| The crew of a Chaffee of the 117th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, VI Corps, conducts firing practice before deployment into Germany in March of 1945. The segmented White circle around the turret star is unusual for an M24 in the European Theater of Operations. The 117th Cavalry Squadron turned in their M5 “Lee” light tanks on March 2, 1945, acquiring 16 M24 Chaffees. The unit trained with the new tanks through March 13, 1945, when the squadron was attached to the United States Army 42nd Infantry Division, to support its attack in the Hartz Mountains. It remained in Czechoslovakia after V-E Day until it returned to the United States in October 1945. The 1st 34 M24 Chaffee tanks arrived in Europe in November 1944 and were issued to the United States Army 2nd Cavalry Group (Mechanized) in France. These were then issued to Troop F, 2nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, and Troop F, 42nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, which each received 17 M24s. The M24 began widespread use in December 1944, but it was slow to reach frontline combat units. By the end of the war, the light tank companies of many armored divisions were still mainly equipped with the M3/M5 Stuart. Some armored divisions did not receive their 1st M24s until the war was over. Aside from the United States Army, the British Army was another main user of the Chaffee during the war, with at least several 100 obtained through the United States Lend-Lease program. These saw action mainly in northwestern Europe and the North German Plain, where British forces fought German troops. During the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944, these units and their new tanks were rushed to the southern sector; 2 of the M24s were detached to serve with the 740th Tank Battalion of the United States 1st Army. Reports from the armored divisions that received them before the end of hostilities were generally positive. Crews liked the improved off-road performance and reliability, but were most appreciative of the 75 millimeter (3 inch) main gun, which was a vast improvement over the M3’s 37 millimeter (1.47 inch) main gun. The M24 was inferior in armor to German tanks, but its larger gun at least gave its crews a much better chance to fight back when required, especially in infantry support. The M24’s light armor made it vulnerable to virtually all German tanks, anti-tank guns, and hand-held anti-tank weapons. The contribution of the M24 to winning the war in Europe was minor, as too few arrived too late to replace the worn-out M5s of the armored divisions. At the end of World War II, the United States Army displayed its Chaffees alongside the British Comet tanks and the Soviet IS-3 heavy tank in the Berlin Victory Parade in 1945. By the summer of 1944, production M24s were being delivered to light tank units in Europe to replace the M5s and M5A1s. To familiarize American units with the M24, several Chaffees were used to tour American bases, where instruction on the M24’s recognition features was stressed. Since the M24 was the 1st American tank to feature a torsion bar suspension, a feature normally associated with German tanks, there was concern that the M24 might be mistaken for an enemy vehicle. The familiarization program was aimed at preventing such mistaken identity cases. Light tank units fortunate enough to re-equip with the M24 quickly found that they now had a vehicle superior in all respects to the earlier M5 series. The combat debut for the M24s was the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944. Although still too thinly armored to stand up to heavier German tanks in a tank vs tank engagement, the improved firepower of the 75 millimeter cannon at least gave the crews a chance to fight their way out of trouble. Survivability was further enhanced by the M24’s high speed and mechanical reliability. By this time in the war, however, the majority of German armor had been either destroyed or incapacitated by fuel shortages, and there were relatively few engagements between M24s and German tanks. On several occasions, however, engagements did occur, and M24s knocked out several Panther and Tiger tanks with a combination of surprise, position, and luck. These engagements were, for the most part, flukes, and Chaffee crews did not deliberately seek out German armor. The primary role of the M24 was scouting and mechanized infantry support. M24s were found to be ideally suited to the mechanized infantry support role, escorting and providing fire support for half-track-mounted infantry. The M24’s 75 millimeter (3-inch) main armament could fire high-explosive rounds, which proved extremely effective against soft-skinned vehicles, troops, buildings, and bunkers. Using tactics developed earlier around the strengths of the M5 series, M24 crews effectively employed the more potent Chaffee with devastating effect. M24s saw considerable action in the closing months of the war, taking part in the crossing of the Rhine and the final push into Germany. During the latter part of the war, some 300 M24s were supplied to Great Britain to re-equip selected light tank units. These units, however, saw little if any action before the end of hostilities. A limited number of M24s were also supplied to the Soviet Union for evaluation; however, the war ended before planned Lend-Lease shipments of M24s to Russia were begun. | |
| Image Filename | wwii2217.jpg |
| Image Size | 179.71 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 1681 x 1044 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | United States Army Signal Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | March 1, 1945 |
| Location | |
| City | |
| State or Province | |
| Country | France |
| Archive | United States Army Center of Military History |
| Record Number | |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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