After sixty years in the Taiwan Defense Service, the M41A3 Walker Bulldog tanks are retiring. Yesterday, February 22, the portal thedrive.com He reported that the Army of the Republic of China officially announced the decommissioning of the last American light tanks.
Officially, the last day of service for the M41A3 Walker Bulldog will be February 25 — a special celebration dedicated to this combat vehicle will be held at the training command of the Army Infantry of the northern district of Hsinchu. The last 20 tanks will be withdrawn from combat, and their fate will be decided by the military command.
M41A3 Walker Bulldog Tank
Image source: thedrive.com
The M41A3 Walker Bulldog began entering service with the Taiwan Army in 1958. At some point, the country was armed with about 700 of these machines. Gradually they were replaced by new models of tanks. Now, several deeply upgraded Walker Bulldog modifications of the M41D will remain on Lieyu Island in Kinmen County near China.
In addition to Taiwan, the M41A3 tanks remain in the service of the Uruguayan army — in 2018, Brazil supplied several dozen of these vehicles as free assistance to the neighboring country.
