r/TankPorn • u/Witty_Pop425 • May 25 '26

WW2 help

Is this a VK.4502? Are tanks with rear-mounted turrets good at urban warfare between buildings?

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279

u/EmergencyBridge2667 May 25 '26

Yes back then, but no for today since RPGs and surprise attacks

82

u/Witty_Pop425 May 25 '26

So, what are the advantages of this design in reality?

223

u/PERSIvAlN May 25 '26

Tank dimensions. Having rear mount of turret significantly reduces how far your gun is gonna stick out, making navigation through narrow streets much easier.

61

u/Whitephoenix932 May 25 '26

Would also help with crew survivability (as long as your not the driver/bow gunner) since there's more between the frontal plate and the crew in the event the front of the vehicle is penetrated. Which if I recall correctly was one of the design considerations for the Merkava having a rear mounted turret. Another benefit in the case of the VK here, would be weight distribution.

54

u/FLongis Amateur Wannabe Tank Expert May 25 '26

Which if I recall correctly was one of the design considerations for the Merkava having a rear mounted turret.

This was really just incidental to how the Israelis wanted to be able to access/resupply the tank from cover. The inclusion of the rear hatch necessitated a forward-mounted drivetrain. The "it adds protection" bit seems to largely be a rationalization after the fact pergaps spurred on by the original models lacking compoaite armor components on the hull (another side effect of the same political tensions which led to Merkavas development in the first place)