We are sad to announce the passing of Mr. Clarence Smoyer. Mr. Smoyer was a gunner in the 3rd Armored Division during World War II and was on one of the first T26E3 (later M26) Pershing tanks when he engaged a German Panther tank in the center of the city of Cologne in March '45.
Happening now: Tiger 712 is pulled onto its tracks for the first time in years. These are the same tracks that were on this tank when it was recovered by Allied forces in North Africa in 1943
Video from this morning as the M88A2 Hercules pulled the Jagdtiger from its shed out to the lifting spot for the crane. It has since arrived to the new Training Support Facility (the 'Tankodrome'); we will post more updates on this and other movements throughout the week.
After about 5 hrs of work, both of the outer tracks have been re-attached to the T28 Super Heavy Tank. The Collection's staff and volunteers will now conduct work to prepare the 90-ton behemoth for movement indoors. Thank you again to the Fort Benning organizations that assisted!
The EM-50 Urban Assault Vehicle was an armored personnel carrier prototype developed in the late 1970s. Built by the General Motors Corporation, the EM-50 was designed to blend in while conducting counterinsurgency, security, and stability operations in population centers.
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We have been fortunate enough to have many milestones to celebrate the last few years, with moving into our new buildings and growing the Collection. We now add another to the list.
This past weekend, the U.S. Army unveiled the official standard designation for the newly selected Mobile Protected Firepower platform: the M10 Booker Combat Vehicle.
On this day in 1942, the Western Allies encountered the German Tiger I for the first time when three of the new heavy panzers took part in a counter-attack against the British 6th Armoured Division during the Tunisian campaign in North Africa.
1/3 The World War II Tiger II "332" arrives at the Training Support Facility. In December 1944, "332" was one of the tanks of the infamous Kampfgruppe Peiper as the German Army attacked through Ardennes.
This
#TankTuesday
also happens to be Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras, so today, we feature the heaviest American tank ever built: the 95-ton T28 super heavy tank.
Thanksgiving may be over, but TANKS-giving still continues with a second course of armor! Before we departed for the holiday on Wednesday afternoon, we received another vehicle transferred to the Collection, this time the U.S. High Survivability Test Vehicle-Lightweight (HSTV-L).
*Special Announcement* The First Abrams Into Baghdad Coming To The Armor & Cavalry Collection
When Task Force 1-64 Armor conducted the first Thunder Run into Baghdad, Iraq 20 years ago on 5 April 2003, the armored column was lead by the tanks of A Company, 1-64 Armor.
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1/5 The EM-50 Urban Assault Vehicle was an armored personnel carrier prototype developed in the late 1970s. Built by the General Motors Corporation, the EM-50 was designed to blend in while conducting counterinsurgency, security, and stability operations.
44 years ago today, the first production M1 Main Battle Tank was presented at the Lima Army Tank Plant in Ohio, and the type was named after General Creighton Abrams. Did you know the Collection houses an even earlier M1 tank?
#TankTuesday
: M3 Medium in North Africa.
80 years ago today in World War II, the first U.S.-crewed tanks landed in North Africa as part of Operation Torch.
Staff Sergeant Stevon A. Booker, A Thread.
"My two basic responsibilities will always be uppermost in my mind—accomplishment of my mission and the welfare of my Soldiers."-The Army Non-Commissioned Officer's Creed
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The Armor & Cavalry Collection is excited to unveil our most recent arrival to the Tankodrome: the BAE Systems Mobile Protected Firepower (MPF) testbed vehicle.
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33 years ago, the second day of major combat operations of Operation Desert Storm was coming to a close. One of the tanks engaged in the fight was this United States Marine Corps M60A1, "Buster".
81 years ago today, American tanks fought against other tanks for the first time in history. As the Japanese invaded the Philippines in 1941, Tankers of the 192nd and 194th Tank Battalions found themselves the first U.S. Armor Soldiers to fight in World War II.
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This spring marks the 80th anniversary of the Allied victory in North Africa, as well as the recovery of the Collection's German Tiger I, 712. 712 was only the second Tiger I captured intact in North Africa and was brought back to the U.S. for testing and evaluation.
After a couple hours of work, Tiger 712 has its tracks on again. We expect to move the tank from the Sand Hill restoration shop over to our new building at Harmony Church within the next week.
