How can a tank be destroyed?

The 0.23-to-0.47-inch (5.8 to 11.9 mm) thick armor generally prevented penetration by small arms fire and shell fragments. However, even a near miss from field artillery or an impact from a mortar HE round could easily disable or destroy the tank: if the fuel tank was ruptured, it could incinerate the tank’s crew.

How does an anti tank weapon work?

Once the missile is set up on its tripod, a soldier looks through the weapon’s optical sight for a target such as a tank. He then shines a laser beam on the target and launches the missile. When an ATGM detonates against such armor, the tank “reacts” by automatically exploding its own charges.

Could a tank crew survive being knocked out?

Depends on how the tank was knocked out. In most cases at least some of the tank crew would survive to bale out. It would mainly be in the instances where the penetrating shell hit stored ammo and caused a further explosion/fire that none would escape.

What would happen if a tank was hit by a shell?

Even if the shell did not pierce the armor it could still cause small fragments to break and fly out from the inside of the the armor (spalling) killing the crew. An electrical or fuel fire can cause suffocation or ammunition explosion. If only the tank’s drivetrain was damaged there was a chance of escape.

Why was there such a shortage of tanks in WW2?

Tellingly towards the end of the Battle of the Bulge there was a critical shortage of tank crews, because the crew of a knocked-out M4 Sherman tank mostly did not survive. As described in the excerpt below, during that battle the surviving personnel with any “tank experience” would be split up, each g

Why do tanks explode when they explode?

Once the gasoline and the ammunition went up, the tank would explode. The open cupola acted like a smoke stack, and the fire would generate such great heat it would anneal the hardness of the armor plate leaving the tank beyond repair.