Willys MB US Navy Seebees

Willys MB US Navy Seebees

This Willy’s MB jeep appears as the World War II transport for the US Navy Seabees, Naval Construction Battalions (CBs), hence the name! The Battalion was founded in March 1942 as a military construction unit comprising 7000 active personnel and nearly 7000 reservists. Their almost cartoon-like logo featured a bee in flight, wearing flying goggles with each limb carrying a construction tool of some kind.

The men were skilled workers but also trained to take up arms and resume a military role when required. One of their several mottos is a reminder of this ‘We build, we fight’. In 2017, the Seabees celebrated their 75 years of service without having changed from their original concept.

In celebration of the Seabees’ role, our open top Willy MB Jeep is decorated in a rich naval blue with naval military markings in white and yellow and a pale grey interior. Given the task in hand, note the additional supply of aerials, tools and fuel tank. In real life, the first deployment of the Seabees was to Bora Bora following Pearl Harbor, which brought the USA into WWII.