The M47 and M48 Patton Tanks

I was very pleasantly surprised by this volume. Steven Zaloga did an excellent job of covering the development and operational performance of both the M47 and the M48 tanks. I was more interested in the M48 Patton tank, since it was used heavily in the India-Pakistani wars, the Arab-Israeli wars of 1967 and 1973, and the Vietnam Conflict. Zaloga does not disappoint in covering how the M48 fared in battle (with the bungled usage by the Pakistani forces, the superb performance in the hands of Israeli forces in the 67/73 conflicts, and the extensive combat performance by the U.S. in Vietnam). The M48A5 fulfilled a critical need in 1973 in replenishing the depleted tank forces in the U.S. as many M60 tanks were shipped over to Israel due to the extensive loss of their tanks in the '73 Arab/Israeli conflict. As always, Jim Laurier did excellent work in the colored plates. The only thing I wished Zaloga could have included were the armor penetration tables of the 90mm gun and the 105 mm gun respectively. Other than that, I was very pleased with this book and would highly recommend it to military enthusiasts and tank buffs. For more general info on the combat performance of the M48, you can also check out the book "Armour in the Middle East Conflicts" by Simon Dunstan.

Another fine book by Steven Zaloga and Jim Laurier, an excellent value for the price. The book begins with a brief coverage of M26 and M46 development, although Zaloga's figure of "about 2,400 Pershings were eventually rebuilt to M46 Patton standards by 1951" (p.3) is questionable. Two paragraphs describing the development of the M47 follow, then the M48, then several pages comparing and contrasting these two models. A lot of detail is given on stereoscopic and coincidence rangefinders fitted to these tanks, and the reasons why and how these rangefinders were used are very informative.The Replacement and Retrofit section describes how even after the last M48A2 tank was built, the Patton continued to evolve. Included are the genesis of the M48A3 diesel conversion, and the M48A4 fitment of old M60 turrets with 105mm main guns which was not pursued. A paragraph and two photos are dedicated to the M48A5 conversion; however, showing the age of the original text, Zaloga wrote of the M247 Sergeant York DIVAD self-propelled anti-aircraft gun system "...the US Army decided to acquire 618 DIVADs to replace the aged M163 Vulcan, entering into service in the mid-1980s" (p.12) without mentioning the fact that this vehicle was cancelled in 1986.The Operational Employment section makes up the bulk of this book by far. The book features 21 pages of operational use by foreign customers of the M47 and M48 series, including battle narratives and maps of the Indo-Pakistani and Arab-Israeli wars. About three and a half pages cover U.S. Patton deployments, mostly concerning the Vietnam war but including the Lebanon deployment of 1958 and to the Dominican Republic in 1965.The excellent color plates cover eight pages, with both M47s and M48 series tanks of ten nations. The "centerfold" if you will is the outstandingly well detailed cutaway view of an M48A3 by Jim Laurier. Laurier's cutaways appear in many books of this series.It is the preponderance of information that rates four stars in this somewhat dated work; the numerous errors and omissions I found would not be an issue for the casual reader. As a matter of fact, there are plenty of photographs of both the M47 and M48 series that will be quite useful for hobbyists, including interior details. As always, I find Steven Zaloga's text a joy to read, and his inclusion of the conversation between the Pakistani brigade commander and his superior especially interesting. I just wish there was more information on American M47 deployments in the early to mid 1950s, and a clarification of when the M48 Patton series was fielded and to which units.