The story of this M3A1 White scout car is quite quirky & is designed to cover my heavy handedness with the weathering (I have far too much fun doing it
).
Vehicle #6074135 was, originally, destined for the US Marine Corps. However, an emergency order placed by the Australian government saw it transported to Australia, where it was supplied to the Head Quarters company of the Royal Australian Marines 27th Battalion in late 1941 (as opposed to the 2/27th Battalion AIF, which was still serving in North Africa).
Deployed to the Milne Bay landings during the New Guinea campaign #6074135 was accidentally dropped overboard next to the dock at Milne Bay. Spending a week on the sea floor before being salvaged it was not used during the following battles but it had the engine & drive train stripped down, cleaned out & rebuilt, & was given a bit of a rinse.
Its next deployment was to Western New Guinea, where it became bogged in the tidal mangrove swamps, & spent 3 days being submerged in sea water twice a day before being hauled out, having the engine, drive train stripped down, cleaned out & rebuilt, & being given another bit of a rinse. This time, however, it did serve as a recce vehicle. While on this campaign #6074135 became the recipient of a 20mm Oerlikon cannon stripped from a US Navy PT boat, that had been run ashore after being severely damaged by Japanese aircraft, & lost the middle 2 seats of the crew compartment.
After the Western New Guinea operations the crew compartment had 2 seats removed from the rear & a locker for 20mm Oerlikon magazines installed. Two machine guns, the .50 cal & a .30 cal, were also removed at this time to reduce the vehicle’s weight.
Its third landing, on New Britain, saw the landing craft lodge on a sand bar, where it dropped its ramp, & vehicle #6074135 dropped into water up to the base of its windscreen. Somehow the driver managed to coax it up onto the beach without stalling. It was at this time that “it” became a “she”, when the name “
HMA Submersible Rusty Bottom” was given to her. During this campaign she was credited with the shooting down of 2 Japanese bombers, an Aichi D3A1
Val & a Mitsubishi G3M2 Model 21
Nell.
After this deployment
Rusty Bottom lost her windscreen, doors & skate-rail, one of the remaining 2 crew compartment seats, the other being moved to on top of the access hatch between the front seats, & the .30 cal machine gun was moved to a mount in front of the front passenger seat.
Her 4th & final posting of the war was to Bougainville & the 2nd Battle of Rabaul. During this battle she was credited with 3 more aircraft kills; another Aichi D3A1
Val, a Kawasaki Ki-48 IIc
Lily & a A6M5 Type 0 Model 52
Zero. By the end of the battle aircraft attacks were almost unheard of & she spent the last days of the war assisting the troops in the house-to-house fighting in the fringes of the city, using her 20mm as an anti-sniper weapon. The mixed Australian forces of the 3rd Australian Division & the 2nd Royal Australian Marines Division, numbering a total of approximately 15,000 soldiers & marines at any time, accepted the surrender of over 60,000 Japanese troops.
Curiously, despite her 3 dips in the ocean,
Rusty Bottom suffered no damage, from either her immersions or from enemy fire, other than a tendency to rust.
At the end of the war she was brought back to Australia & scrapped.
Well, that's all, folks! :)
(For now, at least.
)