tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-506516985181559842024-01-10T20:03:26.409-07:00World War II in PicturesWorld War II photos you probably haven't seen beforeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger324125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-67939343137260315072023-01-08T08:54:00.001-07:002023-01-08T08:54:13.128-07:00Horrible World War 2 Images<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4mZbKgHK8EPbxI-Ig2hIxQnw4mYHu0qZtO6Q4oQinDUQv2Dm6lh1FkrmlhHW9X-zWGU7nZOI7wldNw37zZOK72OWfLmFAU9A1-RgDDBS6bOG7wtjnERHwicgrpEQf2BrtejmOceK3SLrumgocGvdUyyIY7oFsIm-3-a1JLaTeqramhBVxImhvSkk_/s813/Death_in_Russia_Mauser-98k.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="456" data-original-width="813" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4mZbKgHK8EPbxI-Ig2hIxQnw4mYHu0qZtO6Q4oQinDUQv2Dm6lh1FkrmlhHW9X-zWGU7nZOI7wldNw37zZOK72OWfLmFAU9A1-RgDDBS6bOG7wtjnERHwicgrpEQf2BrtejmOceK3SLrumgocGvdUyyIY7oFsIm-3-a1JLaTeqramhBVxImhvSkk_/s320/Death_in_Russia_Mauser-98k.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>There are a lot of truly gruesome photos from World War II, as I have written about <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/05/truly-ghoulish-side-of-world-war-ii.html" target="_blank">elsewhere</a>. Here, for instance, is a photo of the instant of death of a young German soldier in 1943. This was not an unusual event, but the timing of the photographer certainly was.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgsEfXravGJ4hBPQXSzVeQL0V9zKlF9yfmHhs-2aqR3JJmTbhUm58Yiyuuyimk6iEM-L0jZrlGn-xt8Kc5ctQIQ54idy8hQVLyFiSctZ4hiDLmIWuLNK29wbd9QlPh9SCESAEQHbaTIf1x1JfROvlqrcTSt_D6m-G_U09RhjuN2oYxW7wohYbXhzR/s270/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-394-1499-06,_Russland,_gefallener_deutscher_Soldat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="180" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgsEfXravGJ4hBPQXSzVeQL0V9zKlF9yfmHhs-2aqR3JJmTbhUm58Yiyuuyimk6iEM-L0jZrlGn-xt8Kc5ctQIQ54idy8hQVLyFiSctZ4hiDLmIWuLNK29wbd9QlPh9SCESAEQHbaTIf1x1JfROvlqrcTSt_D6m-G_U09RhjuN2oYxW7wohYbXhzR/s1600/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-394-1499-06,_Russland,_gefallener_deutscher_Soldat.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><br /><p>It is easy to think that soldier gear such as helmets are adequate. However, the helmet did not stop a well-aimed rifle shot at this unlucky Wehrmacht soldier.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyGvYfA0It3gvycCy7UpCZLmyH5LDIZKY4Sqq89cng6kdASoq1soSDjs1Rm3UvQq1GyyWXxGq_wRRCg-iOeuGDmwUbpgIrXTd_-Y4xX4xlDiOsHlv0AOmJVd4Q72XH35Ng3Q_IYL17F57AuaBNMdoFpmiqIVJmWnNG12TzjFduz_tJD3zvhXNZ4Ofs/s427/Beheading_Nanking_boy_caught_with_US_currency.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="427" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyGvYfA0It3gvycCy7UpCZLmyH5LDIZKY4Sqq89cng6kdASoq1soSDjs1Rm3UvQq1GyyWXxGq_wRRCg-iOeuGDmwUbpgIrXTd_-Y4xX4xlDiOsHlv0AOmJVd4Q72XH35Ng3Q_IYL17F57AuaBNMdoFpmiqIVJmWnNG12TzjFduz_tJD3zvhXNZ4Ofs/s320/Beheading_Nanking_boy_caught_with_US_currency.gif" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>Wars are hard, and it is important to remember that when you are rooting for one side or the other. Here, a young Chinese boy is beheaded because he was caught fifty cents of American currency. Something as simple and meaningless as that could end your life.