SP Maquettes
Abrams M1"Cojones EH"
Dans son passionnant livre - "Wildcat, carnets d'un journaliste rebelle" - Yves DEBAY, bien connu des lecteurs du magazine "Raids" et de la revue "Assaut" - donne sa version des faits sur la découverte du char...
"It burned like hell in there !"
Périphérie de Bagdad, 5 avril 2003, 7H00...
Suivant la colonne U.S. qui vient d'entrer dans la ville deux ou trois kilomètres plus en avant, il tombe sur une épave en flammes... parmi d'autres. Un M1 ! Sur le canon est écrit "COJONES EH". Personne aux alentours. Pourtant l'armée américaine n'a pas l'habitude d'abandonner son matériel. Des soldats irakiens surgissent alors en pick-up. L'officier confirme alors au français la mort des cinq membres d'équipage...
Le lendemain, à l'hôtel Palestine à Bagdad, les irakiens emmènent les journalistes étrangers voir leur "trophée de guerre". Ils ont bien essayé de le remorquer mais sans succès, le train de roulement est en trop mauvais état...
Il y a plusieurs versions sur la fin de ce char. Ce qui est sûr, c'est que le feu a pris après une surchauffe de la turbine. L'équipage aurait été abattu en voulant éteindre l'incendie avec les extincteurs. Un missile antichar aurait alors atteint le blindé. Lors d'une tentative de remorquage des américains, un tir de canon sans recul de 106 l'immobilisera définitivement. Abandonnant la machine sur place, les forces américaines vont envoyer deux missiles et une bombe pour le détruire complètement - très peu de temps après le départ du photographe !!!
La maquette à l'échelle 1/35ème est assemblée à partir de kits ESCI & TAMIYA. De nombreuses modifications ont été apportées pour se rapprocher au plus près de l'épave du char. A consulter, l'excellent article de Patrick Lebecq dans la revue MODEL n°4...
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Baghdad outskirts, April 5, 2003, 7:00 a.m....
Following the U.S. column that had just entered the city two or three kilometers ahead, he came across a burning wreck... among others. An M1! On the barrel is written "COJONES EH". No one around. Yet the American army is not in the habit of abandoning its equipment. Iraqi soldiers appear in pick-up trucks. The officer confirms to the Frenchman that all five crew members are dead...
The next day, at the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad, the Iraqis took the foreign journalists to see their "war trophy". They tried to tow it, but without success, as the undercarriage was too badly damaged...
There are several versions about the end of this tank. What is certain is that it caught fire after the turbine overheated. The crew were shot trying to extinguish the fire with fire extinguishers. An anti-tank missile then hit the tank. During an attempt by the Americans to tow it back, a 106 recoilless cannon shot immobilized it for good. Leaving the machine in place, the American forces sent two missiles and a bomb to destroy it completely - very shortly after the photographer's departure !
The 1/35th scale model is assembled from ESCI & TAMIYA kits. Numerous modifications have been made to get as close as possible to the tank wreckage. See Patrick Lebecq's excellent article in MODEL n°4...
Following the U.S. column that had just entered the city two or three kilometers ahead, he came across a burning wreck... among others. An M1! On the barrel is written "COJONES EH". No one around. Yet the American army is not in the habit of abandoning its equipment. Iraqi soldiers appear in pick-up trucks. The officer confirms to the Frenchman that all five crew members are dead...
The next day, at the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad, the Iraqis took the foreign journalists to see their "war trophy". They tried to tow it, but without success, as the undercarriage was too badly damaged...
There are several versions about the end of this tank. What is certain is that it caught fire after the turbine overheated. The crew were shot trying to extinguish the fire with fire extinguishers. An anti-tank missile then hit the tank. During an attempt by the Americans to tow it back, a 106 recoilless cannon shot immobilized it for good. Leaving the machine in place, the American forces sent two missiles and a bomb to destroy it completely - very shortly after the photographer's departure !
The 1/35th scale model is assembled from ESCI & TAMIYA kits. Numerous modifications have been made to get as close as possible to the tank wreckage. See Patrick Lebecq's excellent article in MODEL n°4...
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