RetroFed
PugJesus
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Explanation: Over the course of a… convoluted procurement process, the US Marine Corps ended up with a curious little vehicle known as the ’Ontos’ (’Thing’, appropriately, considering that it doesn’t fit neatly into any category of armored vehicle) in the 1950s. It’s not much more than six recoilless rifles (light anti-tank weapons) slapped onto a treaded vehicle.
In the 1960s, during the Vietnam War, they were surprisingly useful, albeit not in their intended anti-vehicle role. Rather, they were used because they were some of the few vehicles with heavy weapons the USMC had light enough to traverse the… difficult terrain of Vietnam. When enemy troops were holed up in solid cover, such as during urban fighting, an Ontos could be used to destroy the enemy - cover and all.
As the Ontos typically fired a .50 cal tracer round to show the crew where their shots will land (so they can correct without wasting the BIG ammunition) before firing, the sight of an Ontos firing a single .50 cal was often enough to convince North Vietnamese troops to leg it out of whatever building they were in. Those walls aren’t going to protect against the six anti-tank rounds that are gonna follow!
cecilkorikFat Electrician did a video about it because of course he did.
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Explanation: Over the course of a… convoluted procurement process, the US Marine Corps ended up with a curious little vehicle known as the ’Ontos’ (’Thing’, appropriately, considering that it doesn’t fit neatly into any category of armored vehicle) in the 1950s. It’s not much more than six recoilless rifles (light anti-tank weapons) slapped onto a treaded vehicle.
In the 1960s, during the Vietnam War, they were surprisingly useful, albeit not in their intended anti-vehicle role. Rather, they were used because they were some of the few vehicles with heavy weapons the USMC had light enough to traverse the… difficult terrain of Vietnam. When enemy troops were holed up in solid cover, such as during urban fighting, an Ontos could be used to destroy the enemy - cover and all.
As the Ontos typically fired a .50 cal tracer round to show the crew where their shots will land (so they can correct without wasting the BIG ammunition) before firing, the sight of an Ontos firing a single .50 cal was often enough to convince North Vietnamese troops to leg it out of whatever building they were in. Those walls aren’t going to protect against the six anti-tank rounds that are gonna follow!