M37/US Army History Lesson

"415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)" (415s30) 10/24/2020 at 13:45 • Filed to: history, Historylopnik, US Army, Dodge, Jeep, power wagon, M37 dodge

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I bought some more original photographs and I found this one. It had a note on the back that suggested it was in Italy in the early 50's. Luckily we can see bumper markings. Also note the odd speakers with the cones removed. I had a lot to go on actually, bumper markings are pretty easy to figure out, but I had never heard of this TRUST.

Handwritten note on the back says, “critique point at Grocle”

“The 351st Infantry was relieved from assignment to the division on 1 May 1947 and served as temporary military Government of the Free Territory of Trieste, securing the new independent State between Italy and Yugoslavia on behalf of the United Nations Security Council. Designated TRUST (Trieste United States Troops), the command served as the front line in the Cold War from 1947 to 1954, including confrontations with Yugoslavian forces. In October 1954 the mission ended upon the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding of London establishing a temporary civil administration in the Anglo-American Zone of the Free Territory of Trieste, entrusted to the responsibility of the Italian Government. TRUST units, which included a number of 88th divisional support units, all bore a unit patch which was the coat of arms of the Free Territory of Trieste superimposed over the divisional quatrefoil, over which was a blue scroll containing the designation “TRUST” in white.”

The section that TRUST troops where in was called Zone A and was absorbed into Italy in 1954 and Zone B was absorbed into Yugoslavia which today is part Slovenia and Croatia.

PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 10/24/2020 at 13:59

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Very cool!

ttyymmnn > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 10/24/2020 at 15:25

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I never gave much thought to the bumper markings, but it’s no different than researching Air Force tail numbers or commercial registration numbers to fine a history. It’s a sort of detective work I enjoy. 

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > ttyymmnn 10/24/2020 at 16:00

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Well I started this thing and I am deep into it now! I have the G741.org guys to help me, there are some older gents who know things you can’t look up. But the bumper numbers are generally searchable. The regular bumper numbers are self explanatory if you know the code. These are all HQ so no mystery there. Never saw TRUST before, I am used to the UN markings in Korea now. 

ttyymmnn > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 10/24/2020 at 16:11

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For military aircraft, Joe Baugher is the man.

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > ttyymmnn 10/24/2020 at 16:16

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I do see pics with aircraft a lot, I usually save them for my randoms. I just started a new batch, this is the only one I got right now!

Only Vespas... > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 10/24/2020 at 16:21

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I do want to know about the loudspeakers sans horns. A single t hat size would be way loud, but to double them up would make quite a racket.

Did they remove them due to visibility issues? [the horns are big rectangles] They just couldn’t turn them down enough [without the acoustic trumpet they don’t work so well] , or some other reason?

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > Only Vespas... 10/24/2020 at 16:27

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That is a good thought, I know how military guys are, rip that shit off I can’t see! It’s post war so I don’t know why they need to blast something over the speakers in the first place. I could only imagine they have to move around and it’s the emergency etc.. notification/announcement system. I have a command truck, this one has antennas so it could be a command truck that had a winch installed. They weren’t supposed to have them but mine has a winch bumper so maybe they just installed them at the motor pool. 

ttyymmnn > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 10/24/2020 at 16:45

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I don’t think Joe Baugher is going to be any help with that one. 

Jayvincent > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 10/24/2020 at 22:15

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looks French, but I’m no expert

- edit - looks like a British Avro504

Jayvincent > ttyymmnn 10/24/2020 at 22:28

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I’m no expert, but looks like a British AVRO 504 left over from WWI

ttyymmnn > Jayvincent 10/24/2020 at 23:07

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It took a lot of googling, but it’s actually a Salmson 2A2. The engine cowling and weird bracing on the empennage are diagnostic. I recognized this a/c, but I definitely had to do some non-scientific browsing to find it. Not a name I’m that familiar with.

The Salmson 2, (given the military designation Salmson 2 A.2) was a French biplane reconnaissance aircraft made by Salmson. It was developed to a 1916 requirement. Along with the Breguet 14, it was the main reconnaissance aircraft in use with the French army and the American Expeditionary Force’s aviation units in 1918. At the end of the First World War, one-third of French reconnaissance aircraft were Salmson 2s. ( Wiki )

If you note the tail, it even says SAL 2, but that threw me off a bit because there was a SPAD that was called the S.A. L. But SPAD didn’t use a tail like that. Then I thought maybe Niuport, but nope. 

Jayvincent > ttyymmnn 10/25/2020 at 00:19

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so I -was- right originally, it was French! (see my original response to 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) )  Good work figuring it out!