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民國33年，中型戰車駕駛學員講義，美國陸軍裝甲兵學校戰車處《Black Water Museum Collections | 黑水博物館館藏》

1944, DRIVER'S MANUAL for MEDIUM TANKS M4, M4A1, M4A3; VEHICLE, TANK RECOVERY, T5; CARRIAGE, MOTOR, 105-MM HOWITZER, M7, CARRIAGE, MOTOR, 155-MM GUN, M12; CARRIAGE, MOTOR, 3-IN. GUN, M10A1., The ARMORED SCHOOL TANK DEPARTMENT FORT KNOX KENTUCKY

民國33年，中型戰車駕駛學員講義，美國陸軍裝甲兵學校戰車處《Black Water Museum Collections | 黑水博物館館藏》

HEADQUARTERS THE ARMORED SCHOOL OFFICE OF THE COMMANDANT

Fort Knox, Kentucky April 1944

To the tank driver:

Your tank was made to fight in battle. That is its only purpose.

You are learning to drive it so that you can fight it in battle.

Every moment of your training is intended to fit you for the day-or night-when you will drive a tank at the enemy. If you have made the most of that training, your "seeing, judging and manipulating" will meet the demand put upon you. If you have failed to learn these things in training you will fail in battle and you will be respon- sible for your own fate and that of your comrades in your tank.

This book will help you prepare yourself for battle. Use it so that you will be able to make your tank do the job for which it was made-Fighting.

P. M. ROBINETT, Brigadier General, U. S. Army, Commandant.

SECTION I GENERAL

1. Introduction.

You are a soldier-driver. In addition to all of the basic subjects in which any soldier must be proficient, you must know how to operate your vehicle and keep it in first class mechanical condition in all types of weather, terrain, vis- ibility and combat conditions. To do this in battle you must be so well trained that you will do the right things habitually.

2. Scope.

The purpose of this manual is to familiarize you with all phases of driver training and to furnish you with a ready reference which you can keep on your person at all times. It is to be used with your vehicle technical manual which is carried in the vehicle, and TM 9-2810, which can be secured from your company orderly room.

3. Phases of Driver Training.

a. Non-mechanical preliminary training.

(1) Before you are selected for driver training you should be given a driver's aptitude test to determine if you are mentally and physically capable of becoming a driver. It should include such things as measuring your reaction time, testing your vision, taking your blood pres- sure, and testing your night vision. This is necessary in order that a man will not be selected for training who will, through inaptitude, damage vehicles and injure personnel.

(2) After you have passed the aptitude test you should be given a course of instruction covering signals, general rules of the road and safety precautions, speed limits, march discipline, and the use of trip tickets and ac- cident reports.

b. Mechanical preliminary training.-This should in- clude nomenclature, functioning and first echelon mainten- ance of major units, prevention of vehicle abuse, operation of controls, normal instrument readings, starting, warming up, cooling off and stopping procedures, and the first echelon inspection.

c. Flat terrain driving. After you have had the pre- ceding preliminary instruction you are ready to drive. Your first driving should be on a comparatively level field in first and reverse gear so that you can get the "feel" of the controls and watch your instruments while the vehicle is in motion. It is very important that you form the correct habit of watching your instruments and keeping them within the proper range, and that you assume the correct position at this time, as the habits you form now will carry through your entire driving career.

d. Intermediate phase driving.-After you have gotten the "feel" of your vehicle you are ready to progress to more difficult stages of driving. In this phase you will go from

flat driving to cross country driving over normal rolling terrain. Remember, there are other drivers on the same course. Do not try to keep a fixed distance from the ve hicle ahead of you. Keep enough distance so that you can select the speeds and gear ratios you desire without being affected in your decision by the driver in front of you.

e. Combat driving and field expedients. You are now ready for the difficult driving which you will encounter in combat. This should include obstacle driving; cross country and road convoy driving buttoned up, with gas masks on, both at night and during the daylight; formation driving buttoned up; and field expedients. Field expedients are the means used to return a temporarily disabled vehicle to action with the tools and material available in the field.

f. You note that all driver training is arranged in a progressive series of phases ranging from the simple up to the complete act of combat driving. You must master each phase of training before proceeding to the next. Due to the importance of making absolutely certain that men completing the course are fully qualified drivers and due to the high cost of driver training, if for any reason you are not able to become thoroughly proficient at any phase, your driver training will be discontinued, and you will be assigned to other duties which do not require driving.

g. Summary. In the following sections this manual will cover the points you should know about each of the phases of driver training. Study them well, along with the technical manual pertaining to your vehicle, so that when you get into combat you will do the right thing in- stinctively, and will bring you, your vehicle and your fel- low crew members through the battle alive.

SECTION II

NON-MECHANICAL PRELIMINARY TRAINING

4. Signals.

You must be so proficient in the signals illustrated in Figures that your reactions to them are instinctive or automatic.

5. General Rules of the Road and Safety Precautions.

a. Familiarize yourself with the local traffic rules and regulations and be particularly alert when they vary from the ones you are familiar with. For example, in some countries it is the practice to drive on the left of the road and you will have difficulty becoming accustomed to this.

b. Be familiar with road signs and the relationship between their shape and meaning.

c. When passing another tank on the road, swing clear of it so that if the driver pulls out while you are passing, you will not strike him.

d. When driving in close column, keep enough dis- tance from the tank in front of you so that you can stop your tank if the one in front of you should stop suddenly. A good rule is twice the vehicle speed in yards. Example- your speedometer reading is 20 MPH. Minimum distance between tanks, 40 yards. When driving in open column or where attack by enemy is probable, keep at least 75 yards. between vehicles.

e. When halting and closing up, leave at least one tank length and width between tanks.

f. When moving tanks in bivouac areas and parks, have them preceded by dismounted guides.