,
Normandy War in North Africa and Europe British and other Commonwealth armies were the first to use the light tank M3, as the "Stuart", in combat. From mid-November 1941 to the end of the year, about 170 Stuarts (in a total force of over 700 tanks) took part in
Operation Crusader during the
North Africa Campaign, with poor results. This is despite the fact that the M3 was superior or comparable in most regards to most of the tanks used by the Axis forces. The most numerous German tank, the
Panzer III Ausf G, had nearly identical armor and speed to the M3, and both tanks' guns could penetrate the other tank's front armor from beyond . The most numerous Italian tank (and second most numerous Axis tank overall), the
Fiat M13/40, was much slower than the Stuart, had slightly weaker armor all around, and could not penetrate the Stuart's front hull or turret armor at 1,000 meters, whereas the Stuart's gun could penetrate any spot on the M13/40. Although the high losses suffered by Stuart-equipped units during the operation had more to do with the better tactics and training of the
Afrika Korps than the apparent superiority of
German armored fighting vehicles used in the North African campaign, the operation revealed that the M3 had several technical faults. Mentioned in the British complaints were the 37 mm M5 gun and poor internal layout. The two-man turret crew was a significant weakness, and some British units tried to fight with three-man turret crews. The Stuart also had a limited range, which was a severe problem in the highly mobile
desert warfare as units often outpaced their supplies and were stranded when they ran out of fuel. On the positive side, crews liked its relatively high speed and mechanical reliability, especially compared to the
Crusader tank, which comprised a large portion of the British tank force in Africa up until 1942. The Crusader had similar armament and armor to the Stuart while being slower, less reliable, and several tons heavier. The Stuart also had the advantage of a gun that could deliver high-explosive shells; HE shells were not available for the 40 mm
QF 2-pdr gun mounted by most Crusaders, severely limiting their use against emplaced anti-tank guns or infantry. The main drawback of the Stuart was its low fuel capacity and range; its operational range was only cross country, roughly half that of the Crusader. In the summer 1942, the British usually kept Stuarts out of tank-to-tank combat, using them primarily for reconnaissance. The turret was removed from some examples to save weight and improve speed and range. These became known as "Stuart Recce". Some others were converted to
armored personnel carriers known as the "Stuart
Kangaroo", and some were converted into command vehicles and known as "Stuart Command". M3s, M3A3s, and M5s continued in British service until the end of the war, but British units had a smaller proportion of these light tanks than U.S. units.
Eastern Front The other major
Lend-Lease recipient of the M3, the
Soviet Union, was less happy with the tank, considering it under-gunned, under-armored, likely to catch fire, and too sensitive to fuel quality. The M3's radial aircraft engine required high-octane fuel, which complicated Soviet logistics as most of their tanks used
diesel or low-octane fuel. High fuel consumption led to a poor range characteristic, especially sensitive for use as a reconnaissance vehicle. In the letter sent to Franklin Roosevelt (18 July 1942), Stalin wrote:
"I consider it my duty to warn you that, according to our experts at the front, U.S. tanks catch fire very easily when hit from behind or from the side by anti-tank rifle bullets. The reason is that the high-grade gasoline used forms inside the tank a thick layer of highly inflammable fumes." Also, compared to Soviet tanks, the M3's narrower tracks resulted in a higher ground pressure, getting them more easily stuck in the
Rasputitsa muddy conditions of spring and autumn and
winter snow conditions on the Eastern Front. In 1943, the
Red Army tried out the M5 and decided that the upgraded design was not much better than the M3. Being less desperate than in 1941, the Soviets turned down an American offer to supply the M5. M3s continued in Red Army service at least until 1944.
Italy One of the more successful uses of the M5 in combat came during the
Battle of Anzio when breaking through German forces surrounding the beachhead. The tactics called for an initial breakthrough by a medium tank company to destroy the heavier defenses, followed by an infantry battalion who would attack the German troops who were being left behind the medium tanks. Since many hidden fortifications and positions would have survived the initial medium tank assault, the infantry would then be confronted by any remaining fortified German troops. Behind the infantry came the M5s of a light tank company, who would attack these positions when directed to by the infantry, usually by the use of green
smoke grenades. In the 1944 Liri Valley campaign, the official history of the
18th Battalion (New Zealand) notes that in the campaign (a war of movement) the regiment discovered that the Stuart recce tanks were an enormous advance on scout cars, and could go where not even jeeps could go. They carried commanders and engineers, and medical orderlies, and they could explore flanks while the Shermans forged ahead. They carried mobile wireless links and transported supplies up hilltops; they had a dozen different uses.
