abortive, e.g. the M8 Armored Gun System. The most common was the flawed M551 Sheridan light tank. This was an air-portable tank capable of destroying heavier tanks using the revolutionary (for the time) 152 mm CLGP launcher. The combat effectiveness of this tank was limited by the unreliable MGM-51 missile. The latest iteration of the mobile anti-tank gun platform in American service is the M1134 Anti-Tank Guided Missile Vehicle, a Stryker variant equipped with TOW Missiles; most modern militaries operate comparable vehicles. Though limited conflicts (such as the insurgency in Iraq) rarely involve direct combat between armoured vehicles, the need to defend against insurgent attacks and IEDs has resulted in the application of armour to light vehicles and the continued use of armoured transports, fighting vehicles and tanks. See also Theorists and practitioners Notes References Goldman, Stuart D. Nomonhan, 1939; The Red Army's Victory That Shaped World War II. 2012, Naval Institute Press. . Hofmann, George F. and Starry, Donn A., eds. "Camp Colt to Desert Storm: The History of U.S. Armored Forces." 1999; University Press of Kentucky. . Hunnicutt, R. P. Patton: A History of the American Main Battle Tank. 1984; Presidio Press. . Hunnicutt, R. P. Firepower: A History of the American Heavy Tank. 1988; Presidio Press. . Perrett, Bryan, 1990, Tank Warfare: Combat Development in World War Two, Arms and Armour Press, London. Starry, Donn. A, General. Mounted Combat In Vietnam. Department of the Army; First printing 1978. Pöhlmann, Markus 1990, Der Panzer und die Mechanisierung des Krieges: Eine deutsche Geschichte 1890 bis 1945, Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn. Stockwell, David B. Tanks In The Wire. 1990. . Zaloga, Steven J. Japanese Tanks 1939–45. 2007; Osprey. . Zaloga, Steven. Armored Thunderbolt, The US Army Sherman in World War II. 2008. Stackpole Books. . Zumbro, Ralph. The Iron Cavalry. 1998, Pocket Books. . External links Tanks Encyclopedia Japanese Tanks and Tank Tactics Chapter II: Tactics Historic films showing tank warfare during the First World War at europeanfilmgateway.eu Educational video of how armored vehicles are used on the battlefield.