La Locomotion en Fête, Paris
Event
After 22 years at the Cerny airfield the famous La Locomotion en Fête was moved further east to another wartime airfield, this time Villaroche, near Melun Sennat for the 23rd meeting on June 10-11.
There was a noticeable absence of exhibits at the heavier end of the MV scene, although the Balmoral Green collection of Alain Galland brought some armour in the form of an M10 Tank Destroyer and a M4A2 Sherman, while the UNIVEM group of Satory had their M26 Pacific tank recovery tractor on show.
The Sherman ‘Montereau was in the colours of the 2nd Armoured Division, General Leclerc 1st section, 2nd Company of 50 Regt combat tanks. Built by the Pullman-Standard Car Company in Hammond in 1942, as chassis N° 420646, it became a commemorative tank standing in the town of Alençon in Northern France. The tank was recovered from its plinth and restored for the 70th D-Day anniversary event after a fund-raising operation in co-operation with the French Tank Museum at Saumur which raised 20,000 euros. The tank is now fully operational and is used regularly on commemorative dates.
The M10 Tank-Destroyer ‘Chippawa’ was built by G M’s Fisher Body Division and is equipped with the 17-pou…
