Order of Battle: Allies Resurgent, the second chapter of the Allied Trilogy, depicts battles in North Africa, the Mediterranean, and finally in Europe from late 1942 to early 1944. The expansion adds 12 new scenarios to the game, along with 11 new units. In this sneak peek you'll get to meet some of them: the M3 Scout Car, the T-30 HMC, the L-4 Grasshopper and the Avro Lancaster.
1. M3 Scout Car
The lightly armored vehicle was developed by the White Motor Company, which produced several types of armored cars, albeit in low numbers, during the 1930s. These developments led to the creation of the M2A1, which finally went into US Army service as M3 Scout Car in 1938.
The improved M3A1 became the most produced variant and was built from 1939-44 in over 20000 pieces.
The vehicle was fast and robust, though its cross-country capability was considered limited. Still the M3 saw widespread service in the US Army, mostly for reconnaissance duties and as armored command vehicles. Significant numbers of this type were sent to Commonwealth nations and to the Soviet Union via Lend-Lease deliveries, while smaller numbers went to China, the Free French, and other Allied nations.
2. T-30 HMC
Growing US Army interest in the use of halftracks sparked a major modification of the M3 Scout Car: a set of tracks fitted to the rear of the vehicle led to the creation of the M2 and M3 halftracks, used as artillery tractors and as armored personnel carriers.
After the outbreak of World War 2 military demand for those vehicles became so high that a variety of manufacturers such as Daimond T, Autocar, or White produced these halftracks for US service, while others, like International Harvester built the almost identical M5 and M9 versions for export under the Lend-Lease program.
A large number of specific variants was derived from those basic types, to serve as self-propelled artillery, tank destroyers or anti-aircraft vehicles. The T-30 HMC (Heavy Mortar Carriage) was a version equipped with a 75 mm howitzer in a fixed superstructure. The vehicle saw combat in North Africa, in the Italian Campaign, in France, and possibly in the Pacific.
3. L-4 Grasshopper
The J-3 Cub made its maiden flight in 1938 and was produced by Piper Aircraft in large numbers until 1947. It's simple, lightweight design made the plane very easy to fly and to maintain, while its affordability and popularity quickly invoked comparisons to the Ford Model T automobile.
Since the Cub was well suited for military task such as reconnaissance, liaison, or as artillery spotter the US Army began to use the type from 1941 as O-59. In 1942 the designation was changed to L-4 Grasshopper.
Grasshoppers were usually unarmed, but after the Allied breakout from Normandy in 1944 some planes were equipped with racks of bazookas to locate and destroy hidden armored vehicles.
4. Avro Lancaster
The Lancaster was a heavy, four-engine bomber developed from the previous two-engine Avro Manchester. Following the first flight of the Lancaster in January 1941 the plane went into service with the RAF in 1942, although initially only in low numbers.
When aircraft became available in larger quantities in 1943, the Lancaster became the primary strategic bomber of the RAF, overshadowing both the Handley Page Halifax and the Short Stirling. The 'Lanc', as it was often called was used primarily in strategic bombing raids, but also in a variety of specific missions.
In 1943 Lancasters conducted the 'Dambuster Raid' and the first attack against the German V-Weapons research site at Peenmünde. Later in the war, Lancaster missions targeted the German battleship Tirpitz repeatedly and finally managed to sink the vessel at its anchorage in occupied Norway in November 1944.
