by Stephan Marx
Tankograd Militarfahrzeug Special No 5011.
Soft cover, A4 size, 64 pages
Review by Peter Brown
A "Super M48" was developed with new engine, fire control, extra armour and other improvements but not adopted. The end for the M48 came as Leopard 2 was introduced though they soldiered on into the 1990s before finally being taken out of service. Some were passed on to other NATO countries and a small number of chassis rebuilt into mine-clearers, with others ending up as firing range targets.
The full history of this tank in German hands is covered here. Basic development of the original vehicle, German improvements and organisation changes are all described and fully illustrated with photos. There are both official record photos and others showing tanks on exercise. Most are black and white but there are several good colour shots of the G A2 version in three-colour camouflage which will be useful for modellers. Some photos from the original Technical Manual are included with views of the engine, captions point out the development of markings over the period the tank was in service.
Coverage is limited to gun tanks apart from a page on the dozer-equipped tank, the related recovery and bridgelayers are not included. There are however some unusual photos, two of what may be the only M60 in "German service" and two more of tanks with Leopard 2 turrets!
Essential reference for those interested in the M48 or German armour of the post-war era, this is highly recommended as with other publications from Tankograd.
Available from Tankograd distributors, for more details contact the publishers Verlag Jochen Vollert on jochenvollert@tankograd.com My thanks go to Justin Gainham at Bookworld for the review copy.
Page created November 23, 2005