Italeri M3A1 Scout Car (1/72) 7063

The White Motor Company began its study and development of the M3 in 1938 to supply the United States Army with an armoured reconnaissance vehicle. Equipped with a 6 cylinder 110 Hp Hercules JXD petrol fuelled engine, it could reach a maximum speed of 81 Km/h. Equipped with four-wheel drive, it was used for patrol, reconnaissance and command post. The vehicle could carry up to 8 men and was armed with a 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine gun plus two more Browning 7.7 mm machine guns on the sides. It was first used in the Philippines campaign in 1941. Used in North Africa and in Sicily, it was replaced during the war, for advanced exploration tasks, by the more modern M8 Greyhound. Besides being used by the American Army, it was used as well by the Armed Forces of England, France and by some divisions of the Red Army who used it on the Eastern front to pull 76 mm ZIS-3 cannons.