One of our favorite things about old Army trucks is that they were built with specific jobs and parameters in mind. Because of that they all have different designs, looks, and equipment bolted to them. Take this unique looking Ford Burma Jeep from the early 1950s or perhaps the late 1940s. The pug nosed rig got the name Burma Jeep because of its open top, beefy size, and the fact that many of them were sent to Burma to either help complete or drive over the new Ledo Road that forces were building to reconnect a broken overland link between China and the world it had been isolated from by the Japanese.
Coming in larger and heavier than both a Jeep (by a significant margin) and a Power Wagon (by s slimmer but sill sizable amount) the trucks were designed to haul up to 3-tons in their short sided bed, there were other jobs that these trucks did as well. In fact the trucks we found for sale in Maine was a bomb service truck. The crane rig in the back of the truck along with the chain fall and other indicators made this a pretty easy one to spot. The GTB is shockingly complete with all of the chain falls, winches, and outer equipment it should have. Being that the rig was involved in WWII or Korea, it is amazing that it stayed this intact. Like most old military trucks it was sold for surplus in the 1950s and today it resides in Maine.
Now, here’s the crummy part. When the truck got to Maine it was put into service as a plow rig and when you have a plow truck that will be working out in storms and and stuff you have to protect your guys from the elements. Ford GTB trucks or the Ford Burma Jeep never had a cab, just the fold down windshield. This one has a cab that was built from scratch and while it looks kind of neat we would remove that and go back to open air operation. The plow rig would have to go as well.
Powered by a Ford flathead six cylinder the trucks would go like 50mph on a good day and get about 9mpg. They were not designed for comfort or anything other than doing the job at hand. If this truck could talk we bet it would have some amazing stories to tell.
The only major question comes down to the color. Olive Drab Green or Ocean Gray? You make the call as the Air Force and the Army both used the trucks.
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