The DUKW amphibious truck, nicknamed the “Duck,” was one of the mechanical marvels of the Second World War. And some of them are still hard at work. Based on a 2.5 ton 6×6 GMC military truck chassis, it used a watertight hull and propeller to achieve the ability to cross rivers and drive/sail to and from invasion beaches. To improve its ability to power through sand, it introduced the first central tire inflation system, now a standard feature on most military wheeled vehicles. GMC produced 21,137 from 1942 to 1945 for the U.S. military and for allied countries under Lend-Lease, making it the most prolific amphibious vehicle of all time. (The Volkwagen-based Schwimmwagen, the most successful amphibious car, totaled 14,265.)
The DUKW made its debut at Guadalcanal and proved invaluable in the Pacific campaign, the invasion of Sicily and Italy, the D-Day landings in Normandy, and the crossing of the Rhine. Several DUKWs produced during the war remain in service with the UK’s Royal Marines, and as amphibious “duck tour” buses, they are a common sight in Washington, DC, Boston, Seattle, and numerous other cities. This DUKW was sighted at Trafalgar Square in London in June. Quite possibly a veteran of D-Day, it now gives tours of London landmarks and the Thames, a seventy year old classic still working for a living.
I have been on the London Duck Tour. I have also done a Duck Tour in Seattle. Those tours are a very nice way to see the sights.
The Ducks that are in use today are heavily modified from the original WWII design.
Wikipedia lists some 30 different locations World wide where there are Duck Tours. (Search under Duck Tours.)
Ray
I know where there’s a derelict one sitting here in Wetaskiwin. Very rusty, probably too far gone to save, it last served as a prom cruiser around 20 years ago from what I’ve been told…
This was basicly a 6×6 and those were designed to follow a tank and they could, this one put the ‘ANY” in anywhere.
There are lots of these doing tourist duty in Wisconsin Dells. The tours travel rough dirt paths and cross the Wisconsin River a few times. Very cool.
I remember going on a Duck tour on a family vacation to the Dells in 1987 or 1988. I was in second or third grade and still remember how fun it was!
They also see tourist duty here as the Halifax harbour hopper. The company that runs the tours has eight of them and I think two of them see regular use. The local gouvernment keeps imposing new regulations and permits and costs to these kind of things like they are trying to wipe out the tourist industry. I dont know why since tge industry is one of its top money makers.
Well, that’s simple: they got the dosh, so tax ’em. It’s also painless for local voters to gouge tourists. Why do you think so few Americans come to Canada now? They are sick of the absurd prices for anything tourist related.
I can remember several DUKWs on Blackpool and Southport beaches which were used by fishermen to pick shellfish in the 60s.I also made the Airfix 1/76 scale model as a kid
I saw one or two of these in London in May, have seen them elsewhere too, but had no idea they were old! I’d assumed they were a modern-day conversion kit someone had come up with. Now I know their true heritage I want to go on a Duck Tour even more!
There are a couple doing canal and river tours on the Gold Coast- good fun! Of course I was more interested in the vehicle than the sights….
The Sea Fair Pirates have one. I used to be parked in the off season near my first house and then it moved in down the street from some of my rental properties. It was quite surprising that the city let it be parked on the street for months at a time w/o moving.
Searles of Hunstanton West Norfolk UK operate ,I believe, is the only sea going Duck in the world. It was used during D DAY landings. Like the London ones it runs modern running gear and has a passenger canopy.
Searles also have the Sea Monster . A 1965 $million ,thats 1965 million General landing craft . One of the few that were not breached and left on the shores of Vietnam!. Its the only one in commercial use!.
Take a look at their website and come on out!.
A few years ago they had some running in Hawaii.
There has been a recent spate of sinkings involving these things. One went glug-glug with 27 tourists on board in Liverpool’s Albert Docks. Others have been withdrawn pending some evidence that they are slightly more seaworthy than a colander.
These things are so cool, and one day I’ve gotta go on a “duck tour”. I’ve wanted to ever since I first saw a converted DUKW in Boston many, many years ago… and when I first moved to Albany, NY I was so excited that they had them there too (they went out on the Hudson River during summer) yet in the three years I lived there, I never got around to it.
I have been on a crazy, huge amphibious vehicle – not at sea, but physically on one, however…
I’m not sure if they still do it, but the Army Corps of Engineers used to do an erosion study and dredging project on the barrier beaches of Long Island each winter. They stored a small fleet of LARC-V amphibious vehicles (which I believe was the DUKW’s successor, first built during the 1950s) at a place near the 4WD access road for the beach, where I often took my Jeep out. Once I knew they existed, me and a few friends would often try to catch them in action and eventually succeeded – then another time we ran into the crew pulling one off the beach and they gave us the whole tour, let us climb all over them, sit at the controls, showed us how they worked… pretty much as close as I’m ever gonna get to crashing through the waves in the Atlantic Ocean on one of them, and it was a huge thrill for me cuz I love shit like that.
I haven’t gone down there in a few winters, but now that I’ve got it in my head again I’ll be sure to check for them when it starts getting colder this year. With the beaches still pretty effed up from Hurricane Sandy, I’d say there’s probably a good chance they’ll be back.
Sean – I am amazed that you have been able to see the LARC-V in action! I have seen it and its much bigger counterpart, the BARC, only in a museum display at an Army base.
This photo will give some idea of how large the BARC is. The LARC-V is crazy huge, but the BARC is at another level of huge.