Tank on a freeway

If that guy was so smart why did he try to cross the divider at such an angle that the tank got stuck and why didn't he lock the hatches from the inside?

I'm almost positive it was an M60A1. That was a long time ago though. Thank goodness he got high centered and couldn't move anymore. Pure dumb luck he was the only fatality.

If I'm not mistaken, the M-60 doesn't need key to get started. The guy who stole it was a former armor crew member (maybe from the Marines I think). He had been fired from his civilian job and had been kicked out of the military for some reason or another and wanted a death by cop suicide type deal.

If he hadn't gotten caught up on the highway divider he could have been the biggest mass murderer ever!

ey, thanks for the comments and opinions guys!
Major Rob thanks too!

i guess with all of the opinions i've read, i think the guy's life is crumbling down that's why he did it. as far as i can remember, he was kicked out of the marines and maybe that triggered his rampage. maybe he really love the marines and he's ready to open up a can whooped for it.

I remeber seeing that liveon tv.....

they were not not sure if he had a weapon, and they knew he mentally unstable, amnd the police on scene knew that HADto stop him, thats why they shot him......

The officers who shot him were under investigation for excessive force but the examination board board felt they did not use excessive force given the circumstances.....

BTW, that guys family did try to sue the LAPD for shooting him.....


This info is what i read in the book, and from what i saw in interviews......

But, what I don't understand is that: How could this man steal the tank in the first place. The tank was stationed in the National Guards base under security guard. This man was no longer a memeber of the Army, yet how could he pass all the checkpoints and security gates without proper ID. How could he sneak in. Furthermore, even when he got into the tank and left, why didn't the National Guards stop him right there, they had much better chance and firpower to stop him there. It took much later that the LAPD(whose firepower was no match for a tank) to stop.

QUOTE: Originally posted by Anthony But, what I don't understand is that: How could this man steal the tank in the first place. The tank was stationed in the National Guards base under security guard. This man was no longer a memeber of the Army, yet how could he pass all the checkpoints and security gates without proper ID. How could he sneak in. Furthermore, even when he got into the tank and left, why didn't the National Guards stop him right there, they had much better chance and firpower to stop him there. It took much later that the LAPD(whose firepower was no match for a tank) to stop.

Drive by your local National Guard armory or US Army Reserve Center. It wasn't until after 9/11 that the security was increased. The motor pools are probably on the local police's security rounds, but these areas were not guarded around the clock. The Armories and Reserve Centers do not store any amount of ammunition there. The full-time workers there would work normal Monday-Friday and during the weekend drill (normally the first weekend of the month). Go there on a Saturday or Sunday that no monthly drill is scheduled and no one would be there. Go there on a normal workday after 5:00 PM or before 7:00 AM and no one will be there.

If you every graduated an armor course (or combat engineer course where you learned to operate the CEV/AVLB), commandeering a tank parked in an empty motor pool would be fairly easy. All you would need is a heavy duty bolt cutter and perhaps an adjustable wrench. A determined intruder could get through whatever chain link fencing was up (use bolt cutter, squeeze through a gap, find a place to climb over, drive your car into the fence, etc.). Climb up on the nearest tank, cut the lock using the bolt cutters, and start it up. Might have to connect the batteries (hence the adjustable wrench) to get it to fire up. Again, a former armor crewman would have no problems firing up a fully operational tank.

Once inside, combat lock the turret from the inside and away you go. BTW, if the guy had combat locked the loader's hatch from the inside, they probably wouldn't have been able to open it so easily.

By the time the police respond to or discover the motor pool was broken into, the person would be well on his way. Of course, this incident is pre-9/11 and security measures have been stepped up.

good thing you told us security was beefed up. it sounded so easy.........

seriously, how hard would it be to get into a combat locked tank???

I thought it was an M60A3, but haven't seen the film for years... and I see from the links above that it was an M60A1 RISE Passive.. Righto Major! The M60 was the old 'turtle dome' (turret) type...
For a former tanker, he didn't know much about driving... a normally skilled driver could have negortiated the median without a hitch.... good thing he was a putz at driving!
If I were the cop, I don't think I'd have chanced opening the doors on the back deck, not with the thing jumping around like that! Also, the cop didn't know if the guy was armed or not. He made a choice to protect his life and the lives of the public.... what if a family had been cleaning out that camper? Our little tank 'driver' didn't seem to care much about that!
I have to ask myself what I'd have done if I were the cop... I'd have gone home to dinner in one piece! He took enough chances just getting up onto that 55 ton tank, not to mention working his way up to the turret, then cutting off the lock. A human body doesn't have a lot of chance against the tracks of an M60 series tank. If I recall correctly, they weigh in the neighborhood of 2.7 tons each.

that's all I have to say about that.

Ron

Actually I believe he was a tanker ..... either ex - regular army or guardsman ...... from what I can remember he did have tank experience in one form or another ......

Sorry I posted after only reading the first page ..... my two cents was 2 sec too late ....

JMezz

It was an M-60 , and M-60 vs. winnebago = M-60 winner ! Its a good thing he didn't decide to try out the gun ! Poor guy ?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! he forgot to close the latch on the hatch , he was a dumb guy !

I read he had the hatch locked from the inside, but the loader's periscope wasn't in place so the periscope hatch can be opened by striking it with any heavy object then just reach in and flip the latch. you can do the same thing on an M60 series driver's hatch. Many a tool bag has been raided in the motorpool using this form of entry. (Not that I have any first hand knowledge of such raids)

I saw that on t.v. on a tank show. Yikes. wouldn't want to honk a horn at him at rush hour. When i think about it I wouldn't honk a horn at him at any time!