- 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 M4A4 Firefly VC!
A Dutch M4A4 Firefly VC during a militairy exercise
Source: Foto's
History
Spoiler
A Dutch M4A4 Firefly VC during a militairy exercise
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 183 of these where Sherman tanks. It was only later in 1951 when each Sherman variant was more properly documented, and it turned out that the Dutch army had 69 M4A4 tanks. The source I’m getting these numbers from sadly don’t mention the exact number of the 17-Pounder armed M4A4’s.
Just like almost all other Dutch Shermans tanks, these M4A4 Firefly VC’s were used for training schools. Sadly there really isn’t anything more to talk about.
That marks the end for the Dutch M4A4 Firefly VC’s.
Sadly there are no special features that would set the Dutch M4A4 Firefly VC apart from the standard model.
A Dutch M4A4 Firefly VC during a militairy exercise
Source: Foto's
Specifications
Spoiler
Mass: 32.2 tons
Crew: 4Powerplant: Chrysler A57 multibank engine
Engine horsepower: 425 hp
Max speed: 40 km/h
Suspension type: Vertical Volute Spring System (VVSS)
Track extensions available: “Duckbill” end connectors on the outside of the tracksArmour:
Hull: (Small Hatch, 3-Piece Differential Cover)
- Front: 50.8 mm at 56°
- Sides: 38.1 mm at 0°
- Rear: 38.1 mm at 22°
- Roof: 19.5 mm
Turret: (Modified D50878 turret, 17-pounder gun mount)
- Mantlet: 50.8 mm
- Front: 76.2 mm
- Sides: 50.8 mm
- Rear: 63.5 mm
- Roof: 25.4 mm
Armament:
- 1 x 1 75 mm QF 17-pounder cannon
- Ammunition storage: 80 rounds
- 1 x 1 12.7 mm M2HB machine gun
- Ammunition storage: 600 rounds
- 1 x 1 7.62 mm L3A1 coaxial machine gun
- Ammunition storage: 3000 rounds
Ingame
Spoiler
I know what you might say, it’s just another M4 Sherman Firefly. 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 M4A4 Sherman Firefly.
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 29th 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 M4A4 Firefly VC during a militairy exercise
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: