Name: Tanks, Wings & Wheels – Featuring American Elegance
Start: 2022-06-18T09:00:00+00:00
End: 2022-06-19T17:00:00+00:00

How "Section T" Took Down a Nazi Superweapon and Helped Win the Battle of the BulgeAs you descend the American Heritage Museum's central staircase, be sure to look up to see our "Doodlebug" - one of the several nicknames (buzzbomb, Maybug) given to the V-1 rockets launched on England after the D-Day invasion. From June 1944 to March 1945, the Germans launched 6,725 V-1 rockets at Britain from launch pads in France and the Netherlands. Of those, 2.340 hit London causing 5,475 deaths with nearly 16,000 injured. While the RAF had some early success in downing Hitler's flying bombs, the superior speed of later V-1 models required new approaches to air defense. The most effective solution came from the top secret project of US engineers and scientists led by Johns Hopkins physicist Merle Tuve who comprised what was known as "Section T" of the US Army Research Laboratory. After three years of intensive research and testing, Tuve's team developed the VT (Variable Time) Proximity Fuse, a device that alerted an artillery shell when to explode. By August 1944, Allied forces were shooting nearly half of the V-1 rockets out of the sky, and by the end of the summer, their success rate neared 100%. The last V-1 launch site in the Netherlands was overrun on March 29, 1945.Allied artillery commanders in Europe were anxious to utilize their stockpile of new shells equipped with radio proximity fuses. But the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington and Allied leadership in Europe were reluctant to use the proximity shell against German ground forces. If the Nazis recovered a dud, which they would, they could reverse-engineer the invention and use it against the Allies - and share it with the Japanese. Dr. Vannevar Bush, chairman of the National Defense Research Council, convened a panel of scientists, including Tuve, that determined it would take the Germans at least 27 months to replicate and mass-produce their own proximity shell. Eisenhower then ordered that the shells could be used starting on December 25.However, on the morning a December 16, 1944, Colonel George Axelson, the commander of the 406th Artillery Group, had a difficult decision to make. The Germans had just launched an offensive along an 80-mile front in Belgium and Luxembourg that would become known as the Battle of the Bulge. Axelson decided that the emergency trumped Ike's restrictions and ordered his gunners to use the new shell. The German attack in his sector collapsed. Beginning on December 18, the U.S. First, Third and Ninth Armies unleashed the most devastating artillery fire German troops had ever encountered. Across the Ardennes, the VT fuse became the weapon of choice, particularly at night, in the open and through fog. Shells were showered on German troops crossing critical road junctions, bridges and highways.The development of the proximity fuse was one of the best-kept secrets of WWII and is regarded by many as the third most important technological achievement after the Atomic bomb and Radar. ... See MoreSee Less

Tanks, Wings & Wheels – Featuring American Elegance

June 18 @ 9:00 am - June 19 @ 5:00 pm

$15 – $25

A fantastic Father’s Day weekend event! Many of the Collings Foundation’s astounding classic automobiles will be out in the sunshine in a grandiose automobile presentation at 1:00pm daily called American Elegance. Accompanying colorful vintage radio broadcast narration will be sure to entertain! Several other exhibitions and surprises will be afoot. Historic aircraft and tanks will be on display.

The American Heritage Museum will be open along with the two additional annex buildings on our campus: the AHM aircraft hangar and the AHM automobile collection. The hangar features 12 aircraft from 1909 to 1945 and a collection of Midget, Sprint, and Indy Cars. The automobile collection features over 25 rare automobiles from 1900 through 1946. These additional buildings on the American Heritage Museum campus are only open for special event weekends such as this one – all museum buildings and outdoor events are covered with this admission.

Advance Sale and Event Day Admission Tickets

Admission for the Saturday and Sunday events are as follows:
$25 Adults | $20 Seniors/Veterans | $15 Children Under 12
American Heritage Museum Members, WWII/Korean War Veterans and Children Under 3 are Free – No ticket required.
Admission discounts can not be used for special event weekends.

Online tickets available soon. Tickets may also be purchased the day of the event by Credit Card or Cash at the entry gate on the access road as well.

Tank Driving Experiences and Tank Rides Available

Tank Driving experiences and Tank Rides will be taking place over the weekend. You can register online, by phone, or on-site, but spaces are limited!

Tank Driving Experience Prices:

– M24 Chaffee Light Tank (20 minutes driving the tank) – $995.00 donation (tax deductible)

– M4 Sherman Medium Tank (20 minutes driving the tank) – $1495.00 donation (tax deductible)

Tank Ride Experience Prices:

– M24 Chaffee (10 minute ride) – $595 per group of Three (3) persons – two in the turret, one in the bow gunner position.

– M4 Sherman (10 minute ride) – $595 per group of Two (2) persons – one in the turret, one in the bow gunner position.

Schedule your tank driving or ride experience above or call 978-562-9182 to reserve.

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Details

Start:: June 18 @ 9:00 am
End:: June 19 @ 5:00 pm
Cost:: $15 – $25
Event Categories:: American Heritage Museum, Special Event Weekend