Although the M41 Walker Bulldog was developed as a replacement, M24s were not mostly removed from U.S. and NATO armies until the 1960s and remained in service with some Third World countries.

British combat experience in the North African campaign identified several shortcomings of the M3 Stuart light tank, especially the performance of its 37 mm cannon.

[3][2] This prompted the Ordnance Committee to issue a specification for a new light tank, with the same powertrain as the M5A1 but armed with a 75 mm gun.

[4] In April 1943, the Ordnance Corps, together with Cadillac (who manufactured the M5), started work on the new project, designated Light Tank T24.

The design featured 16 in (41 cm) tracks and torsion bar suspension, similar to the slightly earlier M18 Hellcat tank destroyer, which itself started in production in July 1943.

The torsion bar system was to give a smoother ride than the vertical volute suspension used on most US armored vehicles.

The M24 was inferior in armor to German tanks, but the bigger gun at least gave its crews a much better chance to fight back when it was required, especially in infantry support.

The contribution of the M24 to winning the war in Europe was minor, as too few arrived too late to replace the worn-out M5s of the armored divisions.

In a more open type of terrain and enemy situation, such as may be expected on the larger land masses, this company, due to its great mobility combined with strong fire power, will provide excellent reconnaissance, protection of flanks, covering force, as well as direct assault or support by fire.

In addition, the armor of the M24 could be penetrated by the main guns of enemy tanks, artillery, and even anti-tank rifles used by the North Korean military.

Moreover, most of the tanks dispatched from Japan had not been repaired for a long time, so turrets and main guns frequently broke down during battles.

This unfavorable situation was resolved in August of the same year when U.S. medium tanks were finally deployed on the Korean Peninsula.

They fired about 15,000 shells in the long siege that followed before the Viet Minh forces finally overcame the camp in May 1954, almost all being entirely worn out and badly damaged by the time the battle was over.

Some former French and US Chaffees are known to have been passed down to the Army of South Vietnam, where they saw service at least until the Battle of Huế, with several serving as fixed gun emplacements outside vital military installations such as airbases.

From 1962 till the early seventies the M24s in Tank Battalions were replaced with M47s and the M24s were used to equip Independent Reconnaissance Companies with an additional 121 M24s received from Italy in 1975.

[19] In 1972, the Norwegian Army decided to retain 54 of their 123 M24 light tanks as reconnaissance vehicles after they were substantially rebuilt under the designation NM-116.

The American firm NAPCO developed an improved power pack based around the 6V53T diesel engine used in the M113 armored personnel carrier mated to an Allison MT-653 transmission.

[21] Uruguay continues to use the M24,[23] modernized with new engines and 76 mm guns which can fire armor-piercing, fin stabilized, discarding sabot (APFSDS) rounds.