0:03 Jeeps, Shermans, Hellcats, and more.
0:05 These are the American machines that
0:07 rolled, fought, [music] and won World
0:10 War II. From the front lines to the
0:12 supply routes, every vehicle played its
0:15 part in history. Let's begin with tanks.
0:18 M2 light tank. Before the war fully
0:20 erupted, the M2 served as the training
0:22 ground for America's armored force. With
0:24 its peculiar twin turret design on early
0:26 models, it was quickly outpaced by
0:28 technology, but laid the mechanical
0:30 foundation for the tanks that followed.
0:32 M3 Stewart, known affectionately as
0:35 Honey by British crews, the M3 Stewart
0:36 was the first American [music] tank to
0:39 see combat in North Africa. While its
0:42 37mm gun was light, its exceptional
0:44 speed and mechanical reliability made it
0:46 a legendary scout. M5 Stewart. An
0:49 evolution of the M3. The M5 Stewart
0:51 featured a sloping hull and twin
0:54 Cadillac engines. It was quieter, cooler
0:56 running, and provided the Allies with a
0:58 fast reconnaissance platform right until
1:01 [music] the end of the war. M22 Locust,
1:03 designed to fall from the sky. The M22
1:05 Locust was small enough to fit inside a
1:08 heavy glider. Though its combat service
1:10 was limited, it represented a bold
1:11 experiment in providing airborne troops
1:14 with their own armor support. M3 Lee. A
1:17 strange stop gap measure. The M3 Lee
1:20 mounted a 75mm gun in the hull and a
1:22 37mm gun in a turret. It had a high
1:24 profile and limited traverse, but it
1:26 brought crucial heavy firepower to the
1:27 British Eighth Army when they needed it
1:30 most. M4 Sherman, the icon of American
1:33 industrial might. The Sherman wasn't the
1:34 biggest tank on the field, but it was
1:37 reliable, easily repaired, and produced
1:38 in overwhelming numbers, [music] serving
1:40 as the backbone of the Allied armored
1:42 spearhead. Now, let's look at tank
1:45 destroyers. M3GMC, one of the earliest
1:47 attempts to mobilize anti-tank fire.
1:50 This was essentially a 75mm gun dropped
1:52 onto a halftrack. It was a makeshift
1:54 solution that managed to punch holes in
1:56 enemy armor during the Philippines and
1:58 North African campaigns. M6 GMC,
2:01 nicknamed Fargo. This was a light truck
2:04 carrying a 37mm anti-tank gun. While
2:06 nimble, it lacked protection and punch,
2:08 quickly relegating it to training or
2:10 infantry support roles as German armor
2:13 grew thicker. M10, the Wolverine. Built
2:15 on a Sherman chassis with an open top
2:18 turret, the M10 relied on angular armor
2:20 and a 3-in gun to hunt panzers. It was
2:22 the most widely used American tank
2:25 destroyer of the conflict. M18, the
2:28 Hellcat, was built for one thing, speed.
2:30 Hitting 50 mph, it was the fastest
2:32 tracked vehicle of the war, using
2:34 hit-and-run tactics to outmaneuver heavy
2:36 German tanks. M36. When the Allies
2:38 encountered heavy Tigers and Panthers, [music]
2:39 [music]
2:41 they called for the Jackson. Armed with
2:44 a massive 90mm gun, the M36 was the only
2:46 American vehicle that could reliably
2:48 knock out heavy German cats from long
2:50 range. Let's move on to self-propelled
2:53 artillery. M7 Priest, named for the
2:55 pulpit-like machine gun ring on its
2:58 superructure. The Priest mounted a 105mm
3:00 howitzer on a tank chassis, allowing
3:02 artillery to keep pace with the rapidly
3:05 advancing armored divisions. M8 HMC the
3:08 Scott by placing a 75mm pack howitzer on
3:11 a light steward chassis, the M8 provided
3:12 close-range indirect fire [music]
3:14 support, blasting bunkers and machine
3:17 gun nests to clear the way for infantry.