Yugoslavia The 1st Tank Brigade of the
8th Corps (Yugoslav Partisans) was formed in 1944, primarily from
POWs and defecting
Dalmatians,
Istrians, and
Slovenes who had previously served in the armoured units of the Italian Army. The creation of the 1st Tank Brigade, equipped with British-supplied M3 Stuart tanks, marked a significant milestone in the evolution of the Yugoslav Partisan Army from a guerrilla force into a conventional military. These tanks, landed at
Vis and later assembled on the mainland under the command of
26th Dalmatian shock division, gave the Dalmatian units much-needed armored support for the first time. The brigade played a vital role in the liberation of Dalmatia, providing direct fire and mobility in difficult coastal and mountainous terrain. Following the
battle of Knin, the 1st Tank Brigade continued its advance northward, supporting Dalmatian divisions in
great battle from
Lika to
Soča. This offensive was in area over culminating with the
Race for Trieste. Despite limitations in terrain and logistics, the brigade's use of M3 Stuarts proved highly effective in breaking enemy defenses and supporting infantry assaults. After the war, the 8th Dalmatian Corps gained international recognition as the first resistance formation in occupied Europe to field an organized armored unit.
Pacific and Asia army operating the M3A3 Stuart on
Ledo Road The
U.S. Army initially deployed 108 Stuart light tanks to the Philippines in September 1941, equipping the U.S. Army's
194th and
192nd Tank Battalions. The first U.S. tank versus tank combat to occur in World War II happened on 22 December 1941 during the
Philippines campaign (1941–1942) when a platoon of five M3s led by Lieutenant Ben R. Morin engaged the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) 4th Tank Regiment's
Type 95 Ha-Go light tanks north of Damortis. Morin, with his 37mm cannon locked in recoil maneuvered his M3 off the road, but took a direct hit while doing so, and his tank began to burn. The other four M3s were also hit, but managed to leave the field under their own power. Lt. Morin was wounded, and he and his crew were captured by the enemy. M3s of the 194th and 192nd Tank Battalions continued to
skirmish with the 4th Tank Regiment's tanks as they continued their retreat down the
Bataan Peninsula, with the last tank versus tank combat occurring on 7 April 1942. As the Japanese 15th Army was threatening southern Burma toward the end of February 1942,
7th Armoured Brigade of the British Army landed at Rangoon with 114 M3 Stuarts bearing the green rodent of the "Desert Rats". They supported 17th Indian Division and 1st Burma Division on the retreat until they managed to escape to India in April. Due to the naval nature of the Pacific campaign, steel for warship production took precedence over tanks for the IJA, creating by default an IJA light tank that performed admirably in the jungle terrain of the South Pacific. By the same measure, although the US was not hampered by industrial restrictions, the M3 proved to be an effective armored vehicle for fighting in jungle environments. At least one was captured in the Philippines. With the IJA's drive toward India within the
South-East Asian theatre of World War II, the United Kingdom hastily withdrew their
2nd Royal Tank Regiment and
7th Hussars Stuart tank units (which also contained some
M2A4 light tanks) from North Africa, and deployed them against the Japanese 14th Tank Regiment. By the time the Japanese had been stopped at
Imphal, only one British Stuart remained operational. When the U.S. entered the war in 1941, it began to supply China with AFVs, including M3 Stuarts, and later M4 Sherman
medium tanks and
M18 Hellcat tank destroyers, which trickled in through Burma. Although the M3/M5 had proven effective in jungle warfare, by late 1943, U.S. Marine Corps tank battalions were transitioning from their M3/M5 light tanks to M4 medium tanks, mostly for the much greater high-explosive blast effect of the M4's 75mm gun, which fired a much larger shell with a heavier explosive payload.
Obsolescence and replacement When the U.S. Army joined the North African Campaign in late 1942, Stuart units still formed a large part of its armor strength. After the disastrous
Battle of Kasserine Pass, the U.S. quickly followed the British in disbanding most of their light tank
battalions and reorganizing medium tank battalions to include one company of light tanks, where the Stuarts mostly performed the traditional cavalry missions of scouting and screening; for the rest of the war, most U.S. tank battalions had three
companies of M4 Shermans and one company of M3s or M5/M5A1s. attached to his M3A1 Stuart during the
Battle of Munda Point in August 1943 In Europe, Allied light tanks were given cavalry and infantry fire support roles since their light main armament was not competitive against heavier enemy armored fighting vehicles. However, the Stuart was still effective in combat in the
Pacific Theater, as
Japanese tanks were both relatively rare and were lighter in armor than even Allied light tanks.
