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| − | Even before the establishment of the State of Israel, there was a serious need for heavy weapons. This need was expressed mainly by Yitzhak Sadeh. As early as the fall of 1947, procurement activists were instructed to purchase tanks. The scope of the tanks that the people of the Jewish community worked to purchase and bring to Israel was 100 tanks, when only 40 of them arrived in Israel.
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| − | In practice, the amount of tanks used in the various battlefields was very small as follows:
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| − | In the Danish operation, 7 tanks were activated, of which only five were purchased abroad.
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| − | In Operation Yoav, nine tanks were activated, of which seven were purchased abroad.
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| − | In Operation Horev, five tanks were activated, of which only two were purchased abroad.
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| − | In the first half of 1948, 38 lightweight Stuart M5A1 light tanks were purchased from the U.S. Army surplus for $ 8,800 per tank. Due to the American embargo, an attempt was made to mislead (fail) to show that the tanks were intended for the Mexican army.
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| − | After this failed attempt, Yehuda Arazi managed to purchase 10 lightweight Hutchis 39-H tanks in France for $ 41,000 per tank. The tanks arrived in Israel on June 15, 1948. A professional technical inspection revealed that their technical condition was poor. For three weeks until Operation Danny, the 8th Brigade's workshop succeeded in operationally training five tanks. The first major operation was supposed to be the attack on Iraq al-Manshiyah as part of Operation Yoav. As a result of poor operational capability that caused some of them to fall into the canal, along with improper operation and stubborn resistance of the Egyptians, four remained on the battlefield. The disappointments from the Hochkis tanks caused them to be completely out of use and to use only their cannons in the White Armor.
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| − | At least one of these tanks was used by the Reich Army. This was discovered when a Nazi seal was uncovered on the Hochkis tank on display at the Hand Armor Museum in Latrun. On the other hand, another tank from the same shipment whose turret was placed in the area of Beit Jubrin as a training target (number 2415 imprinted in the turret), did not fall prey and did not serve in the German army like the one in Latrun.
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| − | == Hutchis H39 in the IDF ==
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| − | The War of Independence and in the service of the IDF
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| − | Even before the establishment of the State of Israel, there was a serious need for heavy weapons. This need was expressed mainly by Yitzhak Sadeh. As early as the fall of 1947, procurement activists were instructed to purchase tanks. The scope of the tanks that the people of the Jewish community worked to purchase and bring to Israel was 100 tanks, when only 40 of them arrived in Israel.
| |
| − |
| |
| − | In practice, the amount of tanks used in the various battlefields was very small as follows:
| |
| − |
| |
| − | In the Danish operation, 7 tanks were activated, of which only five were purchased abroad.
| |
| − | In Operation Yoav, nine tanks were activated, of which seven were purchased abroad.
| |
| − | In Operation Horev, five tanks were activated, of which only two were purchased abroad.
| |
| − | In the first half of 1948, 38 lightweight Stuart M5A1 light tanks were purchased from the U.S. Army surplus for $ 8,800 per tank. Due to the American embargo, an attempt was made to mislead (fail) to show that the tanks were intended for the Mexican army.
| |
| − |
| |
| − | After this failed attempt, Yehuda Arazi managed to purchase 10 lightweight Hutchis 39-H tanks in France for $ 41,000 per tank. The tanks arrived in Israel on June 15, 1948. A professional technical inspection revealed that their technical condition was poor. For three weeks until Operation Danny, the 8th Brigade's workshop succeeded in operationally training five tanks. The first major operation was supposed to be the attack on Iraq al-Manshiyah as part of Operation Yoav. As a result of poor operational capability that caused some of them to fall into the canal, along with improper operation and stubborn resistance of the Egyptians, four remained on the battlefield. The disappointments from the Hochkis tanks caused them to be completely out of use and to use only their cannons in the White Armor.
| |
| − |
| |
| − | At least one of these tanks was used by the Reich Army. This was discovered when a Nazi seal was uncovered on the Hochkis tank on display at the Hand Armor Museum in Latrun. On the other hand, another tank from the same shipment whose turret was placed in the area of Beit Jubrin as a training target (number 2415 imprinted in the turret), did not fall prey and did not serve in the German army like the one in Latrun.
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