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1K2pK8feoVdJyIf8--iZ0ZAbcox9kAnez_LmXDE4is75SzV42gxlwe6eRK5tkRG-79-y9TrYF01F9ZdPgB1w9KOuR31DmKDv3qip7kTT-Nkq-xalYz8jnI1Z5bK9cC5kI3RZKBT8VH5AXNR6VXsGFYe6REXptL7nkP4ntZDj21XJTjyX7R8n9i6dM/s330/330px-Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-166-0527-06A,_Kreta,_Kondomari,_Erschie%C3%9Fung_von_Zivilisten.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="210" data-original-width="330" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1K2pK8feoVdJyIf8--iZ0ZAbcox9kAnez_LmXDE4is75SzV42gxlwe6eRK5tkRG-79-y9TrYF01F9ZdPgB1w9KOuR31DmKDv3qip7kTT-Nkq-xalYz8jnI1Z5bK9cC5kI3RZKBT8VH5AXNR6VXsGFYe6REXptL7nkP4ntZDj21XJTjyX7R8n9i6dM/s320/330px-Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-166-0527-06A,_Kreta,_Kondomari,_Erschie%C3%9Fung_von_Zivilisten.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>The aftermath of a German atrocity at Komdomari, Crete. It was a beautiful spring day shortly after the Luftwaffe assault on the island in 1941, but it only led to death for these unlucky villagers.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3WdEC5hLMzemhdDlR0tWUQEt0N3-g90cqdyx6vaQGVMqToYF06MeK_wkGhXlCzxUBZowvCF9-5s1LLIt0X9oXbIplGxSNkkJFDNxB7Pq0btRCK4WLlc2BYPETA2cphrxt9gOoCH3TaGQv_QOmAThi-LRiSFV2n5efcWgO0TqQJLzYZQ1gQO8_pT0/s1600/bataan-death-march.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1240" data-original-width="1600" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3WdEC5hLMzemhdDlR0tWUQEt0N3-g90cqdyx6vaQGVMqToYF06MeK_wkGhXlCzxUBZowvCF9-5s1LLIt0X9oXbIplGxSNkkJFDNxB7Pq0btRCK4WLlc2BYPETA2cphrxt9gOoCH3TaGQv_QOmAThi-LRiSFV2n5efcWgO0TqQJLzYZQ1gQO8_pT0/s320/bataan-death-march.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>The Bataan death march in the Philippines is notorious. Here, some American and Filipino prisoners of war try to survive the brutality. If you fell behind during the march or collapsed in exhaustion, the guards indifferently finished you off.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvWsKYhKBDVMM-ExZDTsKmTeWyR__n2GVO7JW-BvJovSTAtquFxavAQEBnrTTgxr4GLktyYg-G_0St-C9lDRSYTzC0M-Ti7DdrLDAncfoj0gMDh9FlmvYwtXD9w7wblzmJFHLJTBCVok8mrcIDwoXpoDWLLPXPy_J1dSfYkcv5MG_vaxCEUyJUl1GE/s800/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-004-3633-32A,_Russland,_Cholm,_gefallene_Rotarmisten.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="800" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvWsKYhKBDVMM-ExZDTsKmTeWyR__n2GVO7JW-BvJovSTAtquFxavAQEBnrTTgxr4GLktyYg-G_0St-C9lDRSYTzC0M-Ti7DdrLDAncfoj0gMDh9FlmvYwtXD9w7wblzmJFHLJTBCVok8mrcIDwoXpoDWLLPXPy_J1dSfYkcv5MG_vaxCEUyJUl1GE/s320/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-004-3633-32A,_Russland,_Cholm,_gefallene_Rotarmisten.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>War is not pretty. Here are dead Soviet solders during the counteroffensive from Moscow in early 1942. The history books write of it as a grand Soviet victory, which it was, but not for these poor men.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkITxkrij6Dp-QtlGCAPllWFlg8khjzRdXAmda4QMbSt1eYvo6fEvju7SEjQTz6c5pQmmMzgmFVgYniaRLxWe9_nfG3YCwcGS4D8OxW5xDAvtF2T9e2SrtTRFj9vViFjrILPBgRIdXqvZuLy3twAYfHXpJDax9jK3VixGlqrleqpMWOpdVA0VhGdL7/s1280/Chinese_executing_Chinese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="997" data-original-width="1280" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkITxkrij6Dp-QtlGCAPllWFlg8khjzRdXAmda4QMbSt1eYvo6fEvju7SEjQTz6c5pQmmMzgmFVgYniaRLxWe9_nfG3YCwcGS4D8OxW5xDAvtF2T9e2SrtTRFj9vViFjrILPBgRIdXqvZuLy3twAYfHXpJDax9jK3VixGlqrleqpMWOpdVA0VhGdL7/s320/Chinese_executing_Chinese.