In "Hue 1968" by Bowden, he mentions that these tanks were some of the most useful weapons in the battle, but doesn't give any additional information. What model of tank were these? Why were so so useful?
The vehicles that Bowden is referring to are M50 Ontos air-droppable and helicopter-transportable tank destroyers armed with six 106 mm (actually 105 mm) M40 recoilless rifles. They were rejected by the Army, but the Marines showed interest and 297 were built. Their small size, light weight (19,050 pounds), and low ground pressure (5.1 psi) allowed them to go where the standard M48A2 or M48A3 Patton tank (105-107,000 pounds in weight with a ground pressure of 11.9-12.1 psi) in use by the Marines and Army in Vietnam could not, such as over soft ground or fragile bridges. The Ontos had its downsides, however; it was tall for such a small vehicle, and the crew had to leave the vehicle in order to reload the rifles.
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