Armor 1994-1998
“If the tanks succeed, then victory follows.”
-Heinz Guderian
The business end of an M60A3. Tankers who served on both M60A3s and M1A1s considered the M60A3 a superior tank to the newer M1A1s during defensive operations.
Tank Commander at the National Guard armor school, Ft Polk, LA.
Heat ripples the air after an M1A1 fires its main gun during gunnery training at Ft Knox, 1996.
"Check Mate" in Germany, 1998. The "SFOR" marking on the side of the tank is from the peacekeeping mission in Bosnia where the tank was part of the NATO Stabilization Force (SFOR.)
An M1A1 crewed by officers at the Armor Officer Basic Course engages a target at Ft Knox, 1996.
Rain falls on the tanks of 3rd Platoon, C Company, 1/77 Armor.
C36 covering a high-speed avenue of approach into one of the villages in HTA, 1998. My platoon was covering approaches to the site while infantry cleared the village of OPFOR (Opposing Forces.)
My tank, C36, hull down at Hohenfels Training Area, Germany, 1998.
M60A3 advancing through the concealment of smoke, Ft Riley, KS, 1996.
M60A3 from the 35th Infantry Division (Kansas Army National Guard) at Ft Riley, KS.
A tank section in the field at Ft Riley, KS. The four tanks in a platoon operate in in two sections of two tanks- the platoon leader and his wingman, and the platoon sergeant and his wingman.
What happens when that little, muddy creek turned out to be deeper than expected. Ft Riley, 1995.
Bore-sighting M60A3s before tank gunnery at the National Guard armor school, Ft Polk, LA.
Loading 105mm main gun ammo at the National Guard armor school.
Just about the worst thing that can happen to a tank- throwing track. After that a tank is just a target and a pill box.
Fires burn around my tank at Ft Riley, KS, 1996.
Tankers doing track maintenance in the field at Ft Riley, KS, 1996.
M60A3 at the National Guard armor school, Ft Polk, LA.
M1A1 at Armor Officer Basic Course (AOBC) moves out for a series of offensive gunnery exercises.
Gunnery training at the AOBC, Ft Knox, 1997.
Fires burn down-range at Ft Knox during gunnery training, Ft Knox, 1996. Tracers from a tanks machinegun rounds set fire to the dry vegetation on the range- but training doesn't stop for that type of thing.
The sun sets over an M1A1 in the field, Germany, 1998.
A good tank driver makes all the difference in the field-for too many reasons to go into here. But my driver, PFC Miller was among the best.
NCOs from my platoon figuring out how to recover C35 after it threw track at Hohenfels Training Area (HTA.) Germany, 1998.
Tanks from my platoon roll out during a training event at Hohenfels Training Area.
View from the tank commander's (TC) hatch of tanks from the 35th Infantry Division advancing with smoke for concealment.
A TC checks the MRS of his M1A1 during "prep to fire" checks.
After three months of continuous training at HTA and Graf, fatigue sets in and shows on Puzella's face. Crewing a tank is a 24/7 duty that takes its toll on the crew.
Private Puzella racked-out on the back deck of our tank after night gunnery. That spot is as good as any bed in the finest hotel after endless weeks of training in the field.
Tanks can cross most, but not all, terrain. An M60A3 from the 35th Infantry Division (ID) sunk to the top of the tracks in a creek at Ft Riley, KS.
An M60A3 sunk in a muddy creek at Ft Riley, KS. It was a long day in the wash racks after this event.
Me with my M60A3 during a break in training at Ft Riley, KS, 1996.
Tank Commander's station in an M60A3.
The TC's gun sights on an M60A3. Unlike an M1 which has a single sight that can switch between daylight and thermal channels, the M60A3 had separate sights for daylight and thermal engagements.
A tank commander checks the Muzzle Reference System (MRS) before a gunnery run.
C36 fresh out of the tank park looking as clean as it ever got.
C Company, 1/77 Armor rolling through the German countryside.
Tanks from C Company, 1/77 Armor after performing a deliberate breaching operation. Germany, 1998.
C Company's fire support team (FST) with their M981 FISTV (Fire Support Team Vehicle) at HTA.
M2s from 2/2 Infantry roll past my tank during a movement to contact mission at HTA. Germany, 1998.
Tankers in training load 105mm main gun rounds during a very hot and humid day in Louisiana.
The "turret rats" (gunner, loader and tank commander) of an M60A3 take a break during training.
Soldier at the National Guard armor school learns the duties of a tank commander. Ft Polk, LA.
DATs (dumb ass tankers) in the making at the National Guard armor school.
The only way to move tanks long distances in Germany was by train- the tanks on flat bed rail cars, the crews in passenger cars. Loading the tanks was high stress, but the trip was first class.
A gunner and tank commander check the main gun while they wait for a call from range control to start their gunnery run.
A true tanker for life. The commander of my wingman's tank served in Germany for his entire career- from loader to tank commander in the same tank battalion stationed in Schweinfurt, Germany.
M981 FISTV (Fire Support Team Vehicle) assigned to support C Company, 1/77 Armor.
C Company's fire support officer (FSO) at HTA, Germany, 1998.
