Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

M3 Stuart Light Tank

Subcollections
MOBILITY AND FIREPOWER
Overview

The M3 Stuart, officially Light Tank, M3, was an American light tank of World War II.. It was supplied to British and other Commonwealth forces under lend-lease prior to the entry of the U.S. into the war. Thereafter, it was used by US, Australian. and Allied forces until the end of the war.
With a crew of 4, it is armed with a 37 mm gun and a coaxial machine gun and weighs 12,500 kilograms. It is powered by a Continental W-670 250 horsepower engine, gasoline fuelled, giving it a top speed of 58 kilometres per hour and a range of 112 kilometres. The Stuart saw Australian service in North Africa, Australia and New Guinea.
The British service name "Stuart" came from the Civil War Confederate general JEB Stuart, a renowned cavalry commander.

Historical information

Beginning in 1939, the 2nd Australian Imperial Force divisions included a cavalry reconnaissance regiment equipped with light tanks and scout carriers. Only three regiments were eventually formed as it was believed that the 8th Division did not need armoured support in Malaya in the jungle.
The cavalry regiments of the 2nd AIF divisions operating in Mediterranean theatre were initially equipped with the Universal Carrier and unarmoured trucks before being progressively mechanised using British Army equipment. Only the 9th Division received Stuarts in North Africa.
The Australian 1st Armoured Division was raised in 1941 as part of the 2nd AIF. Intended to be deployed to North Africa in late 1941, it was retained in Australia following the outbreak of the Pacific War. The Division's armoured regiments subsequently began re-equipping with M3 Grant medium tanks and M3 Stuart light tanks in April and May 1942.
The 2/6th Armoured Regiment deployed to Port Moresby and Milne Bay in New Guinea in September 1942. In December two squadrons were subsequently shipped to Buna on the north coast of Papua. The lightly armoured M3 Stuart tanks proved to be unsuited to jungle warfare and suffered heavy casualties, but played an important role at Buna between December 1942 and January 1943
In January 1943, the remainder of the division deployed to Western Australia between Perth and Geraldton, Western Australia as part of III Corps, tasked to counter a Japanese invasion The 1st Armoured Division formed a key element of Australia's mainland defences, but after that threat passed in September 1943, it was disbanded

Details

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-32-LTO 011
Geotag
-32.044790585989, 115.75488438753

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Links to additional resources

Visit the Australian Army Museum of Western Australia web site
https://armymuseumwa.com.au/

Discover the story of Australian armour in the Middle East 1940 – 42
Https://Www.Army.Gov.Au/Our-History/History-In-Focus/Australian-Armour-In-The-Middle-East-1940-To-1943

Build your own 1/35th scale model of a Stuart tank
https://www.metrohobbies.com.au/products/tamiya-1-35-m3-stuart-late-production-tank

Build your own 1/72nd scale model of a Stuart tank
https://www.frontlinehobbies.com.au/hasegawa-1-72-light-tank-m3-stuart-mk.i-plastic-ki
Wartime Perth as an inspiration for mystery novels
https://www.nla.gov.au/content/the-landscape-of-the-past-wartime-perth-as-a-backdrop-to-mystery

Evacuation of 80,000 considered for wartime Perth
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/95182115?searchTerm=Gordon%20Bennett&searchLimits=exactPhrase|||anyWords|||notWords|||requestHandler|||dateFrom=1943-01-01|||dateTo=1943-12-31|||l-advstate=Western+Australia|||l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore*|||sortby

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

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M3 Stuart Light Tank

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