A shrewd genius and one of the greatest tank designers of all time (his designs were adopted by the Japanese, Russian, and British armies and were the foundation of several famous tanks like the T-34), Walter Christie in 1932 proposed a Flying Tank to be inserted on a battlefield, then sheding its wings to be combat ready.
The problem of how to bring infantry support equipment with paratroopers was studied by many nations, especially during WWII, some actually flew, like the Antonov A40:
The Japanese also had an experimental flying tank, called kuro (meaning ‘black’) or sora (meaning ‘sky’). And the British experimented with a glider that carried a detachable light tank, called Baynes’ Bat, which was tested as a ½ scaled model, but that is all. Generally speaking, a flying tank is difficult to accomplish because it is attempting to do two things at once.
Still, the basis for all these projects is the original design by Walter Christie.
As a commenter has it:
We’re not sure if it was blind zeal or the drink that led Christie to solve the problem of how to get a tank to the field by supplying it with wings. Just imagine the enemy’s shock when they looked into the sky. Christie envisioned a mechanized flying monster: a griffin -- with the body of a tank below, and the wings of an airplane above. His tracked machine was outfitted with detachable wings and tail and accelerated up to flying speed, at which point the propeller was turned on and the additional thrust got it airborne. When it landed, the wings and tail were released “in a jiffy” by pulling a lever, and discarded. The monster then zipped off with its “guns blazing” in ground assault.
Here the full details, drawings etc. as published in 1932:
http://www.roadabletimes.com/roadables-modular_Christie.htmlAnd a contemporary article about the project which was supposed "to change war strategy":
http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2006/07/10/flying-tanks-that-shed-their-wings/Rattler
