The reality of the "battlesleds" was that, as soon as the tanks began to advance, they received increasing direct fire from enemy tanks and anti-tank cannons. The tanks, forced to return fire and take evasion action, had to change direction abruptly or stop to fire and in some cases, back up. This maneuvering caused some of the sleds to topple and the soldiers riding fell victim to near-misses directed at the tanks. The sleds made a debut and a hasty exit from military history during the breakout.

Copyright © 2005 Tansy Publishing. All rights reserved.