#TankTuesday
: the 20-ton U.S. M24 Chaffee light tank was initially fielded to the 2nd Cavalry Group in November 1944, and saw its first heavy combat during the Battle of the Bulge.
Only three days now until our 29-30 April Public Open House! And three reminds us...
Did you know the Collection will have three World War II German Panther tanks on display this weekend? We have a Panther Ausf. A, a Panther Ausf. G, and sole produced Panther II.
One of the German tanks participating in the initial assault of the Battle of the Bulge was the Collection's Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B, also commonly referred to as the Köningstiger, King Tiger, or Tiger II.
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With the Tiger I scheduled to leave the Sand Hill Restoration Shop in a couple weeks for our new complex at Harmony Church, the next big project in the queue is getting the Panzer V Panther Ausf. G reassembled and put back together for display.
#tanktuesday
: U.S. M4A2 medium tank with British 17-pounder gun.
One of the new Allied tanks introduced in the summer of 1944 was the British modification of the American M4 Sherman with a 17-pounder gun called the Sherman Firefly.
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New arrivals, continued: The next "new" tank to join the Collection this week is the World War II German Panzerkampfwagen IV Ausf. G outfitted with a hydrostatic drive.
Today our World War II German Sd.Kfz 251/9 Ausf. D halftrack arrived at the Tankodrome. The 251/9 was a modification of the standard Sd.Kfz 251 armored personnel carrier to provide organic mobile protected firepower within Panzergrenadier (Armored Infantry) units.
Our efforts continue to be focused on the movement of historical pieces over to our new facility. This week prep work was conducted on our Sd.Kfz. 234/4, a World War II German armored reconnaissance vehicle armed with the potent 7.5cm PaK 40 anti-tank.
It's
#MotorPoolMonday
, and today we're back at the restoration shop getting the sole World War II German Panther II prototype ready for transportation to the new building.
We end the week on a high note. With excellent weather, we made the decision to move our World War II German StuG III Ausf. G across Fort Benning to our new building. It is one of the founding vehicles of the Armor Collection having arrived at Fort Knox in 1946.
Keeping the theme of German armor going, today we began prepping one of our Panzer IIIs for moving. This particular example was originally built in 1940 as a Panzer III Ausf. F, and was continuously upgraded thoughout the war before being captured by the U.S. Army.
This
#AntiTankThursday
we excitedly feature another of the new additions to the Collection, the World War II German Nashorn ("rhinoceros") tank destroyer!
16 December 1944: The Battle of the Bulge Begins.
78 years ago today, the Germans launched a surprise offensive through the Ardennes region of Belgium and Luxembourg in what became known as the Battle of the Bulge.
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As we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, we look back 104 years ago this month to when
a real "Tanks-giving" occurred!
The British Mark IV Heavy Tank was introduced in 1917 as an improved version of the Mark I (the first tank type to see battle in World War I).
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One last video for today! Here the T28 Super Heavy Tank makes its way off the HET. Over the next couple days the Collection's staff and volunteers will prep the hull and outer track units for re-assembly.
The Kampfpanzer Leopard 1 was the first tank developed and produced in West Germany after World War II. Introduced in the early 1960s, it was designed to be light, fast, maneuverable, and easy to maintain in the field.
After the Tiger II yesterday, we jump ahead several decades to the M1 Abrams Block III Tank Test Bed (TTB). Designed in the 1980s and tested in the 1990s, the TTB had a remote operated turret with an autoloaded 120mm main gun. The three-man crew sat side by side in the hull.
As we return from the holiday break we look back at the challenges of the past year and what's to come in 2021. This year our primary focus will be the movement of the main body of vehicles from our current restoration shop. Thank you for following us; there's more to come!
For this
#TankTuesday
, we recognize the 43rd anniversary of the naming of the M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank on 28 February 1980.
On that day, the first Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) Abrams tank came off the line at the Lima Army Tank Plant in Lima, Ohio.
#ThrowbackThursday
to two years ago today when our German Panzer II Ausf. F. was moved over to our new building. This example was captured by the U.S. Army in North Africa in 1943 and sent back to the U.S. for evaluation.
