The M18 was developed in an era when the United States fought tanks not
with other tanks, but with specialized tank destroyers. With a powerful
aircraft-style radial engine pushing it at up to 50 miles per hour, and
mounting a potent 76 mm cannon, the Buick-built M18 Hellcat, or
"Hell-Cat" as Buick's publicists named it, provided US troops with a
powerful shoot-and-scoot answer to heavily armored German tanks. Further
experiments were conducted to increase its armament or adapt it to other
uses, such as the M39 armored utility vehicle. Through dozens of
archival images, many never before published, as well as detailed
photographs of some of the finest existent examples of these vehicles,
this iconic tank hunter is explored, and its history is explained. Part
of the Legends of Warfare series.