GMC CCKW with M45 Quad Mount
As the US Army began planning on complete motorization of its forces--a feat that no other Army was capable of even attempting in 1939--it needed a good, reliable cargo truck with offroad capability. General Motors was already building the ACK-353 for the French Army, and the US Army evaluated the truck. The ACK had good road speed, decent offroad capability, and used a 6x6 chassis with 2 1/2 tons of cargo capacity. This was more than adequate for the Army's needs, so the ACK was placed into production as the CCKW (CCKW an acronym for 1941 production, conventional cab, all-wheel drive, and tandem rear axles).
The CCKW would become the standard truck for the US Army during World War II: a staggering 527,000 would be built during the war, second only to the Jeep. Though occasionally called a "Jimmy," as it was produced by GMC, the CCKW was better known as simply the "Deuce and a Half." Besides the Army, CCKWs were provided to Allied forces as well. (Ironically, French ACKs were captured by the Germans and occasionally used by them.)
No less than 22 variants of the basic CCKW would be produced, from command vans to ambulances to dentist's vehicles. The initial 1941-1943 production used steel, enclosed cabs, but after 1944, production switched to canvas roof and doors, which was easier and cheaper to produce. About one out of every four CCKWs were provided with a pintle mount for a Browning M2HB .50 caliber machine gun. Besides the standard cargo truck and variants, the CCKW also served as the basis for the highly successful amphibious DUKW ("Duck").
With so many CCKWs in service by the end of World War II, the Army saw no reason to replace them, and these vehicles would remain in service until the 1960s, when the M35 2 1/2-ton truck replaced them. Thousands were sold as surplus or provided to other nations, and many remain operational.
The National Museum of Military Vehicles has an entire wing devoted to the famous "Red Ball Express," with about a dozen CCKWs on display as a single convoy, including standard trucks, ambulances, tanker trucks, and wreckers. The Red Ball Express, which utilized mostly African-American troops as drivers and crews, ran continually from the Normandy beachheads to the front--without the Red Ball Express, Patton's amazing advance across France in August 1944 would not have been possible. (As the Army was segregated during World War II, African-Americans were relegated to support roles, and usually only saw combat as artillery crews; this changed by late 1944, as Third Army began integrating its rifle companies out of necessity, and Black tank destroyer battalions entered service.) The Red Ball continued in operation until the port of Antwerp, Belgium was finally opened in late 1944.
I didn't photograph the convoy vehicles, as I usually don't get pictures of support vehicles (my album is already huge; I don't need to add those too). This CCKW is different, as it is an antiaircraft vehicle. Though the US Army had specialized AAA vehicles in the M15 and M16 Gun Motor Carriages, those were assigned to frontline units. By 1944, Luftwaffe attacks on convoys were rare, but they did happen, so the Red Ball Express field-modified some of their CCKWs by mounting a M45 Quadmount on the bed; the M45 used quad .50 caliber machine guns and was deadly to low-flying aircraft. Some of these Quadmounts were assigned by the Army; others were likely obtained through "midnight requisition." Given the rust (which may be simulated), this truck has seen some miles; it is a post-1944 CCKW with a canvas cab, removed on this vehicle.
GMC CCKW with M45 Quad Mount
As the US Army began planning on complete motorization of its forces--a feat that no other Army was capable of even attempting in 1939--it needed a good, reliable cargo truck with offroad capability. General Motors was already building the ACK-353 for the French Army, and the US Army evaluated the truck. The ACK had good road speed, decent offroad capability, and used a 6x6 chassis with 2 1/2 tons of cargo capacity. This was more than adequate for the Army's needs, so the ACK was placed into production as the CCKW (CCKW an acronym for 1941 production, conventional cab, all-wheel drive, and tandem rear axles).
The CCKW would become the standard truck for the US Army during World War II: a staggering 527,000 would be built during the war, second only to the Jeep. Though occasionally called a "Jimmy," as it was produced by GMC, the CCKW was better known as simply the "Deuce and a Half." Besides the Army, CCKWs were provided to Allied forces as well. (Ironically, French ACKs were captured by the Germans and occasionally used by them.)
No less than 22 variants of the basic CCKW would be produced, from command vans to ambulances to dentist's vehicles. The initial 1941-1943 production used steel, enclosed cabs, but after 1944, production switched to canvas roof and doors, which was easier and cheaper to produce. About one out of every four CCKWs were provided with a pintle mount for a Browning M2HB .50 caliber machine gun. Besides the standard cargo truck and variants, the CCKW also served as the basis for the highly successful amphibious DUKW ("Duck").
With so many CCKWs in service by the end of World War II, the Army saw no reason to replace them, and these vehicles would remain in service until the 1960s, when the M35 2 1/2-ton truck replaced them. Thousands were sold as surplus or provided to other nations, and many remain operational.
The National Museum of Military Vehicles has an entire wing devoted to the famous "Red Ball Express," with about a dozen CCKWs on display as a single convoy, including standard trucks, ambulances, tanker trucks, and wreckers. The Red Ball Express, which utilized mostly African-American troops as drivers and crews, ran continually from the Normandy beachheads to the front--without the Red Ball Express, Patton's amazing advance across France in August 1944 would not have been possible. (As the Army was segregated during World War II, African-Americans were relegated to support roles, and usually only saw combat as artillery crews; this changed by late 1944, as Third Army began integrating its rifle companies out of necessity, and Black tank destroyer battalions entered service.) The Red Ball continued in operation until the port of Antwerp, Belgium was finally opened in late 1944.
I didn't photograph the convoy vehicles, as I usually don't get pictures of support vehicles (my album is already huge; I don't need to add those too). This CCKW is different, as it is an antiaircraft vehicle. Though the US Army had specialized AAA vehicles in the M15 and M16 Gun Motor Carriages, those were assigned to frontline units. By 1944, Luftwaffe attacks on convoys were rare, but they did happen, so the Red Ball Express field-modified some of their CCKWs by mounting a M45 Quadmount on the bed; the M45 used quad .50 caliber machine guns and was deadly to low-flying aircraft. Some of these Quadmounts were assigned by the Army; others were likely obtained through "midnight requisition." Given the rust (which may be simulated), this truck has seen some miles; it is a post-1944 CCKW with a canvas cab, removed on this vehicle.