[snippy_about_it]

All 3 crew members were situated in the turret with the driver in his own independent counter-rotating cupola which was designed to face forward regardless of the position of the turret. This proved to be a major problem as drivers complained of disorientation and motion sickness.

Okay, I'm confused. If the idea was to have the driver always face forward, why would he need to be in his own rotating cupola. Why would it rotate? What am I missing in the explanation. (no wonder they got dizzy)

Thanks for any enlightenment.

[colorado tanker]

In most tanks, including the M-1, the driver sits in the hull, forward of the turret, and therefore always faces forward. In the MBT-70, the driver was to sit in the turret, meaning he would face whatever direction the turret pointed. So, they had to create a cupola or capsule that could rotate to keep the driver facing forward. Some engineers had way too much time and budget on their hands - and they never heard of KISS.

[SAMWolf]

I think with the drivers position rotating one way and the turret rotating the other it could be disorienting. A tank is pretty much constantly rotating the turret while on the move.