M1A4 75mm Pack Howitzer - Arizona Military Museum, Papago AAF, Phoenix, AZ - Static Artillery Displays on Waymarking.com

The 75 mm pack howitzer was designed in the United States in 1920s to meet a need for an artillery piece that could be moved across difficult terrain. The gun and carriage was designed so that it could be broken down into several pieces to be carried by pack animals. The gun saw combat in World War II with the US Army (primarily used by airborne units), with US Marine Corps, and was also supplied to foreign forces. In August 1927, the weapon was standardized as Howitzer, Pack, 75mm M1 on Carriage M1 (post-war as M116). Due to meager funding, production rates were low; by 1940, only 91 pieces were manufactured. Only in September 1940, a year into World War II, was the howitzer put into mass production. By then, M1 was succeeded by the slightly modified M1A1. The production continued until December 1944.

The only significant changes during the mass production period were carriage improvements. The original carriage M1 was of box trail type, with wooden wheels. Requirement for a lightweight howitzer for airborne troops led to the introduction of the M8 carriage, similar except new wheels with pneumatic tires. Another requirement, from the cavalry branch of the US Army, resulted in a completely different family of "field howitzer" split trail carriages M3A1 / M3A2 / M3A3. However, only limited number of the M1 in field howitzer variant were built, due to cavalry's switch to self-propelled guns.

This piece is located outside the Arizona Military Museum on Papago AAF in Phoenix, AZ. Free admission; open Sundays 1pm-4pm. Located 0.4mi west of the gate at Papago AAF, Phoenix, AZ.

Source: Wikipedia

What type of artillery is this?: Howitzer Where is this artillery located?: Military Grounds What military of the world used this device?: US and WWII allies Date artillery was in use: 01/01/1927 Parking location to view this Waymark: N 33° 27.980 W 111° 58.126 Artillery is no longer operational: yes Still may work: no Are there any geocaches at this location?: unknown Date artillery was placed on display: Not listed Cost?: Not Listed

Visit Instructions:
Two pictures are required for this Waymark. Please take a close up picture of the artillery. Take a second with the artillery in the distance and capture as much of the surroundings as possible. Name the Waymark with first the name of the area and second what the artillery is. An example would be if it were a cannon in front of the Montgomery Armory you would name the Waymark: Montgomery Armory Cannon.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   08/31/2013 ILuvAZ visited it