15-210 Garand Picture of the Day

[Mark in Rochester]

An American tank crashes roughshod through an enemy roadblock near Seoul, South Korea, Oct. 7, 1950, as 7th Division infantrymen prepare to exploit the breakthrough and put an end to enemy sniper fire in this sector of the Korean front

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[CINDERS]

Break through I would say break neck, bet the guy behind the turret was hanging on. Middle G.I Rt side seems to be locking on to a potential threat.......

[Bob Womack]

Tip toe.

Bob

[RT Ellis]

Well, doesn't look like the tank in this image is breaking through a barricade, more like maneuvering through a narrow defile, but the people that write cutlines for images often like to "inhance" the image with creative writing. Good chance of dismounting to the inside the right track on the tank if not done properly.

An inexperienced trainee driver, in Tank M60 I was part of crew during training in 1975 at Ft. Knox, tried similar maneuver and "threw" the track to the inside. I can testify it was not a pleasant experience riding inside the tank, and I knew we were in trouble when I heard the guy acting as the TC warn the driver over the intercom too late not to turn during the maneuver. Took a couple of hours to "break" track with the assistance of the maintenance team using a Recovery Vehicle M88, and remount the track. Fortunately occurred at the beginning of the FTX. As we were heading to the tank park at the end of the training we passed another tank in similar condition that must have kept the crew and maintenance team out long after dark, they still had to wash the tank, and turn in the BII (basic issue items: tools and etc.) and the machine guns.

During the cavalry phase of the training I was in a Sheridan M551 passing another Sheridan stopped in a meadow, and heard three loud pops, that was three of the torsion bars on the other track breaking in succession. At first I thought someone was using live ammunition. Apparently the first torsion bar broke and the additional weight on the next two torsion bars in succession caused them to break also. Once again this occurred as we were heading to the tank park, although there was no replacing torsion bars in the field and the maintenance team merely towed the Sheridan in. Strange that this occurred as the Sheridan was sitting still on level ground. It happened I took a photograph of the other track in passing, and the crew didn't much appreciate it. No sense of humor I guess.

[browningautorifle]

I've broken my share of track too and dealt with replacing broken torsion bars...none of that's fun. One can just hope it happens on level or decent ground and not in the worst terrain or mud holes...