Airfix 01372 M12 GMC

The M12 King Kong was an American self-propelled gun from the Second World War. The first prototypes of the car were built in 1941, and serial production continued in 1942-1943, ending with the production of about 100 examples of this vehicle. The M12 King Kong was powered by an engine Continental R-975-C1 with 400 HP. It was armed with a single M1917 or M1918 or M1918A1 gun - all 155 mm caliber.

Work on the M12 began in connection with the pursuit of the US Army command for its far-reaching mechanization and motorization, based on the experience of the first years of World War II. These experiences indicated the necessity to have self-propelled guns of various calibers capable of working with infantry. One of the fruits of the work undertaken in this spirit was precisely M12 King Kong. To shorten the research process and facilitate production, the modernized chassis of the M3 Lee tank was used. The main changes were the placement of the engine in the middle of the hull and the installation of a gun mount at the rear of the vehicle. After minor modifications, the M12 King Kong guns took part in the fighting in Normandy, France and West Germany in the period 1944-1945 as part of field artillery squadrons, most often subordinate to the commands of the American corps. After 1945, they were quickly withdrawn from service for the M40 self-propelled guns built on the chassis of the M4 Sherman tanks.