M4A4 (China)

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cn_m4a4_sherman.png
␗M4A4
AB RB SB
3.7 3.7 3.7
Class:
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Description

The ␗Medium Tank M4A4 Sherman is a rank II Chinese medium tank with a battle rating of 3.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.91 "Night Vision".

General info

Survivability and armour

The hull is very similar to the American M4 Sherman, with a 50.8 mm thick upper glacis and protruding hatches interrupting the glacis (augmented with appliqué armour). Weak spots here include the machine gun port and ventilator on the right side. The hull sides feature appliqué armour plates covering the ammunition storage racks. The turret is also very similar but lacks the appliqué armour on the right cheek, leaving a small weakened zone in that area. Frontal protection is quite good for its rank and shots from smaller anti-tank guns can generally be shrugged off, particularly when hull down. However more powerful guns such as the Panzer IV F2's long 75mm can destroy the tank easily, so care should be taken. The side armour is only 38.1 mm thick and can be easily penetrated by just about any anti-tank gun, but the appliqué armour on this model can help if the tank is angled.

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 45 6 32.2 620 811 19.25 25.19
Realistic 41 5 354 425 10.99 13.2

Armaments

Main armament

Main article: M3 (75 mm)
75 mm M3
Capacity Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
Stabilizer
97 -10°/+25° ±180° Vertical
Turret rotation speed (°/s)
Mode Stock Upgraded Prior + Full crew Prior + Expert qualif. Prior + Ace qualif.
Arcade 22.85 31.62 38.40 __.__ 45.18
Realistic 14.28 16.80 20.4 22.60 24.00
Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock Prior + Full crew Prior + Expert qualif. Prior + Ace qualif.
6.50 5.75 5.30 5.00
Ammunition
Penetration statistics
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Penetration in mm @ 0° Angle of Attack
10m 100m 500m 1000m 1500m 2000m
M72 shot AP 90 88 78 66 57 49
M61 shot APCBC 101 99 88 76 66 57
M48 shell HE 10 10 10 10 10 10
Shell details
Ammunition Velocity
in m/s
Projectile
Mass in kg
Fuse delay

in m:

Fuse sensitivity

in mm:

Explosive Mass in g
(TNT equivalent):
Normalization At 30°
from horizontal:
Ricochet:
0% 50% 100%
M72 shot 619 6.3 N/A N/A N/A -1° 47° 60° 65°
M61 shot 618 6.79 1.2 20 63.7 +4° 48° 63° 71°
M48 shell 463 6.3 0.4 0.5 666 +0° 79° 80° 81°
Smoke characteristic
Ammunition Velocity
in m/s
Projectile
Mass in kg
Screen radius
in m
Screen time
in s
Screen hold time
in s:
Explosive Mass in g
(TNT equivalent):
M89 259 3 13 5 20 50
Ammo racks
Ammo racks of the M4 Sherman.
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
4th
rack empty
5th
rack empty
6th
rack empty
7th
rack empty
8th
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
97 85 (+12) 73 (+24) 61 (+36) 49 (+48) 37 (+60) 25 (+72) 13 (+84) (+96) Yes


Machine guns

Main article: M1919A4 (7.62 mm)
7.62 mm M1919A4
Coaxial mount
Capacity (Belt capacity) Fire rate
(shots/minute)
Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
3,000 (250) 500 N/A N/A


The M4A4 only has a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun and lacks the familiar pintle-mounted M2 Browning seen on other Sherman models. This makes fending off lightly-armored and fast opponents like the Puma more difficult as the main gun must be used instead. The lone M1919A4 is also unlikely to do significant damage to incoming aircraft.

Usage in battles

A well rounded tank like most Shermans, the M4A4 enjoys decent armor, mobility, and firepower compared to its peers. Anyone familiar with the early Sherman models from other tech trees will feel right at home. It is best used at medium ranges, where the gun and armor are both quite effective, but it can partake in close range brawling in a pinch thanks to its vertical stabilizer. Stick close to teammates, keep an eye on the surroundings, and avoid overextending, as the reverse speed is bad and it is hard to retreat quickly.

While the frontal armor is good, especially when angled, staying constantly exposed to enemy fire is not advised due to the large number of weak spots. When hull-down, try to hide the portion of the right turret cheek next to the gun mantlet when possible, as the armor there is thin and lucky shot from a reserve tank might go through it. The side armor is very poor and it pays to watch out for flankers, even SPAAs.

Compared to the contemporary T-34 (1943) in the PLA line of the China tree, the M4A4 has worse mobility but enjoys vastly improved gun handling. They are good complements to each other, as the T-34 excels in fast, aggressive attacks while the M4A4 is good for methodical pushes and hull-down scenarios.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Good armour and mobility, quite versatile
  • Vertical gun stabilizer is helpful for landing the first shot
  • Excellent gun depression
  • Gun has good penetration and post-penetration damage when using M61 shells

Cons:

  • Large profile
  • Has some weak points
  • Unlike comparable Shermans, it does not have a heavy machine gun

History

The product of a production shortage of Ford GAA V8 engines, the M4A4 instead used the Chrysler A57 multibank. Due to the much more complex maintenance that the engine required, the A4 was unpopular with American mechanics and nearly all models were sent to the British, Soviets, and Chinese.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

  • reference to the series of the vehicles;
  • links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

  • topic on the official game forum;
  • encyclopedia page on the tank;
  • other literature.


China medium tanks
ZTZ59  Type 59 · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1
ZTZ69  Type 69 · Type 69-IIa
ZTZ88/96  ZTZ88A · ZTZ88B
  ZTZ96 · ZTZ96A · ZTZ96A (P)
ZTZ99  ZTZ99-II · ZTZ99-III
ZTZ99A  ZTZ99A · WZ1001(E) LCT
Export series  MBT-2000 · VT4A1
ROC  CM11
Other  Т-34-85 Gai · Object 122MT "MC"
Bangladesh  T-69 II G
Japan  ␗Chi-Ha · ␗Chi-Ha Kai
Pakistan  Al-Khalid-I
USA  ␗M4A4 · ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · ␗M4A1 (75) W · ␗M48A1 · ␗M60A3 TTS
USSR  ␗T-34 (1943) · ␗Т-34-85 (S-53) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545