At the beginning of World War II, American field artillery, intended to support its own infantry units, generally had a fairly old artillery park, based on 75 and 105 mm cannons and howitzers dating back to World War I. However, at the turn of 1939-1940, a process of rapid changes began, which led to the fact that, by the time of Operation Torch (November 1942), American troops already had very modern M1 75 mm guns as well as M2 and M3 105 caliber guns. mm. It is worth adding that virtually every American infantry division operating in the region of North Africa and Europe in the years 1942-1945 had three battalions of M3 howitzers - one battalion per infantry regiment. What's more, apart from the fact that the American field artillery had good equipment, it attached a huge role to logistics, command system and battlefield observation, including air reconnaissance. All these elements meant that already during the fighting in North Africa (1942-1943) they were able to contribute significantly to the Allied victories, and this trend was also visible during the fights on the Peninsula. Apennine (1943-1945) and during the fighting in Normandy in 1944.
The 105mm M101 (original designation M2A1) is an American 105mm towed howitzer from the Second World War and the Cold War. The first prototypes of the guns were built at the turn of the 1930s and 1940s, and serial production continued in 1941-1953. The maximum range was 11,200 m, and the initial velocity of the projectile was 472 m / s. The rate of fire was up to 10 shots per minute.
The M101 was created in response to the US military's demand for a new 105 mm field howitzer. In the course of operation, the M101 turned out to be a very successful design, with high mobility and maneuverability in the field, considerable range for a weapon of this caliber and a high rate of fire. It quickly became the basic light howitzer of the US Army, which was used both during the fighting in the Pacific (1941-1945) and during the fighting in Italy (1943-1945) and in Normandy, France and West Germany (1944-1945). It remained in the service of the US Army also after the end of World War II and was also used during the Korean War (1950-1953) and the Vietnam War (1964 / 1965-1975). The M101 howitzer was also exported to many countries, including: Argentina, Australia, Chile, India, Iraq, Iran, Japan and Turkey.