Warrior Tank: The M48 Patton tank was a versatile Cold War workhorse with a storied history in Vietnam and the Middle East.
-Initially built to counter Soviet forces, over 3,200 were produced. Early models struggled with short-range and gasoline engine risks but were later upgraded with safer diesel engines and improved features like the 105mm gun on the M48A5.
-In Vietnam, M48s protected convoys, cleared jungles, and provided firepower in engagements like the 1969 Battle of Ben Het. Israeli forces leveraged M48s to decisive effect in the Six-Day War and Yom Kippur War. The M48 served until 1987, leaving a durable legacy.
M48 Patton Tank Has a Long History of Serving Everywhere
At the U.S. Army First Division Museum in Wheaton, Illinois, you can see a real-life version of the M48 Patton Tank. The nickname on the turret reads “Snoopy,” but this was anything but a sleepy cartoon character on the battlefield.
The M48 served with distinction during the Cold War, the Vietnam War, the Israel-Arab Wars, and into the 1980s. The United States produced a whopping 3,200 M48s – that shows how much the military depended on the versatile tank.
Designed for the Soviets and Warsaw Pact Armies In Mind
The M48 replaced the M47 and M46. It sported a different hull, turret, and suspension. The M48 was designed to win the fight against the Soviet hordes during the Cold War and many were deployed to Germany and other NATO countries.
The Gasoline Engine Didn’t Cut It
One downside to the M48 was its gasoline engine. Unsurprisingly, a hit from a high-explosive anti-tank round would have resulted in a devastating fire that no crew member could escape. Plus, the tank could only hold 200 gallons of gas, which yielded a short range of just 70 miles. This was going to be a problem with any tank-on-tank battle in Europe. Seventy miles before a re-fuel was just not going to cut it.
Fortunately, the follow-on M48A3 had diesel engines, which were safer with a greater range. The earlier M48s had an AV-1790, 12-cylinder engine that could hit a speed of 28 miles per hour at 810 horsepower.
Versatile If Not Powerful Main Gun
The M48 weighed around 50 tons. It had a lighter 90mm main gun, which might have been a liability against Soviet tanks. On the upside, the gun could fire several different types of projectiles: high-explosive anti-tank, high-explosive, and anti-personnel with canister pellets and flechettes.
M48 Patton Tank. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
It was also equipped with a .30 caliber and .50 caliber machine gun for the four-man crew. The armor thickness was around five inches.
Interesting History In Vietnam
The M48 was deployed during the Vietnam War but it was of limited use due to the lack of tank-on-tank battles. Six hundred M48s served in Vietnam. They mainly protected convoys and roads. They were also used at fire bases for better security. The deep jungle foliage was no match for the tanks, so the infantry often used them to clear out sections of the jungle.
Dismounted marines and soldiers were happy to have the M48 around because it forced the enemy to fire at the tanks while the friendly fighters maneuvered to take out bunkers. The tanks also used their canister anti-personnel rounds at the enemy. These were effective at scattering Viet Cong insurgents or NVA troops.
One Memorable Tank-On-Tank Battle During Vietnam
There was one notable armor operation that the M48 was involved in. This happened in 1969 during the night Battle of Ben Het near the Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia border.
Enemy troops hit a Special Forces compound. M48s from the 1st Battalion 69th Armor hurried over to help. They were met by several NVA PT-76 tanks and BTR armored personnel carriers. The M48s eliminated two tanks and one BTR. The friendly forces sustained a loss, though. One M48 was hit in the turret, two crew members died, and one was wounded.
Israelis Rode High on the M48 Tank
The M48 was heavily deployed to Israel and used repeatedly during the Six-Day War in 1967 and the Yom Kippur War in 1973. These were some of the biggest armor battles since World War Two. The M48s, by now upgraded to the A2 and A3 standard, had superior armor and great maneuverability, which helped the Israelis take out scores of Egyptian and Syrian tanks.
Relegated to the National Guard
The last upgrade was the M48A5 variant that emerged in 1975. This had a new and more powerful 105mm gun, a coaxial 7.62mm machine gun, a twin turbo-diesel engine, and now a 300-gallon fuel capacity for greater range. This version was mainly deployed to National Guard units because most M48s had rotated out of American active duty units by 1973. The M48 was finally retired completely by the Wisconsin Army National Guard in 1987.
The M48 Patton was a fine tank that showed it could handle both Southeast Asia’s jungles and the Middle East’s deserts. While it had limited usage in Vietnam, it was a difference maker for the Israelis, and the Army National Guard units used it for decades.
So, if you are ever in Wheaton, Illinois, cruise to the First Infantry Division Museum to check out “Snoopy,” the M48 tank that never shied away from a battle. You won’t be disappointed.
About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood
Brent M. Eastwood, PhD, is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare, plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