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>Sometimes the brutality occurred in unexpected ways. Here, two Chinese men are executed by other Chinese. The reason was the simmering hatred between the Nationalist Chinese government and the communists, both supposedly fighting the Japanese but often fighting each other.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiME2h1HAQjgphK1v9xVyE9xz00IpvVgxr9BFLy1Fk_Nb5y66S3CdQD4youKYQRAbuaTrlNg3bXuQ2qnUc53spy5jA-XMYyv9Q54-Y_5VBFPQl-Yd0PW8XWVWxCJKszLMCi7-FXb_hxrCZpod8pCO7vBWMSiSdjJfZLRiBhhY9hnIhO2CdqRD-KZi5V/s500/Chinese_to_be_beheaded_in_Nanking_Massacre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="368" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiME2h1HAQjgphK1v9xVyE9xz00IpvVgxr9BFLy1Fk_Nb5y66S3CdQD4youKYQRAbuaTrlNg3bXuQ2qnUc53spy5jA-XMYyv9Q54-Y_5VBFPQl-Yd0PW8XWVWxCJKszLMCi7-FXb_hxrCZpod8pCO7vBWMSiSdjJfZLRiBhhY9hnIhO2CdqRD-KZi5V/s320/Chinese_to_be_beheaded_in_Nanking_Massacre.jpg" width="236" /></a></div><br /><p>Beheading was common in the Asian theater, though not practiced in Europe. It is always surprising how so often there are smiling faces in the background during such a solemn moment.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfn7KleP2PmX9-a5-NtC2ZjMZvio7MChk_2CsxRo2sRAOD0hpyr2mEfVIrLjOCaLfT5lN3QKJrLU-aQPwxVW1lmf8xpA1yWY85QNl8IAf2k_DVpTnViP2o7oS1TMQH7NtlrIWy1BoQzBYogd1yEsym6ZdnMB0S-gs22T027WblQSjW4cOo-c2384-2/s999/Dead_Americans_in_Germany.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="999" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfn7KleP2PmX9-a5-NtC2ZjMZvio7MChk_2CsxRo2sRAOD0hpyr2mEfVIrLjOCaLfT5lN3QKJrLU-aQPwxVW1lmf8xpA1yWY85QNl8IAf2k_DVpTnViP2o7oS1TMQH7NtlrIWy1BoQzBYogd1yEsym6ZdnMB0S-gs22T027WblQSjW4cOo-c2384-2/s320/Dead_Americans_in_Germany.webp" width="256" /></a></div><br /><p>Here are dead American GIs in Germany during the offensive into Germany. The scenic little towns became deathtraps for many soldiers due to snipers hiding in attics and behind trees.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvWbz9dfYVBv_PuYqXmQ3LzoMeX4lJbTtfj25kOJlJxochmZlwoZejkwJ-WX6nr9cIo1xwevABWFRPrLlzjLY_9JyM5SVlB7-0vdhmendJxQm-__SllDTjRFg-eqcb29issHG_H6McSfv8P_xY2keZcWvdFGF7-Oa8CQUniKrV4u3a_BusOG_si5u6/s1080/Einsatzgruppen_Ivangorod_Ukraine_1942.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1080" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvWbz9dfYVBv_PuYqXmQ3LzoMeX4lJbTtfj25kOJlJxochmZlwoZejkwJ-WX6nr9cIo1xwevABWFRPrLlzjLY_9JyM5SVlB7-0vdhmendJxQm-__SllDTjRFg-eqcb29issHG_H6McSfv8P_xY2keZcWvdFGF7-Oa8CQUniKrV4u3a_BusOG_si5u6/s320/Einsatzgruppen_Ivangorod_Ukraine_1942.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div>At Ivangorod, Ukraine, an Einsatzgruppe death squad simply marched local villagers into a field and shot them. Often, the Germans made them dig their own graves first, but apparently not this time.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3o51XG1xvO-GjnLPe80ZsBxCncnskZlLxfzy_E1JGDHHzUkzkSYkdI8WLIk1P2gwrnREa7MoUJ6wGo-wo7oQKeh6f9rOcuFCNbR_KnBviu-OU86r8m_iITegL9ydbJrYVAyf6Pw0MQNpnc9WYbv52Gs7G4qRM9jXgp4aKXUYzwnqOHo-TUUlW0Q2J/s1860/Japanese_executing_Sikh_POWs.