War Department Lend-Lease shipment tables list 5,690 M5-series personnel half-tracks furnished during the Second World War, including 5,238 to the British Empire and 420 to the USSR.
Armored Vehicles
M5 half-track
Also known as
- Carrier, Personnel, Half-track, M5
- M5A1 half-track
- International Harvester M5 half-track
- IHC M5 half-track
The M5 half-track was an International Harvester-built U.S. armored personnel carrier family developed as a production counterpart to the M3 half-track for Allied wartime supply. War Department Lend-Lease shipment tables list M5-series personnel half-tracks furnished to Allied recipients during the Second World War, while U.S. armored-vehicle development records and production summaries identify International Harvester as the maker of the M5 and M5A1 personnel carriers.
Role in Conflicts
Wartime Distribution
The M5 was primarily a wartime Allied-supply vehicle rather than the standard U.S. Army half-track. War Department Lend-Lease tables group the shipped vehicles as the M5 series, so the public shipment total should be read as a series figure rather than a split between M5 and M5A1 personnel carriers.
Lend-Lease total
5,690 M5-series personnel half-tracks furnished during the Second World War.
Largest recipients
5,238 listed for the British Empire and 420 for the USSR in the War Department shipment table.
U.S. context
Sports Car Market describes IHC-built M5 half-tracks as almost exclusively distributed under Lend-Lease, with only a handful retained in the United States for training.
Profile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- United States
- Built by
- International Harvester
- Type
- Half-track armored personnel carrier
- Service note
- World War II-era U.S. armored personnel carrier family
- Designer
- U.S. Ordnance Department
- Designed
- 1942
- Produced
- 1942-1944 for International Harvester M5/M5A1 half-track acceptances
- Number built
- 4,625 M5 and 2,959 M5A1 half-tracks accepted by Detroit Ordnance
Specifications
- Crew and passengers
- AFV Database and IWM list a 13-man M5/M5A1 personnel-carrier arrangement.
- Engine
- International Harvester RED-450-B inline six-cylinder gasoline engine; AFV Database lists 143 net horsepower at 2,700 rpm.
- Armament
- M5 listed with a flexible .30-caliber M1919A4; M5A1 listed with a .50-caliber M2HB on an M49 ring mount plus .30-caliber M1919A4 guns.
- Protection
- Welded rolled homogeneous steel hull; AFV Database lists 0.31-inch side and rear plates and 0.625-inch windshield cover armor.
- Mobility
- AFV Database lists 42 mph maximum level-road speed, 60 percent maximum grade, 32-inch fording depth, and about 200-mile road cruising range.
- Dimensions and running gear
- AFV Database lists 135.5-inch wheelbase, 12-inch T68E1 center-guide band track, front semi-elliptic leaf springs, and rear vertical volute suspension.
- Wartime shipment
- War Department Lend-Lease tables list 5,690 M5-series personnel half-tracks furnished during the Second World War.
IHC Design Features
International Harvester's M5 kept the half-track personnel-carrier role but used IHC components and a welded rolled-homogeneous armor body. AFV Database notes the smoother welded appearance, rounded rear corners, heavier axles, and hull strengthening used to compensate for the armor and production differences from White, Autocar, and Diamond T half-tracks.
Armor construction
Welded rolled homogeneous steel body, with rounded rear corners rather than the square bolted corners of face-hardened M3-style bodies.
Automotive distinction
IHC RED-450-B inline-six gasoline engine with Spicer constant-mesh transmission and half-track running gear.
Crew layout
Official and specialist data list a 13-man personnel-carrier arrangement for the M5 and M5A1.
Variants
International Harvester's half-track program used company components and produced the M5 personnel-carrier line alongside closely related IHC half-track configurations.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| M5 | Personnel-carrier base model | The AFV Database lists the M5 with a flexible .30-caliber M1919A4 machine gun, rolled homogeneous steel hull armor, and an International Harvester RED-450-B gasoline engine. Sources: AFV Database M5 half-track |
| M5A1 | Ring-mount personnel-carrier variant | The AFV Database lists the M5A1 with an M49 ring mount for a .50-caliber M2HB machine gun and pintle mounts for .30-caliber M1919A4 machine guns. Sources: AFV Database M5 half-track |
| M5A2 | Pilot standardization design | AFV Database describes the M5A2 as a proposed standardized body for M5 and M9A1 roles; it was standardized in October 1943, but only pilot vehicles were built after half-track production ended. Sources: AFV Database M5 half-track |
| M9A1 | IHC half-track car configuration | TM 9-707 covers the M9A1 with the M5, M14, and similar IHC half-track vehicles, reflecting the shared IHC vehicle family rather than a separate M5 personnel-carrier model. |
| M14 | IHC multiple gun motor carriage | TM 9-707 includes the M14 multiple gun motor carriage among IHC half-track vehicles using the same basic technical manual family as the M5. |
Mounted Machine Guns
M5 and M5A1 armament differed by mount arrangement, but both used Browning-pattern machine guns as the vehicle's defensive armament.