C35 after sliding off the road and "throwing track" at Hohenfels Training Area. Fortunately no one was hurt. Accidents like this often injure the crew when they lose control of the tank.
M113 navigating the tight terrain in the forests of Hohenfels Training Area. The OPFOR used the M113 to simulate Russian BMPs and their skill at driving those APCs was almost beyond belief.
Puzella takes radio watch from the TC's hatch of C36. My duties as a platoon leader often meant that I was away from the tank, so my crew took turns rotating through radio watch while I was away.
A Russian T-55 captured during Operation Desert Storm dug in at HTA. The tank served to train tank crews to recognize the shape of the T-55 in their gun sights.
C Company's executive officer (XO) examines a Russian T-55 during a leaders reconnaissance of HTA during a bitterly cold winter day.
35th Infantry Division (Kansas Army National Guard) tank park at Ft Riley, KS, 1995.
35th Infantry Division tanks online in the motor pool. The exhaust vents on the rear of the hull of the tank was designed to dissipate the heat generated by the M60A3's diesel engine.
M2s from D Company, 1/26 Infantry refuel in the field while my tanks wait to be topped off. My platoon often worked with infantry from B Co 2/2 Infantry and D Co 1/26 Infantry.
An officer from C Company, 1/77 Armor examines a Russian T-55 at HTA, Germany, 1998.
"If it ain't raining, we ain't training." Rain falls on the tanks of C Company as they wait to fire on one of the many ranges in Grafenwöhr, Germany.
How to fix a tank. Step 1: yank on it. Step 2: hit it with a hammer. Step 3: hit it with a bigger hammer.
Tank Table XII (platoon gunnery) at Grafenwöhr, Germany. Only the top two platoons in a tank battalion shot table XII- mine was one of them.
In the distance a tanker stands on the back deck of his tank during a short break in the weather. We'd spent days buttoned up inside our tanks while rain fell, waiting for orders to come down from the battalion HQ about our next mission.
Too tired to eat, too tired to sleep.
The sun sets over tanks from 1st platoon. 1st Platoon was the minefield breaching platoon for Task Force 1/77 Armor and operated with mine plows and rollers attached to their tanks during training.
PVT Puzella takes a turn at driving C36 in the motor pool.
My gunner in the tank commanders hatch of C36 at "Graf" (Grafenwöhr, Germany.) He was a supremely talented gunner, NCO and a veteran of Operation Desert Storm.
Tanks advance through smoke under cloudy skies. Ft Riley, KS.
M1A1 waiting in a staging position before moving out to occupy its fighting position during a defensive training mission. HTA, Germany, 1998.
Tankers in the making learn to control an M60A3 on the driver's training course at Ft Polk, LA.
Transferring main gun rounds from their packing containers to our tanks at Graf's ammo supply point (ASP.)
The crew of C36 load main gun rounds before gunnery training at Grafenwöhr, Germany, 1998.
My loader, PVT Puzella. I was very hard on that young man because "sweat in training saves blood on the battlefield." I wish I could tell him now that he became a hell of a tanker, and I was proud of the soldier he became.
C36 waiting to head off the clean roads into the muddy training grounds of Germany.
My platoon preps to shoot Tank Table XII (platoon defensive and offensive gunnery) at Grafenwöhr, Germany, 1998.
The crew of C36 resting in their own ways after a long day on the gunnery ranges of Grafenwöhr.
C36 beside an old church in Germany known to tankers as "the Halloween Church."
C36 ("Come Get Some") in a hide site waiting to move out on our next mission.
M1A1s and M2s from Task Force 1/77 Armor undergo maintenance in the tank park at HTA, Germany, 1998. After weeks in the field, the tanks and crews were in desperate need of maintenance and rest.
"Crunchies" performing maintenance on their M2s. Tankers called infantry "crunchies" because, well, that's the sound they make when a tank runs over them.
Tanks from the Army National Guard online in the motor pool at Ft Riley, KS.
M1 driver in the open hatch of the driver's position, a sure sign that the tank was not in the field. Drivers always "buttoned up" when the tank was in operation because the main gun can crush their heads when the turret rotates.
C36 waits in a hull down position, preparing to engage OPFOR during a defensive training mission at Hohenfels Training Area (HTA.)
OPFOR M113s running on a rugged trail in the forests of HTA. The OPFOR were amazing soldiers who knew the limits of their tracks and could out-drive most other drivers.
One of my tanks rolls out during a platoon training mission in the rolling hills of HTA. The Bavarian terrain with its rolling hills, open valleys and steep forested hills gave the tankers experience operating in all types of challenging conditions.
Gunnery training at the Armor Officer Basic Course, Ft Knox. 1996.
An M1A1 rolls forward scanning for targets during a gunnery run.
Smoke in Kentucky after an M1A1 crew engages a target at the AOBC.
My tanks roll out in a column formation. A tank platoon operates best online or in a wedge formation, but at times the terrain forces you to adapt your formation to move through choke spots.
M1s burn fuel at an astounding rate. When we were operating in the field we topped off with fuel three or four times a day.
