Скачать или смотреть The GMC Truck That Crossed France in 54 Hours With No Headlights

In the autumn of 1944, over 23,000 drivers embarked on one of the most dangerous supply missions in military history. The Red Ball Express kept the Allied advance alive after D-Day, with exhausted men driving GMC CCKW trucks across war-torn France in total blackout conditions. These soldiers made grueling 54-hour round trips from Normandy to the front lines, navigating cratered roads, landmines, and enemy fire with nothing but tiny red blackout lights to guide them. Roughly 75 percent of these drivers were African American soldiers serving in a segregated army, trusted with the mission that would determine whether the liberation of Europe could continue. Over 82 days, they delivered more than 412,000 tons of fuel, ammunition, and supplies to keep Patton's tanks rolling and the artillery firing. This is the untold story of the men and machines that made victory possible, the unsung heroes who drove through the darkness so others could fight in the light. Featuring real veteran accounts from James Rookard, John Houston, Robert Emerick, and Washington Rector, this documentary reveals the full truth about the operation that saved the Allied advance and helped change military logistics forever.
SOURCES:
U.S. Army Transportation Corps: transportation.army.mil/history/studies/red_ball_express.html
U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum: qmmuseum.army.mil/research/history-heritage/supply/Red-Ball-Express.html
The National WWII Museum: nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/red-ball-express
DVIDSHUB: dvidshub.net/news/527361/african-americans-gain-fame-world-war-ii-red-ball-express-drivers
David P. Colley, The Road to Victory (Brassey's, 2000)
National Archives: archives.gov/milestone-documents/executive-order-9981