Millions without work once again found jobs and relative prosperity. Lend-lease aid to Britain and the Soviet Union also expanded the economy. With the Two Ocean Navy Act, however, which authorized the doubling of the fleet and plans to increase the Army Air Force, U.S. Over ten million Americans were unemployed and the country was operating at only one-third of its industrial capacity. When World War II broke out in 1939, the American economy lay stagnant. It brought America out of the Great Depression, accelerated the migration from rural to urban areas, and provided unprecedented opportunities for African Americans and women. Army Tank Destroyer Doctrine in World War II, 1985.World War II irrevocably changed American society. Bailey, Faint Praise: American Tanks and Tank Destroyers During World War II, 1983. The last tank destroyer units were disbanded in 1946. Thereafter, the tank destroyer's fire support and antitank missions were officially assigned to tanks. After World War II, the army decided that there was no functional difference between a tank destroyer and a medium tank. tank destroyers that did encounter heavy German tanks were generally outgunned. In combat, however, they were usually dispersed among front‐line units, where they provided their most valuable service as mobile artillery directly supporting the infantry. Tank destroyer units were trained to operate aggressively and en masse to destroy enemy armor. These carried less armor and mounted more powerful guns than the standard M‐4 Sherman tank. Self‐propelled tank destroyers had 3‐inch, 76mm or (late in the war) 90mm guns mounted on tank chassis within fully rotating, open‐topped turrets. The towed weapons were 3‐inch artillery pieces pulled by half‐tracks. Tank destroyer weapons could be either towed or self‐propelled. In November 1941, the War Department ordered the creation of such units, designated “tank destroyer” battalions. McNair, head of army doctrine and training, decided that mobile, powerfully gunned antitank units were the best way to defeat enemy tanks. Army's response to Germany's Blitzkrieg armored victories over Poland and France in the early years of World War II.
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