M18 GMC 76mm Tank Destroyer

M18 Hellcat

Tank vs Tank Destroyer was a concept developed to stop Blitzkreig style armored assaults seen early in the war. US Army planners saw the tank as an infantry support vehicle with machine guns and dual purpose artillery style cannon.  As Armor protection steadily improved, tank killing capacity was only possible with hi-velocity, large calibre weapons. Using a light weight vehicle was considered the best and expedient option. Moving these gun carriages at high speed to "ambush" armored penetrations.  The M10, M18, and M36 were developed as the face of that plan and the debate over their effectiveness and utility has raged ever since. One sucj vehicle is often on display in Phoenix and I have had the priveledge of playing with it on occasion.