CANISTER ON FIRE: Australian Tank Operations in Vietnam

1-211630

Based on twelve years of research, including personal letters and diaries, extensive searches of official records, and numerous interviews, this book brings to life a previously little-known aspect of the conflict. Two Volume Set.

The 53-ton Centurion tanks were not only involved in intense fighting in conjunction with infantry to capture enemy defenses and defeat attacks, but also fought their own battles against enemy mines, ambushes, and an unforgiving terrain and climate.

This book takes the reader inside the tanks to share the experiences of their crews in action in the jungle. We see the gunner, trying to survive the heat inside the turret, while identifying designated targets; the operator trying to maintain communications, while keeping the guns loaded; the driver, trying to see his way forward, while keeping his head down; and the commander, trying to locate enemy positions, while directing his driver and giving fire orders to his gunner. The account also reveals how mechanics beat overwhelming challenges to maintain 20-year-old tanks, while field engineers risked their lives protecting them against mines.