The M2A1 105mm Howitzer entered production in 1941 and was the standard light field howitzer during WWII for United States military forces. It saw action in Europe against the German Wehrmacht, but it was against the Japanese Army in the Pacific that the howitzer earned a reputation for being accurate and hard-hitting. Capable of firing a wide variety of ammunition types, the M2A1 was able to put shells on target at a range of 12,200 yards (11,270 meters).
However the 105mm would not see action only as a field howitzer. The barrel of this powerful gun was mounted on many tracked vehicles as well, including the M26E2 Pershing, M24 Chaffee, M4 Sherman and the M18 Hellcat, giving each tank a substantial upgrade in firepower. A mobile version of the howitzer was also engineered (M7 Priest and T19 105 mm HMC), which served the Allies well across Africa, Italy, and Western Europe.