Japanese infantrymen were not well equipped with
anti-tank weapons, and as such had to use close assault tactics. In this environment, the Stuart was only moderately more vulnerable than medium tanks. Though the Stuart was to be completely replaced by the newer M24 Chaffee, the number of M3s/M5s produced was so great (over 25,000 including the 75mm HMC M8) that the tank remained in service until the end of the war, and well after. In addition to the U.S, UK and Soviet Union, who were the primary users, it was also used by France (M3A3 and M5A1),
China (M3A3s and, immediately post-war, M5A1s) and
Josip Broz Tito's
Partisans in Yugoslavia (M3A3s and few M3A1). With the limitations of both the main gun (see below) and armor, the Stuart's intended combat role in Western Europe was changed significantly. Light tank companies were often paired with cavalry reconnaissance units, or else used for guarding or screening, and even used in supply or messenger roles for medium tank units.
Limitations of the 37mm gun On 9 December 1944, the
759th Tank Battalion advanced on a hill near
Bogheim but was subjected to a counter-attack by German forces, including a heavy self-propelled
assault gun, which took "over 100 direct hits" at ranges as low as with "no appreciable damage". In January 1945, a report to General Eisenhower concluded that the Stuart was "obsolete in every respect as a fighting tank" and that it would not "turn the German fire [n]or [would] the 37mm gun damage the German tanks or SP guns".
Post World War II use ,
Batavia in November 1946. After the war, some countries chose to equip their armies with cheap and reliable
war surplus Stuarts. The Chinese Nationalist Army having suffered great attrition as a result of the ensuing civil war, rebuilt their armored forces by acquiring surplus vehicles left behind in the Philippines by the U.S. forces, including 21 M5A1s to equip two tank companies. The M5
played a significant role in the First Kashmir War (1947) between India and Pakistan, including the battle of
Zoji-la pass fought at an elevation of nearly . M3A1 and M3A3s were used by British forces in Indonesia during the
Indonesian National Revolution, where they suffered heavy losses due to the Stuart's thin armor plating. They were used until 1946, when the British left. The M3A1 and M3A3s were then passed on to the
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army, which used them until the end of the fighting before passing on the tanks to the
Indonesian Army. The tank saw action during the
Darul Islam rebellions in Aceh and Java,
Republic of South Maluku rebellions in South Maluku,
PRRI rebellions in Sumatra,
Permesta rebellions in Northern Sulawesi and the fighting against the
30 September Movement. During the 1960s and 1970s, the
Portuguese Army also used a small number of M5A1 light tanks, out of a total of 90 received as military aid from Canada in 1956, in the
war in Angola, where its all-terrain capability (compared to wheeled vehicles) was greatly appreciated. In 1967, the Portuguese Army deployed three M5A1 light tanks – nicknamed "Milocas", "Licas", and "Gina" by their crews – to northern
Angola, which served with the 1927th Cavalry Battalion commanded by Cavalry Major João Mendes Paulo, stationed at
Nambuangongo. The vehicles were mostly employed for convoy escort and recovery duties and limited
counterinsurgency operations against
National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA) guerrillas, who dubbed them "Elefante Dundum". "Milocas" was destroyed by an accidental fire in 1969, while "Gina" and "Licas" were withdrawn from active service in 1972, the former being sent to
Luanda and the latter ended up in 1973 as an airfield security pillbox in the
Portuguese Air Force's
Zala airfield. Period photographs show some modifications to the basic design, namely the omission of the bow machine gun, re-installed on a pintle mount in the roof of the turret, and a small searchlight fitted in front of the commander's cupola. During the four-day long
Football War of 1969, El Salvador invaded Honduras in an all-out-war strike using the M3 Stuart as the main battle tank. El Salvador captured eight major cities before the
Organization of American States arranged a ceasefire. The
South African Armoured Corps continued to use M3A1s in a reserve role until 1955. Some were refurbished locally in 1962 and remained in service as late as 1964. The fleet was withdrawn in 1968, owing to parts shortage. The Stuart tanks saw combat with the
Pakistan Army only once and that was during the
1965 War when they were assigned to a tank delivery unit. In a daring engagement, a lone Stuart commanded by Mohammad Saeed Tiwana inflicted heavy losses on an Indian Gurkha battalion attempting to retake a village after the ceasefire. By morning, Tiwana had captured 57 prisoners, including two officers, earning him the
Sitara-e-Jurat for his actions. The M3 Stuart is still on the active list in the Armed Forces of
Paraguay, with ten of the tanks being overhauled in 2014 to provide a training capability. ==Variants==