OT: Ledo Road supplies

[Yaab]

What exactly was delivered to China once the Ledo Road had opened? Browsing the Internet reveals enigmatic "supplies" or"vehicles" moved in great quantities, but I cannot find a detailed breakdown of items.

Were any 105mm howitzers moved via Ledo Road? 155mm guns? M3 tanks? Heavy (75,80 or 90mm) flak guns? Artillery shells? Armored cars?

This mind wants to know. Thanks!

[Gregg]

My understanding is that the largest trucks used on the Ledo Road were 2 1/2 ton trucks.
Thus I would conclude that the largest things transported on the Ledo road were things that could be carried in or towed behind a Duce and a Half.
Gregg

[morejeffs]

If I remember correctly there was also a pipeline that carried fuel

[Yaab]

The Ledo Road vehicles I have seen so far on WWII photographs include Dodge trucks, Jeeps, ambulances and bulldozers. Haven't seen a single tank, armored car or towed artillery piece making the trip to China.

Did the trucks go back to Ledo after having delivered supplies to China or were the trucks given to the Chinese? Wikipedia says that 26,000 vehicles were given to the Chinese - seems every convoy surrendered its trucks to the KMT at the terminus in Kunming. I have always thought that the trucks went back to Ledo to collect a new batch of supplies and that the Ledo Road was a two-way road.

BTW, if the Chinese got 26,000 trucks in 1945 plus fuel, shouldn't have some of their corps switched to motorized infantry?

[Yaab]

One more thing. If the convoys from Ledo dumped both their supplies and trucks in Kunming, then where did the new trucks come from for new convoys? Were they shipped to India from the USA? If so, was then the real purpose of the Ledo Road motorisation of China by sending trucks to KMT for which Kuomintang had no fuel? This whole project looks wasteful Soviet-style.

[Jorge_Stanbury]

I don't have the answers, and I don't like to guess,

but check this:
http://cbi-theater.home.comcast.net/~cb ... _home.html

regards

[Jorge_Stanbury]

http://cbi-theater-10.home.comcast.net/ ... ation.html

interesting to see that their main problem was lack of trained truckers.

It was wasteful.. but the entire war was, they tried everythink they thought can help.

[geofflambert]

Urumchi I believe, is a fuel source. That's a heck of a long road up there and back to get it to the front (I don't know whether it was open historically) but that might be one important use for those trucks. Chunking in particular is a supply source but needed that fuel to produce them. I don't think motorizing infantry was very high on the things to do list for those trucks in any case.