TRIAL BY COMBAT, Feb 27, 1945.  In an attempt to give
American armor a fighting chance against heavy German tanks,
the Army Ordnance Department developed the T26 Medium tank,
better known as the Pershing.  Carrying a 90mm gun and heavy
frontal armor, the Pershing was rushed into combat service.
The first combat between Tiger and Pershing tanks occurred as
Americans approached the German town of Elsdorf.