World War II Infantry Anti-Tank Tactics (Elite) [Paperback]

Gordon Rottman (Author), Steve Noon (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Elite | Publication Date: February 5, 2005

The battlefield interaction between infantry and tanks was central to combat on most fronts in World War II (1939-1945). The first ‘Blitzkrieg’ campaigns saw the tank achieve a new dominance. New infantry tactics and weapons – some of them desperately dangerous – had to be adopted, while the armies raced to develop more powerful anti-tank guns and new light weapons. By 1945, a new generation of revolutionary shoulder-fired AT weapons was in widespread use. This book explains in detail the shifting patterns of anti-tank combat, illustrated with photographs, diagrams and colour plates showing how weapons were actually employed on the battlefield.

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From the Publisher

An unrivalled illustrated reference source on fighting men and commanders, past and present. Each volume is packed with full colour artwork, making military history uniquely accessible to enthusiasts of all ages.

About the Author

Gordon L Rottman entered the US Army in 1967, volunteered for Special Forces and completed training as a weapons specialist. He was assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group until reassigned to the 5th Special Forces Group in Vietnam in 1969–70. A highly respected and established author, Gordon is now a civilian contract Special Operations Forces Intelligence Specialist at the Army's Joint Readiness Center, Ft Polk.

Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (February 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841768421
• ISBN-13: 978-1841768427
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 0.2 x 9.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #856,097 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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57 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent Overview of WW2 AT Tactics and Weapons, March 17, 2005

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R. A Forczyk (MD, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World War II Infantry Anti-Tank Tactics (Elite) (Paperback)

In Osprey's Elite #124, World War II Infantry Anti-Tank Tactics, military specialist Gordon L. Rottman details the gamut of anti-tank weapons and tactics in the Second World War. This volume is an excellent introduction to anti-tank theory and practice, with a good overview of the basic battalion-level weapons available. In this volume, Rottman focuses only on those AT weapons normally available at the regiment or lower level during 1939-45, and only in the US, British, German, Russian and Japanese armies.

Rottman begins the volume with background information on the tank threat in that period and tank vulnerabilities, followed by a section that outlines the basic AT weapon types available (ranging from hand grenades and mines to light/medium AT guns). The author then discusses the evolution of AT tactics during the Second World War, followed by about 30 pages that detail specific AT weapons and tactics of the US, the UK, Germany, the USSR and Japan. The color plates in the volume are: tank vulnerabilities (a US infantryman attacking a Pz IV with a satchel charge); a generic company AT defense; a German tank-hunting team in 1939-40; a US Army AT ambush in 1944-45; a British AT roadblock in 1943-44; Soviet AT defenses in built-up areas, 1944; a German panzer kampfgruppe in covering positions, 1944-45; and a Japanese `self-sacrifice' attack, 1945.

Rottman's summary of the AT tactics of the Second World War is good, although he makes little effort to evaluate which tactics were more effective than others. Typically, Rottman prefers to present a mass of data and then leave it to the reader to draw his own conclusions. Although the size constraints of this format prevent comprehensive treatment, I wish that Rottman had made at least brief mention of the failed AT efforts of the French, Polish and Italian armies.

As a former tanker, I found that Rottman probably undervalued the role of obstacles and expedient weapons. While Rottman mentions that thick concentrations of barbed wire could inhibit tank movement, my own experience indicates that several coils of concertina can be very effective in blocking tanks (however, white phosphorus rounds will melt concertina wire); any tanker foolish enough to attempt plowing through a thick wire obstacle will quickly find it wrapped around his final drive and the transmission burnt-out. Rottman didn't mention hasty obstacles much, but some - such as the log crib - can be very effective in stopping or canalizing armor, particularly in wooded areas. Destroyed vehicles or very large stones can also prove excellent hasty AT obstacles; I once saw a tank that had hit a large rock at night and shorn off an entire road wheel arm (for that matter, Rottman doesn't really differentiate between night and day AT tactics, but it does make a huge difference for the infantry). Rottman also tends to dismiss expedient AT tactics as ineffective, but the Germans destroyed a lot of T-34s without proper AT weapons. I once saw a tank immobilized by a T-shirt shoved into its engine air intake (which drained the battery in less than 5 minutes), and in dense terrain cunning infantry can get tanks to throw track with something as simple as a 12" thick log. On the flip side of the coin, having served in infantry units against tanks, it is often critical in AT tactics that the infantry have either a height advantage (which allows you to disengage without being seen) or an obstacle between you and the tanks.

Although Rottman spends considerable effort to discuss tank vulnerabilities, it is primarily in terms of the tank itself. However, the relative effectiveness of various AT tactics really comes down to the skill and experience of the tank's crew. "Good tankers" do not get separated from their `wing' tanks or their infantry, they use covered terrain as much as possible for protection, and they have well-versed actions on contact. "Bad tankers" are far easier to pick off because they get separated from their supporting units (or they bunch up), they drive "hey-diddle-diddle, straight-down-the-middle" right into AT ambushes and their first action on contact is to stop in the kill zone. Hunting individual tanks is far different from stopping a tank platoon or company, but Rottman's narrative really only focuses on limited tank threats. The most successful AT tactics are those that recognizes the weakness or vulnerabilities of their opponents, and then ruthlessly take advantage of them.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars How to fight against a tank in WW II, February 6, 2010

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Steven A. Peterson (Hershey, PA (Born in Kewanee, IL)) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World War II Infantry Anti-Tank Tactics (Elite) (Paperback)

Osprey published a host of brief books on specific issues related to warfare (from Roman military tactics to a brief picture of Austerlitz to. . .). This book focuses on anti-tank tactics in World War II. The book begins by noting that (Page 3): "Infantry are inseparable from tanks, both in the assault and in an integrated anti-tank defense."

This volume begins by looking at the tank in World War II--from light tanks to heavy tanks, and the pluses and minuses associated with each. E.g., heavy tanks with larger guns could wreak havoc--but they tended to be slow and not as maneuverable. Protection and vulnerabilities are also discussed, including a discussion of the environment in which tankers worked (pretty close quarters).

The heart of the book is a discussion of anti-tank tactics. Examples of some of the weapons used against tanks, for some examples, armor-piercing shells, shaped charges, anti-tank guns, rifle-launched anti-tank grenades, mines, Molotov cocktails, and so on. There is, too, a discussion of changing anti-tank tactics, from 1939-1942 to the period 1943-1945. Mobility of anti-tank efforts increased during the latter period (including mounting anti-tank guns on armored vehicles). Country-by-country, there is an examination of types of weapons used against tanks, from the United States to British Commonwealth to the Soviet Union to Japan to Germany. There are some nice illustrations on pages 33-40 which depict anti-tank efforts.

The book closes with a bibliography and a brief (and not always too helpful) index. A nice, brief introduction to anti-tank combat in World War II.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars don't bother, October 16, 2009

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Richard Boyd "viking archer" (germany) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World War II Infantry Anti-Tank Tactics (Elite) (Paperback)

His background is in Special Forces, not tanks. He should stick to what he knows. He knows nothing about tanks.
The first chapters deal with tanks, their vulnerabilities and tank armament. Much of this is very general and not very accurate. He also goes into detail about tank armament. These were the sorts of rumors about tank armament that I commonly heard when I was in the army; it's also wrong.
When he discusses infantry tactics, he does a reasonably good job. However, the good points of this book do not make up for the failings.