This kind of goes with my post in GENERAL MODELING. These two photos would have made the book had their resolution been better. Since I could not share them in the book I thought everybody here would appreciate them. This is the TC's station on the M1A1. THis is my co-author, Sgt Olson, at the range in Kuwait just before the war (OIF). Note the yellow GPS device, 'U' shaped charging handle, and the pile of black shredded links. Sgt Olson had just been "John Wayning" it by using the butterfly trigger.

In the photo he is wearing his Kevlar cover from Desert Storm as a reminder of that service.

Enjoy.

Bob

Thanks for the images Burik. Looks like he was having some fun!

You put anyone behind a .50 and its cause for a good time (minus being on the receiving end )

Jeff

What's the small silver thing above the GPS inthe top pic, in between the mount's pivot and the gun. It sort of looks like a remote control for a music system?
Tom

If I'm not mistaken, it looks like a Panasonic car stereo remote... I've got one in my car. Still working on the fifty.

A lot of tankers blast music (usually hard rock) in their tanks to get themselves fired up. So it wouldn't surprise me in the least if that is a CD remote. Kind of a precarious place to put.

"Sarge, you seen my remote?"
"You check your duffle bag?"
"Yep"
"You check topside?"
"Yep"
"You checked the -"
"Never mind I found it. Now who is the wise guy that put it in the ammo storage bin?"

Jeff

Interesting, a hoffman device but not using blanks for the .50.

They were doing training. Maybe they just hadn't taken it off.

Jeff

Most likely firing Tank Table V where all the engagements are either dry-fired (no main gun ammo) or simulated using the Hoffman device. The main purpose of TTV is to check out the operation of the machine guns.

Sabot might be right. My thoughts are that they went to the range and did not remove the hoffman device since sometime later they would be training again with the hoffman device. In wartime photos the velcro for the MILES gear is still on the tanks. (You will see plenty examples in my book) and I suppose it's just one more example of "If it does not affect the capabilities of the tank, then I won't worry about it." Another example is that most crews never bothered to remove the white shipping label stickers that were on the sideskirts. Nobody felt the stickers degraded the camo aspects of the tank, so nobody cared.

About what appears to be a personal audio item, the next time I talk to Sgt Olson I'll ask him about it.

Just to add more interest, when I get home I'll show a photo of the mock-up tank targets they used in Kuwait. I couldn't get that in the book either.

Bob

Okay, here is the target. It is merely a dumpster with a barrel on top. Holes, courtesy of the US Army.



Bob

Interesting that the holes are more square than they are round. Why is that? Is this a target for the .50 or main gun rounds or does that even matter?

Jeff

I think if you look closer you can see the round holes. I don't know if it is the lighting or the black smudging of some sort that is around the holes that make them look square.

Great shots, Burik, looking forward to your book. As to the holes- If they were firing APFSDS, isn't it possible that the fins could've punched through the relatively thin steel of the dumpster, leving a star-shape that appears square at low-res? that's what it looks like from here, at any rate. Used to get that type of pattern on the old AAVP hulks down by courthouse bay when our tankers would throw tungsten downrange. Just a thought.

Logan'sDad makes an interesting point.

Here is a photo of a sedan the enemy used to try and ferry men around. It was taken out by a sabot.



This is another photo that did not make it into the book.

Bob

Wow, hit by an APFSDS, and yet the windows remain intact! Wonder what became of the passengers. Or if the round even knew it hit something. :-)

I remember an armored reco vehicle hit by a RPG in Lebanon. The rocket hit just behind the driver seat, went through the whole compartment and then went out without injuring anyone, except for a suddenly very hot feeling in the back of the driver.
Neither the ammo, nor the various fluids were set to fire.
War is not an exact science, Luck still has its place in it

olivier

Bob, what unit is this? Thanks, Dan, a former member of 3-69 AR.

HI Panamadan: Sgt Olson, my co-author, was from 1-64 Armor. I think he took all of the photos I posted here. Our book will be covering the whole 3rd ID.

It does not seem too many people caught my post under GENERAL MODELING, but I wanted to mention again that Gino (Heavy Artillery) and Don Busack (I don't know his Armorama callsign) of Prime Portal were very helpful.

There was so much more that I wanted to share in the book but it just would not fit. The biggest problem I had was that so many of the interesting photos were of low resolution (guys trying to fit as many photos on a memory card as possible - not thinking they'd run into a guy like me later) they could not be used in the book. So, I am happy to share what I can within reason.

I hope those of you who decide to purchase the book get an appreciation of the men and equipment that I got in writing the book. And, I hope the book turns out the way I imagined it as I wrote it. I certainly went through an education on publishing as I put it together. Hats off to the Steven Zalogas of the world.

I didn't catch that post-could you email me more about this book? I'm good buddies with the post museum curator and I will pass this on to him. I'm dating myself, but I was there when it was the 24th ID. Dan

No publishing date as yet. I just turned the finished product in last week. Concord has lots of other projects ahead of mine. Hopefully, because this is sort of a current events subject the book will be published sooner rather than later. But I suppose it could be months. I tried to represent as much as possible as far as units and soldiers and equipment goes, but I am not sure all of what I turned in will make it. That is up to the publisher. Of course, you can expect to see lots of tanks and APCs, and soldiers in different contexts so there should be plenty of variety there too (MOPP suits, desert environments, built-up areas, battle damage...).

Bob