>If "detonate at a distance" does not work I wonder what the function of that kind of add-on armor was, on the sides specifically?
It depends on the shell/threat you expect to come at you. I don't know if "capped" armor piercing shells were still a concept when those tanks were built. In that case, an initial, small amount of spaced armor is designed to "decap" the shell, because the shell under the cap has significantly less armor penetrating capability.
It depends on the shell/threat you expect to come at you. I don't know if "capped" armor piercing shells were still a concept when those tanks were built. In that case, an initial, small amount of spaced armor is designed to "decap" the shell, because the shell under the cap has significantly less armor penetrating capability.