Thursday, February 14, 2008
North Africa
The battle of North Africa seemed to be between tanks and not so much infantry. I have always wondered about this because would the desert not be a hard place for machinery to operate. Why was the tank so heavily used? I would assume there would be some problems using them and that eventually the commanders would go away from using them as much. Tanks would seem to have a hard time handling in the desert and break down. I know it would be hard for infantry in the desert but you would not have the mechanical problems. I was jsut wondering why the tank was the choosen weapon in the desert.
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4 comments:
it does seem strange, but if you look at the old pictures and films from the fighting in North Africa, many show large, open, featureless desert. Tanks and other vehicles were essential to the protection of infantry to make up for the lack of natural cover. Flat, open ground is most favorable for tanks to operate in (hence the lack of tank warfare in Korean and Vietnam). So it seemed inevitable to me that tanks would be used in large numbers there
Yes, tank warfare was extremely popular in North Africa due to vast terrain and weather to operate in. The dust from the desert, however, limited many of the operations in North Africa and made several of the vehicles inoperable. In fact, today in North Africa you can still find tanks that were just ditched by retreating and advancing armies. This factor made the allies when America entered the war favored to win because of the steady supply of parts and new materials from America while the Germans were crippled by lack of supply.
The tank was heavily used in the desert because the terrain is suited for tank warfare just like the eastern front. While, machines have a hard time operating in the desert environment it affects both armies at the same time. In addition, both armies used the tank because the other side used the tank. In warfare you need to match if not surpass your enemy’s fighting capability and it is hard for a division of infantry to defeat a division of tanks.
Plus it wouldn't be benefical for infantry to be used because of the vastness of the desert. There would be no places for the soldiers to hide and would be obvious targets for the enemy.
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