T28 Super Heavy Tank

The T28 super-heavy tank was an American super-heavy tank/assault gun designed for the United States Army during World War II. It was originally designed to break through German defenses of the Siegfried Line and was later considered as a possible participant in the planned invasion of the Japanese mainland.

The near 100-ton vehicle was initially designated a heavy tank. It was re-designated as the 105 mm Gun Motor Carriage T95 in 1945, and then renamed in 1946 as the Super Heavy Tank T28.

Only two prototypes were built before the project was terminated.

The T28/T95 was designed to be used for attacking the heavy defenses expected of the Siegfried Line along the western borders of Germany. The 105 mm T5E1 gun selected was known to have very good performance against concrete and "expected to be extremely effective at reducing heavy fortifications". By the time the vehicle passed trials, the German Siegfried Line had already been infiltrated and overwhelmed by the Allied forces. As a result, the T28 never left the United States, with the vehicle instead serving as an engineering study and load test vehicle at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

The need for an assault tank was first identified in 1943, with the Ordnance Department proposing that 25 vehicles could be ready for operations. A conference in March 1944 between the Ordnance Department and Army Ground Forces resulted in agreement to build five. The Pacific Car and Foundry Company were supplied with the design in March 1945, completed final design and had the first hull welded by August. By the time the first tank was completed and ready for combat, the war was over. The plan for five was reduced to two.

As it did not have a turret, but a fixed casemate mount instead for its main armament (as German Jagdpanzers and Soviet Samokhodnaya Ustanovka-designation combat vehicles did), and the 105 mm gun fitted could only elevate from 19.5° to -5° and traverse from 10° right to 11° left of the centerline, the T28 more closely resembled an assault gun, and was redesignated as "T95 gun motor carriage" in 1945, but in June 1946, the vehicle was redesignated again as "super heavy tank T28".

Two prototypes of the T28 were built. They underwent evaluation at the Aberdeen Proving Ground and Fort Knox facilities until 1947. In 1947, one of the T28s was heavily damaged by an engine fire during trials at Yuma Proving Ground and was broken up and sold for scrap. The T28 never went into service due to the obsolete design, high maintenance costs, and the heavy weight, which made transportation overseas difficult, but was retained to test the "durability of components on such a heavy vehicle". Work on it ended before completion as the War Department decided to stop the development of vehicles of that sort of weight and the T28 program terminated in October 1947. By that point, the T29 and T30 turreted heavy tank designs had been built. The T29 mounted the same gun as the T28 in a conventional rotating turret. The T30 was developed with a larger-caliber gun and more powerful engine. The T29 program was used to test mechanical components for future tank designs.

Read more

All-Stars University Team

All-Stars University Team, also known as the University Select Team, is a team made up by the best university students in Girls und Panzer that appears in Girls und Panzer der Film. It is run by the Shimada Family. The team mainly operates late-war tanks and super heavy weaponry. It is notable for being the institution that selects and trains senshado players in preparation for their graduation into the National Sensha-Do League.

The team's members are recruited from universities across Japan, usually from elite national, public, and private schools such as "T-dai" (Tokyo University), "K-dai" (Keio University) or "O-dai" (Osaka University). While on the team they undergo rigorous training, preparing them to be integrated into various professional teams once they graduate. Their current commander is Alice Shimada, the heir to the house of the Shimada style, which is a rival to the Nishizumi house.

They have a unique range of vehicles at their disposal ranging from Shermans and Panthers to large siege guns and super heavy tank destroyers. During the annihilation match, however, the majority of their tanks were tanks that would later see action in service of the United Nations during the Korean War.

The team attend their meetings and Sensha-do trainings at one location somewhere in Tokyo.

As an official member of the Sensha-do Federation, the team has access to high funding, sophisticated equipment and high priority with respect to Sensha-do training and provision. They frequently display the logo of the Sensha-do Federation alongside their team insignia.

The team is known to engage in exhibition matches with other institutions, such as the adult professional teams or, in one particular known case, a local high school.

Read more

Credits

MartennLockkenn for T28

11qazxc for the decal generator

Notes

1. Tracks are not detachable

Controls in instructions.

Have fun!

My other GuP content

IS-2 Pravda SP

Panzer IV

BT-42