3:19 M12 GMC nicknamed King Kong for its
3:23 sheer power. The M12 mounted a 155mm gun
3:25 on an older tank chassis. It was
3:27 designed for long range destruction and
3:29 famously used to crack the Ziggfrieded
3:32 line bunkers. M40 GMC arriving late in
3:34 the war. The M40 was the successor to
3:37 the M12. It paired the devastating
3:39 long-tom 155mm gun [music] with the
3:41 wider, more stable chassis of the latest
3:44 Sherman variants, creating a potent
3:47 mobile artillery piece. M43 HMC. The big
3:49 brother to the M40. This variant swapped
3:52 the 155mm gun for a massive 8-in
3:54 howitzer. [music] It produced incredible
3:55 destructive power, leveling
3:57 fortifications with ease during the
4:00 final push into Germany. M4 105mm
4:02 assault gun. This wasn't a tank
4:04 destroyer, but a bunker buster. By
4:07 fitting a 105mm howitzer directly into a
4:09 standard Sherman turret, commanders gave
4:11 tank platoon their own high explosive
4:13 sledgehammer for demolition work. Moving
4:16 on to armored and scout cars. M3 scout
4:18 car, the white scout car was the wheeled
4:20 chariot of early war commanders,
4:22 including General Patton. Armored,
4:23 reliable, and bristling with machine
4:25 guns, it served as a reconnaissance
4:27 staple before being replaced by
4:30 halftracks. M8 Greyhound. Fast, quiet,
4:32 and deadly to infantry. The Greyhound
4:35 was a 6x6 armored car that served
4:36 [music] as the eyes and ears of the
4:38 cavalry, racing ahead of columns to spot
4:41 the enemy before vanishing. M20.
4:42 Essentially a Greyhound without the
4:44 turret, the M20 served as an armored
4:47 utility car. It fied commanders, carried
4:49 cargo, and moved troops quickly through
4:51 dangerous territory under the protection
4:53 of light armor. Moving on to halftracks.
4:55 M2 halftrack. Shorter than its famous
4:57 cousin. [music] The M2 was designed
5:00 primarily as an artillery prime mover.
5:02 It hauled guns and ammunition, ensuring
5:04 the big batteries could move through mud
5:06 that would trap a standard truck. M3
5:08 Halftrack, the definitive armored
5:10 personnel carrier of the war. With
5:12 tracks in the back and wheels in the
5:14 front, the M3 carried squads of armored
5:16 infantry into the heart of battle,
5:18 protecting them from shrapnel and small
5:20 arms. M5 halftrack, visually nearly
5:23 identical to the M3. The M5 was produced
5:25 by international harvester, mostly for
5:27 lendley. It featured a different engine
5:28 and slightly rolled armor fenders
5:30 serving faithfully with British,
5:32 Canadian, and Soviet forces. M9
5:36 Halftrack. Similar to the M5, the M9 was
5:37 international harvesters version of the
5:39 utility halftrack. It was widely
5:41 exported to Allied nations, proving that
5:43 American industrial capacity [music]
5:45 could supply the entire free world.
5:48 Moving on to amphibious vehicles, M29
5:50 Weasel, originally designed for a covert
5:52 mission [music] into snowy Norway, the
5:54 Weasel was a fully tracked amphibious
5:56 cargo carrier. It could traverse deep
5:58 mud, snow, and swamps that no other
6:01 vehicle could touch. LVT1, the
6:03 Alligator. The first of the landing
6:04 vehicle tracked series. It used
6:06 paddle-like tracks to swim through water
6:08 and crawl up beaches. It was the crucial
6:10 key to unlocking the Pacific Island
6:13 hopping campaign. LVT2, the water
6:15 buffalo. Improving on the Alligator, the
6:17 LVT2 featured a better suspension for
6:19 hard ground. It became the workhorse of
6:22 the Marines, fing supplies from ship to
6:25 shore under heavy fire. LVT4. A massive
6:27 improvement in amphibious design. The
6:29 LVT4 moved the engine forward [music] to
6:31 add a large rear ramp. This allowed
6:33 troops and jeeps to exit directly onto
6:35 the beach under cover rather than
6:38 scrambling over the tall sides. LVTA1
6:41 and Amtrak with teeth. This variant
6:44 mounted a 37mm turret from a light tank,
6:46 effectively turning the landing craft
6:48 into an amphibious tank hunter to
6:50 support the first wave of Marines.
