M-47 Patton Medium Tank

Development of what became the M47 Patton Medium Tank began in 1948 when the Cold War was just beginning and the U.S. faced a severe shortage of medium and heavy armor. The M-46 Patton tank was deployed in late 1949, just in time to be available for combat in the Korean War the next year. Next, as a stop-gap measure, the M-46 hull and chassis were joined with a new turret design to create this new tank designated the M-47 Patton Medium Tank. As soon as the M-47 entered production, work began on the next tank in the series, the highly successful M-48 Medium Tank, which replaced the inefficient M47 in the early 1950s.

See United States Tanks After World War II for additional information about the M-47 Patton Medium Tank.

M-47 Patton Tank, Ft. Hood, TX
M-47 Patton Tank, Ft. Hood, TX.

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M-47 Patton Medium Tank

M-47 Patton Tank. Photo: Courtesy of Mark Holloway
M-47 Patton Tank. Photo: Courtesy of Mark Holloway.

M-47 Patton Tank at 1st Cavalry Division Museum, Ft. Hood, TX, 2 December 2005. This tank was used by D Co., 40th Armored Bn., 1 Cav. during the Korean War, then later retrofitted with an M-48 diesel engine and shipped to Spain. Photo: Courtesy of Bob Pettit
M-47 Patton Tank at 1st Cavalry Division Museum, Ft. Hood, TX, 2 December 2005. This tank was used by D Co., 40th Armored Bn., 1 Cav. during the Korean War, then later retrofitted with an M-48 diesel engine and shipped to Spain. Photo: Courtesy of Bob Pettit.

M-47 Patton Tank at 1st Cavalry Division Museum, Ft. Hood, TX, 2 December 2005. This tank was used by D Co., 40th Armored Bn., 1 Cav. during the Korean War, then later retrofitted with an M-48 diesel engine and shipped to Spain. Photo: Courtesy of Bob Pettit
M-47 Patton Tank at 1st Cavalry Division Museum, Ft. Hood, TX, 2 December 2005. This tank was used by D Co., 40th Armored Bn., 1 Cav. during the Korean War, then later retrofitted with an M-48 diesel engine and shipped to Spain. Photo: Courtesy of Bob Pettit.

M-47 Patton Tank
M-47 Patton Tank at the North Dakota Veterans Home, Lisbon, ND.