Topping off the fuel tanks of an M1 is a two-man job. The tank has three fuel tanks- two up front and one in the rear hull of the tank. A good team of two- the driver and loader- could top off the tank in 15 minutes. Those 15 minutes were the only time I had nothing to do as a tank platoon leader.
The crew of C35 during a break in training. Germany, 1998.
C Company tankers transferring ammo to their tanks. That fridged spring morning was cold enough that you could see your breath in the air.
Tanks from 3rd Platoon wait for their "on the move" gunnery runs at Grafenwöhr, Germany, 1998.
Fire burns around my tank at Ft Riley, KS. We stopped the fire from spreading by rolling our tanks over the flames, crushing them to a stop.
Fires burn in the fields of Ft Riley, KS, 1996.
In the 1990s there were no smart phones to pass away the idle time with, so most tanks carried a small library of paperback books onboard. Two favorites were "Team Yankee" by Tom Clancey and "Infantry Attacks" by Erwin Rommel.
A UH-1 "Huey" flies past my Army National Guard tank company during annual training at Ft Riley, KS, 1996.
Puzella and Miller loading a main gun round on C36. This round had "On Your Ass" written on it by one of my guys.
Miller and Puzella load SABOT rounds into C36. The jacket on the hatch was to prevent damaging the caseless ammo for the 120mm main gun.
Miller and my gunner, SGT Johnson, check the headspace and timing of our tank's M2, .50 Cal machinegun.
An M1 moving at speed along a road in HTA. The M1 can move at an astonishingly fast speed across all types of terrain, making it a awesome tank during offensive operations or while moving between defensive fighting positions.
C35 (left) and C36 wait for their next mission under the concealment of trees.
One of third platoon's tanks waits in a staging position before a defensive operation. The OPFOR would pound defensive positions with artillery before they attacked, so our tanks would wait behind the lines during the barrage and then quickly move to our fighting positions when the ground attack began.
Miller watches the six o'clock position of C36. In the field, each crew member has an assigned scanning area to make sure the tank has eyes covering 360 degrees around the tank.
Smoke exits the main gun after the tank engaged a target on the gunnery range at Ft Polk.
"On the way!" A tank engages a target with the main gun during training at the Army National Guard armor school.
Tanks online during gunnery training. The red flag on the rear of the turret shows that the range is "hot" and firing is in progress.
PFC Miller in the drivers hatch of C36 waiting for the order to move out.
A familiar site to any tanker who severed in Germy during the 1990s- the motor pool at HTA. After weeks in the field, the red roofed barracks were a welcome sight with their hot showers and real beds.
Tankers use high-pressure air hoses to blow out the air filters from an M1A1. Keeping the air filters clean was critically important to keeping the gas-turbine engines of the tanks running at full power.
Miller and Puzella looking fresh after a night spent in the barracks of HTA. We only spent a few days in them during our training rotation, but when we did, they gave us a chance to take a hot shower, sleep in a real bed and change into a clean uniform.
Tanks and Bradleys advance under the watchful eye of a Kiowa scout helicopter. Germany, 1998.
An M2 from D Company 1/26 Infantry rolls out at the start of a "movement to contact" mission at HTA. I was awarded "The Hero of the Engagement" award at the end of the mission for leading my tanks to a decisive engagement with the OPFOR that lead to victory by Task Force 1/77 Armor.
Gunnery training at the Armor Officer Basic Course, Ft Knox. 1996.
Tank on the ready line at the AOBC.
I hated driving tanks for many reason- this among them.
They didn't call us DATs (dumb ass tankers) for nothing.
Some men are born to be tankers and love to "embrace the suck."
Washing tanks in the "bird bath" after two weeks in the field at Ft Riley, KS.
DATs using high-pressure water pumps to clean their tanks after training. Officially known as a wash rack, the men called it "the bird bath."
An M60A3 fires its COAX machinegun at targets on the range at Ft Polk, LA.
DATs in the making flexing at the Army National Guard armor school at Ft Polk, LA. The soldier on the right was a veteran of Operation Desert Storm and destroyed Iraqi tanks with C4.
105mm shell casings on the back deck of an M60A3 at the end of gunnery training. Ft Polk, LA.
105mm shell casings on the back deck of an M60A3 as the range goes cold and gunnery training comes to an end for the day. Army National Guard armor school, Ft Polk LA.
Tanks from the 35 Infantry Division (Army National Guard) during a break in training at Ft Riley, KS.
Tanks from the 35th ID in a lager at Ft Riley, KS during our two weeks of annual training with the Army National Guard.
Every crewmember of a tank has a weapon to maintain. As a platoon leader and tank commander, my weapon was the famous M2, .50 Cal.
C Company on a road march from the train station outside of Grafenwöhr, Germany. The cables wrapped around the main gun tubes were required by German law whenever tanks were moved by railroad.
The crew of C35 wait for recovery after their tank slid off the muddy road and threw the track off the tank's road wheels.
Puzella lending a hand to a fellow tanker by passing off a spare road wheel and a set of track blocks.
A TC giving orders to his driver over the intercom system as the tank leaves the staging area and moves out for training in the field.