M50A1 The Ontos at Hue: 1968- 4ea 106 recoiless rifles [video 1:31 min]

youtube. ^

[virgil283]

'The Ontos, possibly the most downright eccentric armored vehicle ever concocted for the U.S. Military. It was a tiny tank, armed with six M40 recoilless rifles, which were mounted externally on its tiny turret. The Ontos fought in countless skirmishes, but where it became part of Marine legend was in the battle for Hue during the Tet Offensive. There it was involved in some of the fiercest urban fighting in the Corps history. According to one source, the only reason the Fifth Marine Regiment survived Hue was because of the Ontos and the 106mm recoilless rifle.'

[virgil283]

.....;

[Jet Jaguar]

Neat.

[datura]

Packed and fired lots of 90mm recoilless rifles, and saw lots of 106s fire. Nothing like an APERS round to get their attention!!

Damn I hated carrying those......

Thanks for posting!

[Pontiac]

The Ontos carried the beehive round that sent out a hundred darts per firing to clean out a jungle of its enemy. There was no other weapon that could clear a jungle for a depth of a ¼ mile like the 106mm recoilless rifle using the beehive round. Artillery shells and bombs effectiveness was cut to the area of a direct hit.

The jungle vegetation absorbed both concussion and fragmentation. The other vehicles that mounted the 106mm recoilless rifle were open to enemy small arms fire. The Ontos could expose itself to enemy small arms for the short time it took to empty its 6 guns and depart to a more secure position to reload. It was an armoured shotgun and the North Vietnamese Army feared it. .

[doorgunner69]

Had a couple of them patrolling the perimeter at LZ Stud. Loved watching them hit with the ranging .50 cal and then send the big tracer on an identical trajectory.

They could scare the bejeezus out you if they snuck one of them up near us on the perimeter and let loose a round without warning. Suckeres were LOUD to the rear.

[Utilizer]

Oooh. Bewdy. I want one... *grin*

[Bringbackthedraft]

Having to leave the vehicle to load was a problem. One of the reasons they dropped it from the inventory.

[headstamp 2]

Who made the carriage on this thing?

[skinkinthegrass]

awesome video, thanks for sharing..

[rlmorel]

Boy, they had damned good reason to fear it. I sure would.

Beehive rounds from those things? I am thinking canister rounds shot from a cannon, but far, far more lethal. It could probably mow a field.

[jmacusa]

The ‘’Beehive’’ round was the most used artillery round in Vietnam.

[Doogle]

"...dat'll upset your rice bowl"

[Always A Marine]

Allis-Chalmers

[Standing Wolf]

Aw, heck. Every SWAT team in the country is going to want a couple of those now.

[bravo whiskey]

put 3 m-551 sheridans fender to fender and fire 152mm cannister. max effective range was 300 m in a 60 degree arc. jungle clearing at it’s best.

[ansel12]

The Army had a recoiless rifle that meant death for the crew when fired.

It was the nuclear recoiless rifle called the Davy Crockett, it was a real life version of the “Polish nuclear grenade”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzCPp-pRJ54

[Domangart]

I liked our duster better.

[ABN 505]

We used to have one mounted on a Jeep it had a 50 cal. mounted on the barrel for a spotter round [tracer], hit the target with the 50 cal. and pull the lanyard on the 106 BOOM!I think the beehive rounds contained Fletchettes [small steel arrows] I also remember don’t get behind a 106 when it’s fired, OOUCH!

[buffaloguy]

I wonder if they could make that legal for deer hunting in Texas?

[DMZFrank]

Great weapon, proved valuable in Hue.

These were better szuited for urban fighting though. 90mm main gun firing HE, canister, White Phosphorous, flechette. HEAT, AP. Equipped with a 7.62 M73 coaxial MG, and a .50 Ma Deuce ouside the cupola, all under heavy armor protection. Even thouygh some crewq members were injured by RPG hits, not one was knocked out and all continued to fight throughout the battle. The Marines credfited them as being invaluable in that fight/.

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