Hello all, here is today's article posted on TheArmoryLife.com. It is titled “Late War Assessment of the Sherman Tank” and can be found at https://www.thearmorylife.com/late-war-assessment-of-the-sherman-tank/.



MG Irzyk Was the Post CG of Fort Knox when I first reported there in '71. (I would serve under three, Irzyk, Desobry and Starry.). Would love to have gotten Irzyk and Desobry in a room and just listened.Sorry, more myth and legend. If it was an infantry support tank, why was it the mainstay of armored divisions? "casualties frighteningly high?" Infantry KIA in the ETO from D-Day to V-E day: 120,000; armor crewmen: about 6,000. As one military historian put it: if you want a deathtrap, carry an M1 into battle.
I'm not sure if this attachment will get through, but an interesting article by then Lt.Col. Albin Irzyk (retired as a BG) who commanded the 8th Tank Battalion of the 4th Armored Division. He puts all of this in context.
I didn't know Irzyk was an MG, I thought he retired as a BG. Anyway, Starry was the CG when I got to Ft. Knox as a youngun. Here is how we met: I was at the PX at the magazine rack and then I sensed a large presence next to me, and there was Starry looking at a magazine in his fatigues, B3 bomber jacket ala Patton, black beret, and full color patches. Morning, he said, uh..morning, sir, and off he went. Years later, served with his son in the Gulf War, who was the XO of 1st Cav Divarty.MG Irzyk Was the Post CG of Fort Knox when I first reported there in '71. (I would serve under three, Irzyk, Desobry and Starry.). Would love to have gotten Irzyk and Desobry in a room and just listened.