Tankopedia
WW2HeavyHeavy TankUnited States

M26 Pershing

In service 1945 - 1950s

America's answer to the German heavies, arriving just in time to see action and to dominate in Korea.

Built byFisher Tank Arsenal, Detroit Arsenal

M26 Pershing
M26 Pershing, Korea, 4 September 1950 — Sgt. Frank C. Kerr, via Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

Development history

Delayed by doctrine that preferred tank destroyers for tank-killing, the Pershing finally gave US crews a 90 mm gun and frontal armour comparable to a Panther. Only a few hundred reached Europe before VE Day, notably duelling a Panther at Cologne cathedral. In Korea its gun and armour outmatched the T-34-85, though it was underpowered in mountainous terrain, and its design became the basis for the Patton family.

Variants

One canonical record, 4 recorded variants.

  1. T26E3 / M26

    1945

    Production standard with the 90 mm M3 gun.

  2. M26A1

    1948

    Bore evacuator and muzzle brake, improved gun and powertrain.

  3. Super Pershing (T26E4)

    1945

    Long 90 mm T15E1 and improvised frontal armour; one saw combat.

  4. M46 Patton

    1949

    Re-engined and re-transmissioned rebuild that led to the Patton series.

Related vehicles

Separate records that derive from this vehicle, grouped by how they relate to it.

Notable actions

  • Remagen and the Rhine crossings (1945)
  • Cologne (1945)
  • Korean War (1950-51)