6:53 LVTA4. Recognizing the need for bigger
6:56 booms, the LVTA4 swapped the small
6:59 anti-tank gun for a 75mm howitzer
7:01 turret. It acted as [music] floating
7:02 artillery, blasting beach defenses at
7:06 point blank range. DUKW pronounced duck.
7:08 This was a masterpiece of logistics. A
7:10 six-wheel drive truck encased in a boat
7:12 hull. It could ferry supplies from a
7:14 transport ship directly to a depot miles
7:16 inland without ever stopping to unload.
7:18 [music] Let's move on to trucks and
7:21 prime movers. Willy's MB, Ford GPW, the
7:23 Jeep. General Eisenhower listed it as
7:25 one of the three tools that won the war.
7:27 Small, rugged, and capable of going
7:29 absolutely anywhere, it became the
7:31 universal symbol of American liberation.
7:34 Dodge WC, [music] the beep or big Jeep.
7:37 The Dodge WC series were rugged 3/4tonon
7:39 trucks that served as weapons carriers,
7:42 [music] ambulances, and command cars. If
7:44 a Jeep was too small, the Dodge was the
7:47 answer. Chevrolet G506, the 1 and 1/2ton
7:50 ton Chevy. Often overshadowed by larger
7:52 trucks, the G506 was a critical
7:54 logistical link, hauling troops and
7:56 towing artillery in every theater of the
7:58 war, including the freezing Eastern
8:02 Front via Lendley, GMC, CCKW, the Deuce,
8:04 and a half, the backbone of the Red Ball
8:06 Express. Over half a million of these
8:08 trucks were built, creating the endless
8:10 river of supplies that fueled the Allied
8:13 race across Europe. M4 high-speed
8:15 tractor. When artillery became too heavy
8:17 for trucks, the M4 high-speed tractor
8:20 took over. A fully tracked prime mover,
8:22 it dragged heavy anti-aircraft and field
8:23 guns through the worst terrain
8:27 imaginable. Diamond T980981,
8:29 the heavyweight champion of recovery.
8:31 This massive 12ton truck was designed to
8:33 haul tank transporter trailers, moving
8:36 damaged or operational armor to where it
8:37 was needed most without wearing out the
8:39 tank's tracks. Now, let's look at
8:42 engineering and recovery. M32 TRV, the
8:45 tank recovery vehicle. Essentially a
8:46 Sherman tank with a fixed turret and a
8:49 massive crane, the M32 braved the front
8:51 lines to winch damaged tanks out of the
8:54 mud and tow them back to safety. M1
8:56 Heavy Wrecker, a beast of a truck
8:57 equipped with a heavyduty crane and
9:00 winches. The M1 Wrecker was the
9:01 mechanic's best friend, capable of
9:03 lifting engines, riding overturned
9:05 vehicles, and clearing the roads for the
9:07 convoy. Finishing off with liazison and
9:10 staff vehicles. Harley-Davidson WLA the
9:12 Liberator. Modified for military use
9:14 with scabbards for submachine guns and
9:16 blackout lights. These motorcycles
9:18 carried couriers and MPs swiftly through
9:20 the chaotic traffic of the war zones.
9:23 Indian 741. While Harley took the
9:25 spotlight, the Indian 741 was a vital
9:28 player. Smaller and lighter, thousands
9:30 were produced with many sent to British
9:31 and Commonwealth forces to keep the
9:34 lines of communication open. Ford Staff
9:35 Car. Based on the standard civilian
9:38 sedan, the Ford Staff Car offered
9:39 high-ranking officers a relatively
9:41 comfortable, albeit unarmored ride
9:43 between headquarters. Painted in drab
9:46 olive to blend in with the war Chevrolet
9:48 staff car, the rival to the Ford, the
9:49 Chevy staff [music] car was a
9:50 militarized version of the Master
9:53 Deluxe. It fied generals and VIPs across
9:55 safe zones, serving as a reminder of
