M18 (Italy)

▄M18

Breda 501

AUBL/74

▄M18

Breda 501

AUBL/74

Italy

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.3	6.0	6.0

Class:

Light tank

Research:54 000

Purchase:185 000

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Description

The Cannone da 76/52 Semovente M18 is a rank IV Italian tank destroyer with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB) and 6.0 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update "Starfighters". The M18 "Hellcat" was the epitome of the American tank destroyer doctrine, it was very fast, very mobile, and has a powerful gun, though with a large trade-off with only 12.7 mm (0.5 inches) of armour.

The M18 "Hellcat" compensates the lack of anti-tank capability by having absurdly fast maneuverability. While it looses access to APCR, this is justified seeing how it doesn't face very armored vehicles, the likes of Panther D, Tiger H1.

Unlike the other tank destroyers known in the game, the M18 "Hellcat" has access to a 360° traversable turret, allowing players to have a greater arc of fire than a typical casemate tank destroyer like the StuG III, but at the expense of a slightly higher profile. Americans tank destroyers also have very high maneuverability compared to other nation's tank destroyers, allowing it to flank the enemy.

The main weak point of M18 is its very thin armor, a feature that actually allows the M18 to reach its high speed. The thin armour makes it possible for any enemy tanks to penetrate the vehicle. A single hit would destroy many critical components in the M18 or cripple the crew. The only saving grace with this extremely thin ammunition is that standard AP rounds may over-penetrate the armor, doing minimal damage to the internals. Thus, when facing the M18, it's best to use AP rounds with explosive fillers or HE and HEAT rounds while avoiding usage of pure AP rounds.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour
• Cast homogeneous armour (Gun mantlet)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	12.7 mm (39-64°) Front glacis 12.7 mm (23-52°) Lower glacis	12.7 mm (23-26°) Top 12.7 mm Bottom	12.7 mm (12°) Top 12.7 mm (36°) Bottom	8 mm
Turret	25.4 mm (15-26°) Turret front 19 mm + 25.4 mm (0-55°) Gun mantlet	12.7 mm (1-21°)	12.7 mm (7°)	N/A Open-top 8 mm Bustle and Front

Notes:

• Suspension wheels and tracks are 15 mm thick.
• Belly armour is 5 mm thick.
• The hull underside right above the tracks are only 8 mm thick.
• Tracks are attached the turret rear, granting some 15 mm in thickness.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	90	29	17.7	653	878	36.89	49.6
Realistic	81	26		407	460	22.99	25.99

Armaments

Main armament

76 mm M1 is an extremely capable gun with a high damage potential and a very good gun handling. It can be found on tanks used up to battle rating 6.0, making it one of the most widely used guns throughout the battle ratings and with M18 being the first tanks to use it - it gives it a very high staying power throughout battle ratings. Once upgraded, the turret has very fair guidance in both: horizontal and vertical axis allowing to quickly catch pot-shots, though given exceptional mobility of the platform even it struggles to catch up with the near-instant hull rotation.

76mm M1					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	45	-10°/+20°	±180°	N/A	21.13	29.25	35.50	39.30	41.79	7.93	7.02	6.47	6.10
Realistic					14.28	16.80	20.40	22.60	24.00

Ammunition

M18 comes with an exceptionally good stock shell, allowing it to unleash its full potential pretty much right off the bat. Additional unlocks are more specialized.

• M62 shell - APCBC - The best anti-tank shell, also the stock round. It has very good penetration and an excellent post-penetration effect.
• M42A1 shell - HE - The best round for dealing with unarmored targets or unarmored sections of vehicles. It should be used carefully, as everything over 10 mm armour can negate its effects. Typically M62 is superior.
• M79 shot - AP - Round inferior in every way to the M62, it's in-game largely for historical reasons.
• M93 shot - APCR - Round trades a significantly lower post-penetration effect for a 20% increase in penetration and flatter flight path.

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
M62 shell	APCBC	149	146	133	119	106	95
M42A1 shell	HE	7	7	7	7	7	7
M79 shot	AP	134	132	121	109	99	89

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
M62 shell	APCBC	792	7.0	1.2	14	63.7	48°	63°	71°
M42A1 shell	HE	800	5.84	0.1	0.5	390	79°	80°	81°
M79 shot	AP	792	6.8	N/A	N/A	N/A	47°	60°	65°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M18 (Italy).

When fighting in battle rating 4.7 and 5.0 it's best to take only 17 shells, which allows to empty turret and sides of the tank from shells, notably increasing survivalist. In battle ratings around 6.0, it doesn't matter how many rounds are loaded, as most hits against the tank will prove deadly regardless.

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
45	37 (+8)	27 (+18)	17 (+28)	9 (+36)	1 (+44)	No

Machine guns

12.7 mm M2HB
Pintle mount
Capacity (Belt capacity)				Fire rate (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
800 (200)				576	-10°/+70°	±60°

Usage in battles

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Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection	Firepower
I
II
III
IV

Pros and cons

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Pros:

Cons:

History

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Media

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See also

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External links

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