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After several hours of work and M88A2 support from the Fort Benning Logistics Readiness Center, both the Tiger II and the Abrams Block III Tank Test Bed (TTB) are inside the Armor & Cavalry Collection Training Support Facility.
After moving in the T28 Super Heavy Tank, we commenced on moving other U.S. heavy tank prototypes inside the new building. In the first picture is the T29, armed with the same 105mm as the T28. This type was expected to be able to take on German heavy tanks like the Tiger II.
#TankTuesday
: The World War II Sherman Firefly was a British modification of the American M4 medium tank armed with the powerful 17-pounder anti-tank gun. This made it quite capable in defeating heavier German tanks such as the Panther and Tiger.
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82 years ago today, American tanks fought against other tanks for the first time in history. As the Japanese invaded the Philippines in 1941, Tankers of the 192nd and 194th Tank Battalions found themselves the first U.S. Armor Soldiers to fight in World War II.
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#TankTuesday
: The M46 Patton Medium Tank.
The M26 Pershing was rushed to Europe to fight German tanks at the end of World War II. With greater armor and firepower, the Pershing was a substantial improvement over the M4 Sherman.
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76 years ago today on 18 December 1944, the Collection's Tiger II experienced "mechanical difficulties" and was abandoned east of the Belgian village of Coo. A week later, 332 would become U.S. Army property when the M4 Shermans of the U.S. 740th Tank Battalion cleared the area.
With the M26 Pershing out of the way, our T-34-85 moves across the restoration shop and is staged for its move over, most likely next week. This particular T-34-85 was used by North Korean forces and captured by the U.S. Army during the breakout from the Pusan Perimeter.
This is the U.S. T34 heavy tank, not to be confused with the famous Soviet T-34. Prior to the 1960s when "XM" was used for "Experimental Model", American prototypes and test vehicles were given "T" designations for "Test".
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Turning off the lights at the end of another
#TankTuesday
! The U.S. Heavy Tanks T30 (right) and T34 (left) were developed at the end of World War II to possibly counter newer German heavy tanks.
#FromTheArchives
: Blast from the Past! Taken 73 years ago this month, T28 Super Heavy Tank
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fires its 105mm gun at Aberdeen Proving Grounds in March of 1947.
Sun's up, guns up, it's
#TankTuesday
! Shown here is the U.S. T29 Heavy Tank. Weighing at 64 tons and armed with a 105mm gun, the T29 was initially desiged in 1944 in response to the German Tiger II.
This
#tanktuesday
, we look at the progress of the World War II Italian Carro Armato M14/41. Cleaning is now complete on the exterior and soon the tank will receive a coat of red oxide primer.
Photographed yesterday during the curator's check in on the Collection, the T28 Super Heavy Tank (minus its outer set of tracks for now) basks in the sun.
One of the German tanks participating in the initial assault of the Battle of the Bulge was the Collection's 77-ton Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B, also commonly referred to as the Köningstiger, King Tiger, or Tiger II.
Yesterday, we brought the U.S. T34 heavy tank into the new facility. The 65-ton T34 was the last of the T29-series of heavy tank testbeds produced at the end of World War II as a possible counter-weapon to new German vehicles like the King Tiger and Jagdtiger.
106 years ago today in 1917, Captain George S. Patton, Jr. and Second Lieutenant Elgin Braine became the first personnel assigned to the American Expeditionary Forces Tank Corps, making them the first American Tankers.
#TankTuesday
: The British Churchill Crocodile was one of the more successful designs of flamethrower-armed vehicles of World War II, with approximately 800 built.
The U.S. M60A2 Main Battle was a 1960s attempt to combine the basic but proven M60 tank with futuristic features from the troubled T95 medium tank and MBT70 main battle tank programs, including a gun-missile launcher combination weapon system.
Just now: the M1A2 SEP v3, the U.S. Army's newest version of the venerable Abrams Main Battle Tank, has arrived for this weekend's open house. Thanks to 1st Squadron, 16th U.S. Cavalry of the 316th Cavalry Brigade, visitors will be able to see the latest in U.S. Army Armor.
Starting in the late the 1960s, Lockheed Missile and Space Company developed a small family of articulating eight wheeled vehicles designed for cross-country mobility called Twisters.
