A tankette is a tracked armoured fighting vehicle[1] that resembles a small tank, roughly the size of a car. It is mainly intended for light infantry support and scouting.[2][3] Colloquially it may also simply mean a small tank.[4]
Several countries built tankettes between the 1920s and 1940s, and some saw limited combat in the early phases of World War II. The vulnerability of their light armour, however, eventually led armies to abandon the concept with some exceptions such as the more modern German Wiesel (Weasel) series.
- ^ Tedesco, Vincent J. III (2000), The Revolution After Next (PDF), Fort Leavenworth: School of Advanced Military Studies, p. 15, archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-02-13
- ^ Sweet, John Joseph Timothy (2007), Iron Arm, Stackpole Books, p. 84, ISBN 9780811733519 – via Google Books
- ^ T-27 Tankette (from the 'battlefield.ru' website, with further references cited. Accessed 2008-02-21.)
- ^ Dickson, Paul (2004), War Slang: American Fighting Words and Phrases Since the Civil War, Brassey's, p. 221, ISBN 9781574887105 – via Google Books