M9 Half-track

The M9 Half-track was a half-track produced by International Harvester in the United States in World War II. It was designed to supersede the M2 Half Track Car which was mostly outclassed by 1942. Although the M2 had thicker armor than the M3 half track it could be penetrated by AP rifle bullets from 300 yds rather than 200 yds for the M3.It was similar to the M5 Half-track (APC) but had the same stowage and radios on the inside as the M2 Half Track. The M9 served for a long period time, and is still in service with Paraguay today. 3,500 were produced by the end of World War II.

The M9 was used during World War II, the Arab-Israeli War of 1948, the Korean War, the Suez Crisis, the Vietnam War, the Six-Day War, and the Yom Kippur War. The M9 was used by many countries but not the United States because the US does not normally accept International Harvester halftracks or halftrack models (such as the M14 Half-track).

Development


The M9 Half-track was built at a time when the M2 Half Track Car was outclassed and needed a good replacement for its job. So, the U.S. decided to make the same thing except based on the M5 Half-track (APC) but still had the stowage, access to the radios from the inside, rear doors, and a pedastal machine gun mount like the M2. The M9A1 also had a ring mount machine gun mount and three pintle machine gun mounts.

Production History
When the M9 started production in 1942 it was produced by International Harvester instead of White Motor Company because it was based on the M5 Half-track, not the M2 Half Track Car.The M9 and M9A1 were produced en masse and 2,026 were produced in total.

Service History
The M9 served in World War II and many other wars. The M9 served in: World War II, Arab-Israeli War of 1948, Korean War, Suez Crisis, and many others. All of the production half-tracks were leased to other countries, like most other International Harvester half-tracks produced in World War II. This time it was leased to both the Soviet Union and the British Commonwealth which leased it to other countries.

Operators
The M9 was leased to many governments and countries. Britain leased some half-tracks to Free France and other governments that got expelled from their country by the Germans. The Soviet Union received supplies directly.

After the war they halftracks were sent to the Military Aid Program.


 * 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
 * 🇦🇷 Argentina-Retired in 2006
 * 🇧🇪 Belgium
 * 🇧🇷 Brazil
 * 🇰🇭 Cambodia
 * 🇨🇱 Chile
 * Czechoslovakia
 * 🇫🇷 France
 * 🇫🇮 Finland
 * 🇬🇷 Greece
 * 🇮🇱 Israel
 * 🇯🇵 Japan
 * Laos
 * 🇲🇽 Mexico
 * 🇳🇱 Netherlands
 * 🇵🇾 Paraguay-Serving right now
 * 🇵🇭 Philippines
 * 🇵🇹 Portugal
 * South Vietnam
 * Soviet Union