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Devil Dog M60s in Operation Desert Storm

Talyn

SAINT
Founding Member
The M60 MBT Last Hurrah

When Saddam crossed into Kuwait in August 1990 and sparked the Operation Desert Shield build-up to defend Saudi Arabia, the first “armor” on the ground were 51 Sheridans of the 82nd Airborne. The first real tanks were composed of USMC M60A1 RISE tanks.

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Genesis II




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In early February 1991, two hundred USMC M-60A1s of the 2nd Battalion drove north from Khafji, Saudi Arabia into occupied Kuwait where they met a larger Iraqi force of mixed (T-54/55, Type 69, and T-72) tanks on the grounds of Kuwait City International Airport. This was the largest armored battle for the Marines since WWII, and they won soundly destroying over 250 T-55 and T-62 tanks, as well as 70 Soviet T-72s with only one M-60A3 lost. The defeat was humiliating not only to Iraq but also to the USSR’s arms export effort, as some of the destroyed tanks were the newer T-72 which was supposed to be superior to the M-60.

 
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