Tank origin

Fielded during World War II, prior to the U.S. Army’s development of guided missiles, the Calliope was a rocket launcher mounted to the top of an M4 Sherman. Its design incorporated two racks of tubes and an arm attached to the tank’s main gun barrel that could raise and lower the launcher. Initial plans called for the T34 Calliope to be part of the invasion of Normandy. However, the rocket launcher changed the tank’s center of gravity, making it dangerous to transport by landing craft. It was instead deployed in later battles from 1944 to 1945.