| Carried item | Item type | Carriage evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Heavy machine gun | AFV Database lists the M5A1 with a .50-caliber M2HB on an M49 ring mount over the assistant driver's position. Sources: AFV Database M5 half-track |
 | Medium machine gun | AFV Database lists the M5 with a flexible .30-caliber M1919A4 and the M5A1 with .30-caliber M1919A4 pintle mounts. Sources: AFV Database M5 half-track |
Timeline
M5 half-track Key Events
M5/M5A1 family enters International Harvester production record
The International Harvester World War II production summary lists the first M5 half-track acceptances in 1942.
Sources: International Harvester in World War Two
Army armored-vehicle history documents IH manufacture
The Armored Forces Board development volume states that the M5, M5A1, M9A1, and M5A2 half-tracks were manufactured by International Harvester and used that company's component parts.
Sources: Development of Armored Vehicles Volume II
Lend-Lease shipment tables record M5-series deliveries
The War Department's Lend-Lease shipment tables list 5,690 M5-series personnel half-tracks furnished during the Second World War, mostly to the British Empire and USSR.
Sources: Quantities of Lend-Lease Shipments - Ordnance General Supplies
Media
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
Quantities of Lend-Lease Shipments - Ordnance General SuppliesPublisher: Office, Chief of Finance, War Department | Note: Supports direct Second World War Lend-Lease shipment of M5-series personnel half-tracks to Allied recipients including the British Empire and USSR. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Quantities of Lend-Lease Shipments - Report IntroductionPublisher: Office, Chief of Finance, War Department | Note: Supports the War Department report context as quantities of materiel furnished to Allied countries by the War Department during World War II. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Development of Armored Vehicles Volume IIPublisher: U.S. Armored Forces Board No. 2 | Note: Supports International Harvester manufacture of the M5/M5A1 half-track family and provides period specifications for the related M5A2 half-track configuration. | Accessed: 2026-07-11TM 9-707 Basic Half-Track Vehicles (IHC)Publisher: U.S. War Department | Note: Official 21 May 1943 manual for IHC M5, M9A1, M14, and similar half-track vehicles; supports the shared IHC half-track technical family and vehicle-layout context. | Accessed: 2026-07-13TM 9-2800 Standard Military Motor VehiclesPublisher: U.S. War Department / U.S. Army Ordnance Department | Note: Official 1 September 1943 standard-vehicle manual supporting M5 classification, manufacturer, manuals, armament provision, weight, fuel capacity, range, speed, and engine data. | Accessed: 2026-07-13Imperial War Museums M5 Half TrackPublisher: Imperial War Museums | Note: Museum object record supporting M5 identity as a Second World War half-tracked armored personnel carrier, crew capacity, armament, 1943 International Harvester production, and preserved-object dimensions. | Accessed: 2026-07-13AFV Database M5 half-trackPublisher: AFV Database | Note: Supports M5 and M5A1 specifications including armament, armor, crew/passenger arrangement, engine, and automotive details. | Accessed: 2026-07-11Sports Car Market 1943 International Harvester M5 Half-TrackPublisher: Sports Car Market | Note: Supports IHC design differences, Lend-Lease distribution context, RED-450B engine background, and production date context for an M5 example. | Accessed: 2026-07-13International Harvester in World War TwoPublisher: The American Automobile Industry in World War Two | Note: Supports International Harvester wartime production context and Detroit Ordnance acceptance totals for M5 and M5A1 half-tracks. | Accessed: 2026-07-11M5 inter imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports the primary M5 half-track image; Commons metadata identifies the file as own work by Dirkmansholt under CC BY-SA 3.0. | Accessed: 2026-07-11W4025 International Harvester M5 imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports an additional M5 half-track gallery image; Commons metadata identifies the file as own work by Llann Wé² under CC BY-SA 4.0. | Accessed: 2026-07-13W4024 International Harvester M5 imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports an additional M5 half-track gallery image; Commons metadata identifies the file as own work by Llann Wé² under CC BY-SA 4.0. | Accessed: 2026-07-13