Articulated vehicle USA M561 “Gama Goat” Tamiya-35330

Description

During the Indochina War (1946-1954) the French Army reported that most of its transport vehicles, almost all of American manufacture, were unfit for combat in Southeast Asia, where mobility conditions were quite poor. These reports reached the U.S., which set to work on a prototype that would be well suited to the Vietnam terrain.

In 1962, Chance Vought’s prototype of a 6×6-wheel articulated truck was approved. This prototype became known as the “M561 6×6 tactical 1 1/4 ton truck”, which soldiers later came to know as the“Gam Goat“, after the name of its designer Roger Gamaunt and its incredible goat-like mobility.

The “Gam Goat” has a weight of 4.5 tons, manual transmission (4 gears plus a reverse gear), reaches a maximum speed of 90 km/h on the road, has a range of 840 km and is designed to transport soldiers or material to combat zones. It ceased to be in service in the 1990s.