M551 Sheridan Light Tank "Vietnam War"
1/35 RYEFIELD MODELS
The M551 Sheridan (named after Union General Philip Henry Sheridan of the Civil War) is a light reconnaissance tank developed by General Motors under the designation XM551 starting in 1960. The first production vehicle was completed in June 1966, and production lasted until 1970. It was designed as an air-transportable reconnaissance tank. It was equipped with the technically advanced but vulnerable M81 152 mm combination gun, capable of firing both conventional ammunition and the MGM-51 Shillelagh anti-tank missile.
The Sheridan entered service with the United States Army in 1967. At the urging of General Creighton Abrams, then US commander of US forces in Vietnam, the M551 was deployed to Vietnam starting in January 1969. The first units to use the Sheridan in Vietnam were the 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry and the 1st Squadron, 11th ACR. By the end of 1970, more than 200 Sheridans had deployed to Vietnam, and they remained in front-line service until the last U.S. armored cavalry unit, the 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry, was redeployed to the United States in April 1972.
The Sheridan had several key advantages: It didn't get bogged down in mud as often as the 52-ton M48 Patton, and it didn't throw its tracks as often. This made the small tank very popular with its crews. Its light weight and high mobility proved valuable, and the weapon proved to be an effective anti-personnel weapon when used with the M657 HE ammunition or the M625 canister ammunition.
Plastic model kit
- Highly detailed molds
- Photo-etched parts
- Link-and-length tracks
Scale 1:35
unbuilt / unpainted
