Oh the irony
Apr. 7th, 2015 07:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
t_boneЗа весь период ВМВ высшей военной награды США - Медали почета - было удостоено только 5 человек из состава противотанковых частей.
Из этого числа ни один не был награжден за подвиг, совершенный в качестве самоходчика/артиллериста, и минимум трое получили Медали почета за ведение либо управление активным пехотным боем вне своей машины:
CHOATE, CLYDE L.
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company C, 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He commanded a tank destroyer near Bruyeres, France, on 25 October 1944. Our infantry occupied a position on a wooded hill when, at dusk, an enemy Mark IV tank and a company of infantry attacked, threatening to overrun the American position and capture a command post 400 yards to the rear. S/Sgt. Choate's tank destroyer, the only weapon available to oppose the German armor, was set afire by 2 hits. Ordering his men to abandon the destroyer, S/Sgt. Choate reached comparative safety. He returned to the burning destroyer to search for comrades possibly trapped in the vehicle risking instant death in an explosion which was imminent and braving enemy fire which ripped his jacket and tore the helmet from his head. Completing the search and seeing the tank and its supporting infantry overrunning our infantry in their shallow foxholes, he secured a bazooka and ran after the tank, dodging from tree to tree and passing through the enemy's loose skirmish line. He fired a rocket from a distance of 20 yards, immobilizing the tank but leaving it able to spray the area with cannon and machinegun fire. Running back to our infantry through vicious fire, he secured another rocket, and, advancing against a hail of machinegun and small-arms fire reached a position 10 yards from the tank. His second shot shattered the turret. With his pistol he killed 2 of the crew as they emerged from the tank; and then running to the crippled Mark IV while enemy infantry sniped at him, he dropped a grenade inside the tank and completed its destruction. With their armor gone, the enemy infantry became disorganized and was driven back.
LEONARD, TURNEY W.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company C, 893d Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He displayed extraordinary heroism while commanding a platoon of mobile weapons at Kommerscheidt, Germany, on 4, 5, and 6 November 1944. During the fierce 3-day engagement, he repeatedly braved overwhelming enemy fire in advance of his platoon to direct the fire of his tank destroyer from exposed, dismounted positions. He went on lone reconnaissance missions to discover what opposition his men faced, and on 1 occasion, when fired upon by a hostile machinegun, advanced alone and eliminated the enemy emplacement with a hand grenade. When a strong German attack threatened to overrun friendly positions, he moved through withering artillery, mortar, and small arms fire, reorganized confused infantry units whose leaders had become casualties, and exhorted them to hold firm. Although wounded early in battle, he continued to direct fire from his advanced position until he was disabled by a high-explosive shell which shattered his arm, forcing him to withdraw. He was last seen at a medical aid station which was subsequently captured by the enemy.
BEYER, ARTHUR O.
Rank and organization: Corporal, U.S. Army, Company C, 603d Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He displayed conspicuous gallantry in action. His platoon, in which he was a tank-destroyer gunner, was held up by antitank, machinegun, and rifle fire from enemy troops dug in along a ridge about 200 yards to the front. Noting a machinegun position in this defense line, he fired upon it with his 76-mm. gun killing 1 man and silencing the weapon. He dismounted from his vehicle and, under direct enemy observation, crossed open ground to capture the 2 remaining members of the crew. Another machinegun, about 250 yards to the left, continued to fire on him. Through withering fire, he advanced on the position. Throwing a grenade into the emplacement, he killed 1 crewmember and again captured the 2 survivors. He was subjected to concentrated small-arms fire but, with great bravery, he worked his way a quarter mile along the ridge, attacking hostile soldiers in their foxholes with his carbine and grenades. When he had completed his self-imposed mission against powerful German forces, he had destroyed 2 machinegun positions, killed 8 of the enemy and captured 18 prisoners, including 2 bazooka teams. Cpl. Beyer's intrepid action and unflinching determination to close with and destroy the enemy eliminated the German defense line and enabled his task force to gain its objective.
Этот интересный выверт меня интриговал давно. Казалось бы, откуда у экипажей механизированной противотанковой артиллерии навыки и подготовка для ведения пехотного бояи керамитовые яйца вдобавок?
Ларчик открывается просто:
Tank killers were trained not only to fight with their guns but also to conduct “dismounted tank hunting.” Crews of disabled TDs were expected to ambush enemy tanks and raid his tank parks using small arms, grenades, mines, and improvised weapons. Bruce sent Maj Gordon Kimbrell to visit the British Commando School and patterned tank-hunting training on the Commando model. The course employed live grazing fire and exploding practice grenades for the first time in the Army during simulated battlefield conditions. The men underwent a grueling schedule that included conducting night reconnaissance, crossing deep streams, climbing slippery barbed-wire-covered banks, scaling steep walls, detecting booby traps, street fighting, and mastering demolitions.
"The Tank Killers: a History of America's World War II Tank Destroyer Force" by Harry Yeide
Истребителей танков учили не только стрелять из орудий, но и осуществлять "пешую охоту за танками". Экипажи выведенных из строя самоходок должны были готовить засады на вражеские танки, и атаковать танковые бивуаки с использованием личного оружия, гранат, мин и импровизированного вооружения. Подполковник Брюс (начальник первого в США центра по тактической и огневой подготовке Истребителей танков, форт Мид, Мэриленд) отправил майора Кимбрела посетить школу британских Коммандос, и организовал подготовку пеших истребительных команд по образу подготовки Коммандос. Впервые в истории Армии США этот курс включал огонь боевыми патронами на высоте бедра и взрывы гранат для симуляции боевой обстановки. Солдаты проходили изнурительные занятия в том числе по ночной разведке, пересечению глубокого русла реки, подъему на скользкий берег опутанный колючей проволокой, преодолению крутых стен, обнаружению мин-ловушек и взрывному делу.
