shown in the March 1944 "Service Instruction Book for Sherman III and Sherman V (DD)." However, as noted earlier in this piece, the British Sherman DD conversion program did not get underway until March 1944, so perhaps this was some sort of later innovation? Enclosure 5 (inset) appears to have been bolted on and is mounted on an angle down to the belly plate.




   

The photos above show that at least two former British Sherman V DDs ended up serving with the 1st French Army. It is thought that they were part of the 351 Shermans transferred by the British to the US in January 1945 to make up for losses suffered during the Battle of the Bulge. For the most part, US units did not use the 120 M4A2s and 53 M4A4s sent but held them as emergency reserves in the event that standard replacement types from the US were delayed. Once the crisis passed, many of these were transferred to the French whose armored units actually employed M4A2s and M4A4s. As with many used DDs, these tanks were stripped of most of their fittings so that they could serve more efficiently as regular gun tanks. Note the welds on the differential housings, and along the hull sides, as well as the repositioned headlights and the power take offs from the DD idler wheels. Both tanks have been identified by Claude Gillono as with the 1er Régiment de Chasseurs d'Afrique, 5th French Armored Division, near the German-Austrian border in 1945. The photo at the top shows "France II" in Feldkirch (Austria) on 4 May 1945. A partial British WD Number (T-147191) can be seen painted on the turret. Both bottom photos show an ex-Sherman V DD that has been identified as "Fort L'Empereur II". Photos from ECPAD, Terre 10377 (first picture), Terre 10376 (second picture) and Terre 10375 (third picture) via Claude Gillono.


   

An ex British Sherman V DD has survived and is currently displayed as a monument near "Pont du Bouc" in Rixheim, France. This tank was used by the French Army in the post war years, and the original differential housing, gun mount and idler wheels appear to have been replaced, most likely during the "Transformé" upgrade. However, the hull and turret still clearly show the remains of Duplex Drive fittings. This M4A4 has a remanufactured appearance similar to "Fort L'Empereur II" of the previous caption. However, during the restoration, no clues were found under the paint layers that could match the two tanks together. Only the original USA Number, 3016910, painted on in blue drab was exposed, but that does not help build the case. Pierre-Olivier did find the serial number, 16604, stamped on the rear towing lugs, and that is an exact mathematical match to 3016910. In 2012, Serial Number 16604 was placed at this location by the Association Rhin et Sundgau and painted in honor of "Rochefort," an M4A2 of the 5th Régiment de Chasseurs d'Afrique, 5th French AD, that was destroyed near here on 1 December 1944.




There have been a few myths put forth about US DDs over the years. For instance, "M4A1 DDs with large drivers' hatches were built as M4A1(76)s, but 75mm turrets were retrofitted, because the 76mm would not fit inside the DD screen". This was circulated before it was discovered that Pressed Steel Car made about 100 large hatch M4A1(75)s in December 1943. Because they were recently produced, they were unallocated and therefore available for the DD conversion program. Of the 350 US DD conversions, the two pilot models, Serial Numbers 37844 and 37851, were ordered placed in secure storage at Lima Tank Depot "for possible future development work." By the serial numbers, these would have been large hatch, 75mm M4A1s. One, as seen above, was used to illustrate the DD Technical Manual. Note the early version of the M34A1 gunshield with lifting rings. Unlike other builders, Pressed Steel Car appears to have used these interchangeably with the later version right until the end of M4A1(75) production. 


   

Speculation had it that all of the large hatch 75mm M4A1s were converted to DD. However, at least 6 unconverted units were used in various GMPG, APG and Armored Board Test Programs. There is one surviving example that shows absolutely no evidence of any DD fittings, and there are period photos of a large hatch M32B1 retriever in service in the ETO in Summer 1945. Large hatch 75 & 76mm hulls are very similar. The best way to tell them apart is that the 75mm hulls have cast in appliqué on the sides, since they "still" had the ammunition racks up on the sponsons, whereas M4A1(76)s incorporated wet stowage, which repositioned the ammo racks to the floor, and thus did not require cast in appliqué. The hull castings also have different part numbers - E8550 for the 75mm & E8595 for the 76.




The large hatch M4A1 DD at Saumur "partakes" of the turret swap myth in that it has a 76mm turret. Some have speculated that it is not a real DD, but was mocked up for the film "The Longest Day". Our examination found that it has 75mm ammo bins and an E8550 upper hull casting. It is definitely real. Unfortunately, the serial number has been lost to time. A staffer at Saumur reported that the US provided the DD to the French Army after WW II for examination and test purposes. When it was transferred to the Museum in the 1970s, it was missing its original "high bustle" 75mm turret. The Museum retrofitted the 76mm turret simply to make the tank look complete.


   

   

Another myth was  "All US DDs had turrets with loader's hatches". This appears to have come about because all of the known surviving examples have loader's hatches, and the hatches can be seen in a number of period photos. As mentioned in a previous caption, "Major Duncan recommended that all future units be equipped with large drivers' hatches, loader's hatches and pistol ports". This, of course, implies that all of them did NOT have these features. Pressed Steel Car introduced the oval loader's hatch into production around the end of October 1943. The majority of the 350 M4A1s converted to DDs came from the last few month's production at PSC. Thus, many of the DDs did have factory installed loader's hatches on either low bustle or high bustle D50878 turrets. PSC also introduced the cast in appliqué on the hull sides around this same time, so many DDs had that feature. However, not all the DD conversions came from late production PSC M4A1(75)s.  Some Lima Locomotive Works (LLW) and Pacific Car and Foundry (PCF) M4A1s were also used, but since those companies left the Sherman program in September and November respectively, the government did not mandate that they introduce the loader's hatch, large drivers' hatches or cast in appliqué improvements. Lima, PCF and any earlier PSC M4A1 conversions would have such features as "no pistol port" turrets, or "patched" turrets with welded up pistol ports, and hulls with welded on appliqué plates. A few examples are shown above.


   

Not exactly a myth, but we have seen a few plastic models that show M4A1 DDs with 3-piece or early one-piece differential housings. In late December 1943, the supply of unused, unallocated M4A1(75)s would have been limited to units produced in the last few months. The Government had mandated that in September 1943, all US produced Shermans transition to the late type of transmission and final drive. This leads us to believe that most or all of the M4A1 DD conversions would have had the sharp nosed or E8543 type of differential housing. These have been seen in the early configuration with cast in steps (above left), as well as the later form with welded on steps.


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