It's
#TankTuesday
, and this week we feature a reunion. Shortly after World War II, LIFE Magazine featured photos of the largest and smallest tanks made for the U.S Army during the war: the 95-ton T28 Super Heavy Tank and the 8-ton M22 Locust Light Tank (Airborne).
As we close out on this Friday at the Collection, it has been a tremendous week of new additions of armored fight vehicle artifacts. We will continue to showcase these arrivals over the next week, but we depart with this teaser photo. Have a great weekend!
For
#tanktuesday
, we have an update on Tiger 712. The base coat of RAL 8000 has been complete, and this morning we reinstalled the muzzle brake to the 8.8cm main gun.
One of the newest pieces to arrive to the Collection is this M42B1E9 Mechanized Flamethrower, which had previously been an outdoor display at the Anniston Army Depot.
SOON.
We're counting down the final hours before we open our doors tomorrow to the public for our first and biggest, open house of 2024. Guest vehicles from the Armor School have arrived, with more displays arriving in the morning! The Collection's doors will open at 9:00 AM.
1/5 After a week of gentle movement, the 103-year old Mark VIII Heavy Tank is finally in its position inside the Tankodrome. The Mark VIII was the result of efforts by the 1918 Inter-Allied Tank Committee to produce over a thousand heavy tanks for a planned 1919 Allied offensive.
Today's
#MotorPoolMonday
was one for the record books as the Tiger I, 712, began to recieve its base coat of paint. During conservation efforts on the Tiger, several examples original RAL 8000 'Gelbbraun' (gold brown) paint were found and gave us an excellent reference.
80 years ago today, American tanks fought another tank for the first time in history. As the Japanese invaded the Philippines in 1941, Tankers of the 192nd and 194th Tank Battalions found themselves the first Armor Soldiers to fight in World War II. 1/6
It's
#tanktuesday
, and today we showcase the century-old U.S. M1922 Medium Tank, recently transferred to the Collection. The M1922 was a evolution of the M1921 Medium, and utilized a cable track system.
Today's
#tanktuesday
is brought to you by our Soviet T-34/76. Built in April of 1941, it was captured intact only a few months later when the German Army invaded. Slightly modified and put into service by the Germans, it again was captured by the U.S. Army in Western Europe.
Today, the sole EM-50 is undergoing a restoration that we've planned to take two years, but in reality will take at least six after being stopped and restarted at least twice. That's the facts, Jack.
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#TankTuesday
: a look back a few years ago when all four of our "Heavy Ts" were on line. Seen here from front to back are the T29 (armed with a 105mm main gun), T29E3 (equipped with a coincidental range finder), the T30 (with a 155mm main gun), and T34 (with 120mm main gun).
#AntiTankThursday
: The Soviet ASU-57 was introduced in 1951 to provide their Airborne Forces with an air-droppable assualt gun capable of filling multiple roles to include that of tank destroyer.
After reassembling the T28 Super Heavy Tank yesterday, we're taking the day to reset and let inclement weather pass before movement indoors. We've also been working on videos of the track install and the interior, so as a teaser here is a shot of the T28's crew compartment.
After a cloudy, gray morning, this afternoon has turned out beautiful. Taking advantage of the sun, our restoration team has rolled out the M3A3 light tank to wash it before repainting and reassembly begins.
A year ago today, the staff and volunteers of the Collection gathered for a special event: reinstalling the tracks on our Tiger I after nearly a decade off. Here is a recap of that morning as the right side track went on.
1/4 It was a bittersweet day as we said goodbye to our U.S. Mark VIII heavy tank this evening. Unlike the other vehicles in the Collection heading to our new home, Mark VIII is heading to the Army Museum at Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois...
The next step for preparing Tiger 712 for travel is getting the final drives back on. When the sprockets are installed, most of the final drives are hidden from view.
Teams from the Armor & Cavalry Collection, Fort Benning Logistics Readiness Center, and Ground Mobility Division preparing to assemble the T28 Super Heavy Tank into its full 90-ton, four-tracked configuration.
#TankTuesday
: As the Battle of the Bulge raged on into January 1945 during World War II, the newest version of the M4 medium tank appeared on the frontlines. It combined improvements both previously fielded and new, making it vastly different from the original Shermans of 1942.