Ford GPW “Follow Me Jeep”

The Italianminifig Ford GPW “Follow me” jeep is a scale reproduction – mountable and made of original Lego pieces – of one of the vehicles that, in 1942, were used to guide airplanes on taxiways, immediately after landing.

The sales package includes the minifigure, printed at 360° on original Lego, of the soldier in charge of driving the “Follow me” in military airports.

The sales package also includes:

- A small bag containing the Ford GPW “Follow me” jeep assembling pieces (165 pcs., 13 are printed).

- A certificate attesting the authenticity of the Ford GPW “Follow me” jeep as an Italianminifig product, and that it belongs to a limited edition.

- The assembly instructions.

The term "jeep" derives from the pronunciation of the acronym "GP" which stands for "General Purpose". Only three responded to the request to create a reconnaissance vehicle weighing ¼ of a ton that the US Army forwarded to car manufacturers in 1940: Bantam, Willys and Ford.

In 1941 the Ford and Willys models were adopted.

The “follow me” jeeps were used to guide planes onto runways after landing. The bright colors of the bodywork made the vehicle more visible to pilots returning from long and exhausting missions or landing in adverse weather conditions. A large sign with the words “follow me” mounted on the back of the jeep made its function of guiding the aircraft to the hangar or parking spot even more explicit.

(These products aren’t a toy: they aren’t suitable for children under the age of 14, due to the small parts that constitute them. They are collector's items of historical interest. Each Italianminifig item does not intend to celebrate any authoritarian regime, not intends to foment hatred or a repressive spirit towards freedom and human rights).