Из этого числа ни один не был награжден за подвиг, совершенный в качестве самоходчика/артиллериста, и минимум трое получили Медали почета за ведение либо управление активным пехотным боем вне своей машины:
CHOATE, CLYDE L.
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company C, 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He commanded a tank destroyer near Bruyeres, France, on 25 October 1944. Our infantry occupied a position on a wooded hill when, at dusk, an enemy Mark IV tank and a company of infantry attacked, threatening to overrun the American position and capture a command post 400 yards to the rear. S/Sgt. Choate's tank destroyer, the only weapon available to oppose the German armor, was set afire by 2 hits. Ordering his men to abandon the destroyer, S/Sgt. Choate reached comparative safety. He returned to the burning destroyer to search for comrades possibly trapped in the vehicle risking instant death in an explosion which was imminent and braving enemy fire which ripped his jacket and tore the helmet from his head. Completing the search and seeing the tank and its supporting infantry overrunning our infantry in their shallow foxholes, he secured a bazooka and ran after the tank, dodging from tree to tree and passing through the enemy's loose skirmish line. He fired a rocket from a distance of 20 yards, immobilizing the tank but leaving it able to spray the area with cannon and machinegun fire. Running back to our infantry through vicious fire, he secured another rocket, and, advancing against a hail of machinegun and small-arms fire reached a position 10 yards from the tank. His second shot shattered the turret. With his pistol he killed 2 of the crew as they emerged from the tank; and then running to the crippled Mark IV while enemy infantry sniped at him, he dropped a grenade inside the tank and completed its destruction. With their armor gone, the enemy infantry became disorganized and was driven back.
LEONARD, TURNEY W.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company C, 893d Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He displayed extraordinary heroism while commanding a platoon of mobile weapons at Kommerscheidt, Germany, on 4, 5, and 6 November 1944. During the fierce 3-day engagement, he repeatedly braved overwhelming enemy fire in advance of his platoon to direct the fire of his tank destroyer from exposed, dismounted positions. He went on lone reconnaissance missions to discover what opposition his men faced, and on 1 occasion, when fired upon by a hostile machinegun, advanced alone and eliminated the enemy emplacement with a hand grenade. When a strong German attack threatened to overrun friendly positions, he moved through withering artillery, mortar, and small arms fire, reorganized confused infantry units whose leaders had become casualties, and exhorted them to hold firm. Although wounded early in battle, he continued to direct fire from his advanced position until he was disabled by a high-explosive shell which shattered his arm, forcing him to withdraw. He was last seen at a medical aid station which was subsequently captured by the enemy.
BEYER, ARTHUR O.
Rank and organization: Corporal, U.S. Army, Company C, 603d Tank Destroyer Battalion.
He displayed conspicuous gallantry in action. His platoon, in which he was a tank-destroyer gunner, was held up by antitank, machinegun, and rifle fire from enemy troops dug in along a ridge about 200 yards to the front. Noting a machinegun position in this defense line, he fired upon it with his 76-mm. gun killing 1 man and silencing the weapon. He dismounted from his vehicle and, under direct enemy observation, crossed open ground to capture the 2 remaining members of the crew. Another machinegun, about 250 yards to the left, continued to fire on him. Through withering fire, he advanced on the position. Throwing a grenade into the emplacement, he killed 1 crewmember and again captured the 2 survivors. He was subjected to concentrated small-arms fire but, with great bravery, he worked his way a quarter mile along the ridge, attacking hostile soldiers in their foxholes with his carbine and grenades. When he had completed his self-imposed mission against powerful German forces, he had destroyed 2 machinegun positions, killed 8 of the enemy and captured 18 prisoners, including 2 bazooka teams. Cpl. Beyer's intrepid action and unflinching determination to close with and destroy the enemy eliminated the German defense line and enabled his task force to gain its objective.
Этот интересный выверт меня интриговал давно. Казалось бы, откуда у экипажей механизированной противотанковой артиллерии навыки и подготовка для ведения пехотного боя
Ларчик открывается просто:
Tank killers were trained not only to fight with their guns but also to conduct “dismounted tank hunting.” Crews of disabled TDs were expected to ambush enemy tanks and raid his tank parks using small arms, grenades, mines, and improvised weapons. Bruce sent Maj Gordon Kimbrell to visit the British Commando School and patterned tank-hunting training on the Commando model. The course employed live grazing fire and exploding practice grenades for the first time in the Army during simulated battlefield conditions. The men underwent a grueling schedule that included conducting night reconnaissance, crossing deep streams, climbing slippery barbed-wire-covered banks, scaling steep walls, detecting booby traps, street fighting, and mastering demolitions.
"The Tank Killers: a History of America's World War II Tank Destroyer Force" by Harry Yeide
Истребителей танков учили не только стрелять из орудий, но и осуществлять "пешую охоту за танками". Экипажи выведенных из строя самоходок должны были готовить засады на вражеские танки, и атаковать танковые бивуаки с использованием личного оружия, гранат, мин и импровизированного вооружения. Подполковник Брюс (начальник первого в США центра по тактической и огневой подготовке Истребителей танков, форт Мид, Мэриленд) отправил майора Кимбрела посетить школу британских Коммандос, и организовал подготовку пеших истребительных команд по образу подготовки Коммандос. Впервые в истории Армии США этот курс включал огонь боевыми патронами на высоте бедра и взрывы гранат для симуляции боевой обстановки. Солдаты проходили изнурительные занятия в том числе по ночной разведке, пересечению глубокого русла реки, подъему на скользкий берег опутанный колючей проволокой, преодолению крутых стен, обнаружению мин-ловушек и взрывному делу.
