Posted on 02/26/2012 4:27:11 PM PST by DogByte6RER
7 Most Incredible Tank Graveyards on Earth
In certain corners of the globe you'll find the strangest of military cemeteries – places filled not with the bodies of fallen troops but littered with the carcasses of abandoned tanks. These once-formidable weapons of war no longer strike fear into the hearts of opposing forces; their days of rolling inexorably onwards on the teeth of steel tracks are over. Now, the armor of these behemoths is rusting and corroded, their hatches all but sealed from lack of use, and their controls never again to be manned by commanders in battle.
WWII tank graveyard in overgrowth near an abandoned Russian military base
If looking down the barrel of a gun is an unpleasant experience, then staring into the gigantic cylinder of a tank’s cannon must surely magnify the sense of menace tenfold – especially if there is any uncertainty as to whether the weapon is still able to fire its deadly projectile. Braving heat, cacti and other hazards, the urban explorers whose images we have collected have taken some amazing shots of tank graveyards from around the world.
The ‘60s slogan of ‘make love not war’ instantly springs to mind when looking at this cross-section of vehicular cemeteries, located everywhere from Afghanistan, Eritrea and Laos, to Germany, Kuwait and Iraq. Once a war is over, decommissioned and defunct tanks are often simply left to rust and rot. Wrecked or simply forsaken, they stand as sinister reminders of more turbulent times.
(Excerpt) Read more at environmentalgraffiti.com ...
Enjoy!
ping ... ggg potential
A little Bondo and WD-40 and they’ll be good as new. Most of those scratches will buff right out.
Be sure to visit the General George S. Patton Memorial Museum if you’re ever between LA & Phoenix. The Museum was established to honor the late General George S. Patton and the thousands of men who served with him at the Desert Training Center and overseas. The museum is located off Interstate 10, about 30 miles east of Indio at Chiriaco Summit, which was the entrance to Camp Young, command post for the Desert Training Center during World War II. There’s a yard full of old tanks, slowly rusting away like the ones shown here.
Seems like a lot of scrap steel waiting to be smelted. Are they too far out in the boonies for cost-effective shipping?
Maybe, turn the Chinese or Japanese loose and they’d have the place cleaned out in no time.
Old story I read years ago: The British still keep the HMS Prince of Wales in commission (Sunk off Malaya in ‘41 with a great loss of life). (Maybe the same with the Repulse.) I think it is once a year they send a diver down to replace the Union Jack “flying” from it’s mast. Before they started this ritual, back when the Japanese were going EVERYWHERE, cleaning up the leftover scrap, the Japanese went after the POW and when the Brits got their back up, the Japanese, in effect, said, “Wha? Wha?” as if they couldn’t make the connection between a memorial and scrap.
I had NO idea that there was a museum dedicated to General Patton. This place may be about an hour or so away from me here in Temecula, CA
I found the link for it too:
http://www.generalpattonmuseum.com/default.asp
Thanks!
You will love it!
Pretty cool; thanks for the link!
“I had NO idea that there was a museum dedicated to General Patton. This place may be about an hour or so away from me here in Temecula, CA”
I have been there many times. My name is on one of the bricks for making a donation to the General Patton museum. I have spent many days exploring all the camps in the Desert Training Center. Going to Camp visit Camp Bouse in Arizona in a couple of months. One of the few I have not been to.
I thought for a moment that the one in the top photo was a Panther, but it’s just a T-34.
There is the “Official” George S Patton Museum at Fort Knox, Kentucky. It is loaded with a bunch of his well known belongings such as his pistols, his cavalry uniform, his command car which he had his accident and a ton of armored vehicles including some early WWI tanks, all free admittance. Cool stuff!It’s a great museum.
http://www.knox.army.mil/PattonMuseum/
T-34, BTR60PB, T62
Ooops - the middle one is a BMD
And to the left of that looks like a JS-II!
They sure got the T-62s out of service fast! Nobody kept them! T-55s still running, but T-62s - nope!
There is also a Patton Museum at Ft. Knox in Kentucky.
Some wonderful examples of armor from WW1 thru present day.
I spent some time drooling over the mauser anti tank rifle in the WW1 room.
Also, the long barrel indicates a T-34/85.
Well, you’re 2/3s right - y’all forgot the duct tape!
We had a T62 in my unit - we repaired a HEAT hole in the turret with bondo...
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