 |
|
|
| |
Vietnam-Germany-Fort Irwin: the Eaglehorse and the M551 Sheridan
From the rubber plantations and rice paddies of Vietnam to icy tank
trails at Grafenwoehr, to the red-yellow dust of Fort Knox to Panama
and Fort Bragg and dozens of National Guard hardstands and then
rapid deployment to Saudi Arabia in support of Desert Shield to
finally masquerading as threat armor in the California deserts at
Fort Irwin, for the M551A1 Sheridan tank, it has indeed been a long
and strange ride. A thoroughly new concept in tank design, the first
models came to active service in Vietnam in 1969, the last of the
fleet will be phased out at Fort Irwin in early 2004. Three
generations of US Army tanker-scouts served on this vehicle.
| |
The M551 Sheridan, from just off
the assembly line at the Cleveland Tank Plant ...
--R.P. Hunnicutt
|
Troopers of the Blackhorse Regiment and Eaglehorse Squadron played
an active role in many of the major chapters of the story. They
painted on the first bumper numbers in Vietnam and will scrape off
the unit designations at Irwin during final turn-in. They lived with
them, died with them, struggled and cursed, kicked butt at the NTC
and broke down on the Autobahn. Most of the Sheridans could run all
day, many could fire the main gun and hit, the missile launch was a
big thrill at Level 1 gunnery for a lucky crew, SSG Pharris and crew
of Troop G 2/11 ACR got to do it all.
| |
... to Vietnam and service with
Troop F, 2/11 ACR ...
--Doc Balas
|
We tell the story of the Sheridan at both the crew level and as a
fascinating insight into how the best intentions of engineers,
manufactures, politicians and career military men can become part of
a program going clearly wrong. Long after the M551 had been largely
withdrawn from active combat units, the memories of the program had
a lasting effect on the design and procurement of future Army tanks.
Much of what was done right with bringing M1, M2 and M3 through the
design and manufacturing phase and then into the inventory can be
traced back to lessons learned from the Sherdian program.
| |
... to the side roads and Autobahns
of Germany a few years later with Troop E ...
--Dave Thompson
|
The Eaglehorse and the Sheridan is a long and complex story, rich
with detail; we have tried to craft the text in manageable sections.
The first three portions consider the evolution of US armor vehicle
design and procurement that led to the decision to produce the M551,
then Sheridan OST at Fort Knox and combat experiences in Vietnam.
The history, design and development text is heavily sourced from R.P.
Hunnicutt's seminal work, Sheridan: A History of the American Light
Tank, Presido Press, LTC (Ret) Burton S. Boudinot's article "A
Sheridan Memoir: The Early Days", Armor Magazine, Jan-Feb 1997, the
article "Soldiers" by Ward Just, Oct-Nov 1970 Atlantic Magazine and
the archives of the Cleveland Press and the New York Times. The
Vietnam section is built with recollections of Col (Ret) Clint
Ancker, LTC (Ret) Lee Allen, and major text and photo contributions
from Doug Kibbey and Roy Lingle. As the Sheridan story turns to
Germany and Bad Kissingen, Col (Ret) Norman Harms, and Terry R.
Smith provide details covering the fielding of the vehicle to the
2/14 ACR. A mini photo album with scenes of the fielding was
contributed by the family of Gary Bell. After the re-flag to the
2/11 ACR, Col (Ret) Anker, Col (Ret) Chris Conrad, LTC (Ret) Lee
Allen, Col Mike Heredia and Bob Stefanowicz pick up the story.
Continuing towards the present, the M551 becomes a micro fleet of
specialty vehicles at Fort Bragg and Fort Irwin, Bobby Haig and Doug
Kibbey tell the story with great text and photo contributions. In
our summery, we briefly reconsider the Sheridan program and examine
the role of memory and the last running M551.
| |
... to the National Training
Center, reunited with the squadron, this is the story of the General
and the Eagle, the M551 and the Eaglehorse Armored Cavalry Squadron.
--Doug Kibbey
|
Our photos come from a variety of sources, the Hunnicutt work, 14th
ACR unit yearbooks, TMs and donated images from various troopers
from Vietnam to Germany and the NTC. We are always searching for
additional images and hope that you will consider helping us out.
For anyone wishing to study the story of US armor vehicle
development in the post war period, the works of Mr. Hunnicutt are
highly recommended. They are in print and can be special ordered
through many major book outlets.
Part 1: The Light Tank, a Valid Concept
Part 2: The Blank Sheet: "... but does it
float?"
Part 3: A Brave New Concept
Part 4: The Battle Joined: Vietnam, the
Eaglehorse and the Sheridan
Part 5: Germany: the
M551 and 2/14 ACR
Part 6: Germany: the
M551 and the Eaglehorse
Part 7: The First to
the Fight
Part 8: The New Mission, Reunited with the Eaglehorse
Part 9: The M551 Sheridan Program Recalled
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
