- Yes.
- No.
- In a future Dutch/BeNeLux techtree.
- In the French BeNeLux sub-tree
- Other (Please explain in the comments).
- I said “No” in the first question.
Hello everyone, I’m on a mission to suggest every single M4 Sherman tank used by the Netherlands!
This is the Dutch M4A2!
A Dutch M4A2
Source: “Wiel en Rups, Voertuigen van de landmacht 1945-2015” book by Sander Ruys
History
Spoiler
A closeup of a Dutch M4A2. It’s being shown of to young visitors
Source: Foto'sAs soon as the second world war had ended, the Netherlands was in a bad shape. Years under German occupation had left it broken and without any kind of Army. Getting the Army up and running again was a top priority for the Netherland leadership.
Luckily when all the allied forces were moving out of Europe they didn’t take everything with them. Many large militairy dumps could be found in various locations. In the Netherlands there were two large onces, one at the Deelen Airbase, and one near Enschede. The Deelen dump was filled with ex-Canadian equipment, and the Enschede dump with both British and Canadian equipment.
The total list of different gun and vehicle types present in those dump is far to much to list here. But during 1946 many of these vehicles were purchased for a cheap price. Everything bought from these dumps were given a class designation R1, R2, D or S.
- R1 stood for simple repair (Within 50 work hours).
- R2 stood for thorough repair.
- D stood for disassembly for spare parts.
- S stood for demolition.
Any of the vehicles with the R1 or R2 class would end up getting repaired and put in service.
Later it was determined that a total of 7373 vehicles were present in these militairy dumps.
The Bureau of Spoils of War would end up buying 1168 of these for a total of 1 Million Guilders. 253 of these were of the R1 class, 731 were R2 and 184 were of class D or S.That now starts to bring us to the topic of this suggestion. The dump in Enschede was mostly filled with tanks, and most of those were Shermans of various types. The Dutch would, at atleast some point, have every single main Sherman variant in service. From the M4 to the M4A4.
Around 20 of these where the M4A2. And since we’re talking about left over M4A2’s in Europe, these were all of the early export-exclusive “Small Hatch” types. (The drivers hatches are small, and the angle of the upper glacis is at 57 degrees instead of 47 degrees like on later M4 Shermans).
Almost all of the Dutch Shermans were used for training schools. And, from what I can find, the same was done with these M4A2’s. They don’t show up much in photos and documents, mainly because the Dutch M4A1’s were in larger numbers.
That marks the end for specifically the Dutch M4A2.
Sadly there are no special features that would set this M4A2 apart from the standard model. The only small difference is that the 12.7mm Machine gun on the top of the turrets does not appear on any photos, so the Dutch M4A2 doesn’t get one.
A Dutch M4A2 in a vehicle warehouse, together with two RAM 2D QF 75 tanks
Source: Foto's
Specifications
Spoiler
Mass: 31.3 tons
Crew: 5Powerplant: General Motors GM 6046 engine
Engine horsepower: 410 hp
Max speed: 47 km/h
Suspension type: Vertical Volute Spring System (VVSS)
Track extensions available: “Duckbill” end connectors on the outside of the tracksFor those who like to dive deep into Sherman variant details, I’ve so far seen three different combinations of Hull features
- Direct Vision slots, 3-Piece Differential Cover
- Narrow Cast Driver Hoods, Early 1-Piece Differential Cover
- Fully Welded Driver Hoods, Early 1-Piece Differential Cover
Armour:
Hull:
- Front: 50.8 mm at 56°
- Sides: 38.1 mm at 0°
- Rear: 38.1 mm at 9°
- Roof: 19.5 mm
Turret: (Early D50878 turret, M34A1 gun mount)
- Mantlet: 50.8 mm
- Front: 76.2 mm
- Sides: 50.8 mm
- Rear: 50.8 mm
- Roof: 25.4 mm
Armament:
- 1 x 1 75 mm M3 cannon
- Ammunition storage: 97 rounds
- 2 x 1 7.62 mm M1919 machine guns (One coaxial, one in the front hull)
- Ammunition storage: 3000 rounds
Roof mounted 12.7mm machine gun does not seem to be present on this model for the Dutch
Ingame
Spoiler
I know what you might say, it’s just another M4 Sherman. And you’d be right! Normally the vehicles I suggest are unique vehicles I’d want to see ingame. But in this case it’s just a M4A2 Sherman.
The reason I’m suggesting this, and all other Dutch operated Sherman tanks, is because I feel that they are still a necessary part of a potential independent BeNeLux techtree (Not the sad sub-tree we have now). ← Written on the 28th of Januari 2025The Sherman tank was the backbone of the Dutch Army just after the second world war, so they do have some historical value to the Dutch.
Ofcourse the BeNeLux has been added to France, so this is now the only option where Dutch vehicles will go to. But it must be said that the Netherlands and France have nothing in common, and do not make sense to combine together ingame.
A Dutch vehicle yard with a bunch of Shermans. The one on the left is a M4A2 with the fully Welded driver hoods.
The tank to the right is hard to identify, but I believe it is also an M4A2. But this one has the Direct Vision slots, and the older three-piece Differential Cover. But feel free to correct me if you think you can identify it as a different Sherman variant
Source: Foto's
That would be all for today, see you next time!
Sources
Spoiler
Main source:
- “Wiel en Rups, Voertuigen van de landmacht 1945-2015” book by Sander Ruys
Extra sources:
Engine:
Photos: