Military Field Ambulances

Evacuation of battlefield casualties relied on stretcher bearers and horse drawn wagons until the advent of trucks during World War I. The motorized ambulance, and the all-wheel drive tactical ambulance in particular, was the first step toward rapid and effective evacuation of the wounded to life-saving care. Ambulance trucks were the primary means of evacuation until the maturation of the MedEvac helicopter in Korea and Vietnam.

An injured soldier is transferred from a U.S. Army medical transport train to a waiting WC-54 ambulance destined for Letterman General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, 1945.

Today in WW II: 18 May 1944 Battle of Monte Cassino, Italy, ends with German evacuation of the site and occupation by Allied troops.

Military Field Ambulances

The Army Medical Department's traditional battlefield mission of medical evacuation of sick, injured, and wounded soldiers from frontline units to hospitals in the rear relied on specialized ambulance trucks since World War I.

USMC jeep evacuates wounded from aid station to 1st Marine receiving hospital in Seoul, Korea, 1 October 1950.

This list links to photos and descriptions of many models of Ambulances in the Olive-Drab.com Military Vehicles sections. Clink on the link to reach any topic on the list.

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