PATTONS FIGHTING FIRST PLASTIC ARMY DEAL

Contains five plastic M4 Sherman Tanks, three plastic M3 Stuart Tanks, two plastic M10 Tanks, three plastic tank commander sprues, three decal sheets, six unit cards, one mini Flames of War rule book and one printed Assembly Guide.

Patton's Fighting First is a completely mechanized army deal that covers all the bases with three Stuarts ready to dash ahead and cause some trouble, five Shermans that forum the solid and dependable core, and a pair of M10 tank destroyers that can keep German Panzers honest.

The M4 Medium Tank—best known by the nickname ‘Sherman’ given to it by the British—is the most famous American tank, operated in
large numbers by the US and their allies across all theatres. Over the course of the war there will be numerous variants, changing the engine and suspension, adding more armour and bigger guns, but all with the same tall, solid shape.

The M4A1 model, recognisable by its distinctive rounded single-piece cast upper hull, is the first Sherman variant to enter combat with the US armored forces. Most of the initial production run of the original M4 variant, with its sharpsided welded upper hull, were supplied to the British through the Lend-Lease programme.

As well as serving with US armored divisions in the light battalions of the armored regiments, thousands of M3 Light Tanks were supplied to Britain and the Soviet Union. The British codenamed the tank ‘General Stuart’, after the famous American Civil War cavalry commander, and the name caught on with US troops as well.

The M3 Stuart was mechanically reliable, and even though it had lighter armor and a smaller gun than the latest German panzers, its small size and high speed made it well suited to probing enemy defences and fighting a free-wheeling and tactical style of moving battle.

The most potent weapon the US Army has in Tunisia for dealing with enemy tanks is the M10 tank destroyer, officially named the M10 3-inch Gun Motor Carriage. It has one job: to stalk and destroy enemy tanks, breaking up the focused armoured attacks for which the German panzer divisions have become famous.