World War II Military Vehicles

First Ledo-Burma Road Convoy to China, U.S. Army Photo, 1945
First Ledo-Burma Road Convoy to China, U.S. Army Photo, 1945. Click photo for larger version.

During World War II the American Army became highly mechanized, more so than any armed force in history. Even the vaunted German Army, with their celebrated tactics of Blitzkrieg, never achieved the scope and degree of mechanization as the U.S. forces. The U.S. also supplied large numbers of vehicles to Allies. In many ways it was Detroit, representing the vast production capacity of the American economy, that enabled the Allies to win World War II.

For World War II vehicle photos, be sure to visit the Olive-Drab.com Military Vehicle Charts that start here. Hundreds of US military vehicles, soft-skin and armor, from WW II to present are listed, linked to individual pages with background information and photos. Many other pages about WW II military vehicles can be found by using the Olive-Drab.com Directory or via Search.

Find additional photos and hi-res versions of World War II US military vehicles at the Olive-Drab Military Mashup.

Today in WW II: 7 Jul 1937 Full scale war begins between Japan and China, the Second Sino-Japanese War.  More ↓
7 Jul 1941 Britain turns over the defense of Iceland to the United States.
Visit the Olive-Drab.com World War II Timeline for day-by-day events 1939-1945! See also WW2 Books.

Find More Information on the Internet

There are many fine websites that have additional information on this topic, too many to list here and too many to keep up with as they come and go. Use this Google web search form to get an up to date report of what's out there.

For good results, try entering this: wwii vehicles. Then click the Search button.

Especially recommended:

  • Vintage Military Trucks has an excellent set of photos of various restored vehicles, WW II and newer, mixed with images of jeep advertising and other goodies.
  • The Wheatcroft Collection is one of the largest private collections of restored military vehicles of WW II. It is not open to the public, but is described in this website. The photographs in the book Allied Vehicles & Equipment 1939-1945 is primarily based on Wheatcroft vehicles.
  • White Star is dedicated to military vehicles dating from the World War II period and features many photos of military vehicles from museums and reenactment events, primarily in Europe.
  • This site is called simply World War II Vehicles. It has a huge collection of photos, technical data and links for many vehicle types from the main Allied and Axis countries. Don't miss this one.

See also the Olive-Drab.com page about Military Museums.

Camp Davis, VA troops riding in 2 1/2 ton truck during WW II. Middle man identified as Cpl. Peterson
Camp Davis, VA troops riding in 2 1/2 ton truck during WW II. Middle man identified as Cpl. Peterson. (Photo: Cape Fear Museum)