The M60 Patton was an American main battle tank fielded by the US Army during the Cold War. It was used in combat in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 1991 Operation Desert Storm, the US invasion of Grenada, and the Iran-Iraq War. Armed with a 105-mm gun, it was massively produced in for variants; the M60, M60A1, M60A2, and M60A3. The tank could be fitted with an M9 bulldozer blade kit and it could be sealed up for deep water wading, featuring a tower on top of turret. It was exported to several countries, such as Brazil, Egypt, Iran, Israel, and Jordan.
The US Army ordered the M60 Patton into production in 1959, placing an order with Chrysler for an initial run of 180 tanks. This was followed by an additional order of 720 vehicles. The first batch entered service with the US Army during the Fall of 1960, with most of the initial production vehicles being sent to Germany, to offset the Soviet T-54/55 tank, which was fielded by the Warsaw Pact communist countries. The M60 replaced the M48, which was used in the Vietnam War. The main difference between the two was the completely re-designed hull of the M60, which incorporated an angular glacis plate instead of the curved boat-shaped forward hull of the M48.
While the M60 Patton provided the US Army with an excellent interim tank, with which to counter the Russian T-55, the US military decided to improve its original design while it was still under development by increasing the armor thickness of the turret. Thus, the new turret design featured an elongated steel nose, which provided better ballistic protection than the turtleback-shaped turret of the M48. In addition, the M60 was wider and had a pronounced rear bustle, making more inner room to the crew. Hence, this new version, under the designation M60A1, was able to be placed in production relatively quickly and it was issued to regular army units in the Spring of 1962. Meanwhile, the M60A2 was equipped with a powerful 152-mm gun/launcher and a more compact turret.
Specifications (M60A1)
Type: main battle tank
Weight: 47 metric tons
Length: 6.95 m (22 feet, 9 inches); 9.3 m (30 feet, 6 inches), with gun forward.
Width: 3.6 m (11 feet, 11 inches)
Height: 3.27 m (10 feet, 9 inches)
Armor: 109-mm (4.29 inches) on glacis at 65 degrees; 250-mm (10 inches) on turret front.
Armament: M68E1 105-mm gun; one 12.7-mm (.50-cal) M2 Browning machine gun on turret roof; two 7.62-mm (.30-cal) M73 machine guns.
Power Plant: one 750-HP, Continental AVDS 1790-2, V12, air-cooled, twin-turbo diesel engine.
Maximum Speed: 48 km/h (30 mph)
Range: 500 km (300 miles)
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| Above, the M60A1 variant in Germany in the 1960s. |
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| The M60 Patton first production model. |
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| Above, the M60, with water-tight seal and tower for wading a river. |