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1300" data-original-width="1860" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3o51XG1xvO-GjnLPe80ZsBxCncnskZlLxfzy_E1JGDHHzUkzkSYkdI8WLIk1P2gwrnREa7MoUJ6wGo-wo7oQKeh6f9rOcuFCNbR_KnBviu-OU86r8m_iITegL9ydbJrYVAyf6Pw0MQNpnc9WYbv52Gs7G4qRM9jXgp4aKXUYzwnqOHo-TUUlW0Q2J/s320/Japanese_executing_Sikh_POWs.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>Here, the Japanese are using Sikh prisoners for target practice. Later photos show them all dead.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiblVLC2ZHCM1iySIxDjg6nJGNYABWN7m1N0EIi8UXSymm9pqaWK9VZN9L6PqVIzZWwbMb5-YVK9wJVuixPpA_JEX02_ff0kuzUVNwgRBbT98WnZ5zOEPLlNfgqWw6qCFKSWnSYVxWOTP0lM5y04EhMyWut1LNwJzffXFTtYaFJY5ylFtHfCqBnbMXs/s1199/Kazimiera_Mika_dead_sister_September_1939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="1199" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiblVLC2ZHCM1iySIxDjg6nJGNYABWN7m1N0EIi8UXSymm9pqaWK9VZN9L6PqVIzZWwbMb5-YVK9wJVuixPpA_JEX02_ff0kuzUVNwgRBbT98WnZ5zOEPLlNfgqWw6qCFKSWnSYVxWOTP0lM5y04EhMyWut1LNwJzffXFTtYaFJY5ylFtHfCqBnbMXs/s320/Kazimiera_Mika_dead_sister_September_1939.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>The killing during World War 2 could be quite impersonal. Here, teenager Kazimiera Mika tries to revive her dead sister during the early days of the German invasion of Poland in September 1939. It was the first time she had experienced death, and it was caused by a passing plane on a strafing run.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMBqSdqviBthqy1yFAdxTPr70l1F4Ljg_0VpErmbb2G3U4qGLm3R6OSoCnaJ-fhWT6uCfICRXWNfGmCwYUbatOowaUj-WcdoPJoat0XJKGWJ_PKPacD15Aby9p_aaPyxtR57Bgh0wwlymIdNhXVCsJgnrVddgOgO3QgQx6TWPdHu0_KIFs4jAzZH8D/s600/Lviv_pogrom_(June_-_July_1941).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="438" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMBqSdqviBthqy1yFAdxTPr70l1F4Ljg_0VpErmbb2G3U4qGLm3R6OSoCnaJ-fhWT6uCfICRXWNfGmCwYUbatOowaUj-WcdoPJoat0XJKGWJ_PKPacD15Aby9p_aaPyxtR57Bgh0wwlymIdNhXVCsJgnrVddgOgO3QgQx6TWPdHu0_KIFs4jAzZH8D/s320/Lviv_pogrom_(June_-_July_1941).jpg" width="234" /></a></div><br /><div>A photo of the Lviv pogrom of July 1941, with young hooligans chasing a Jewish woman. The German invasion was a chance for some locals to even old scores and act on ancient hatred.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJVvJPTy2di1UpJcJzh2XzELBGJxOvgJwzQSMRnTAEQxOXJ3V0TymgqKC6YSM2Mxrg_-9B5bCgYP05rVwHVEy27vq_lI8vkdFLIkGNP11HgBh-2vSMu511K5xvbyIGEOiailPARMFMBBVH_N9ZfuQQEyYIaBKbrDdOalCaFGD3mbGR6Cu3gw0y0A97/s550/Majdanek_death_camp.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="550" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJVvJPTy2di1UpJcJzh2XzELBGJxOvgJwzQSMRnTAEQxOXJ3V0TymgqKC6YSM2Mxrg_-9B5bCgYP05rVwHVEy27vq_lI8vkdFLIkGNP11HgBh-2vSMu511K5xvbyIGEOiailPARMFMBBVH_N9ZfuQQEyYIaBKbrDdOalCaFGD3mbGR6Cu3gw0y0A97/s320/Majdanek_death_camp.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>A pile of skulls at the Majdanek extermination camp. Most of these would have found their way into the ovens, but this unlucky batch likely occurred right before the liberation when there as no time.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDTQEXdxAfXpnFUfPx5va8fHLUhoePpsOpzHlISeUfeqUmcq_KtBN5SZGj7iIlZWhCAC7hY3lmaFU8FgQ8u0ATJFRjUiEfT7mJpsU4HM0n2IlEHqi_rLEi3zMwf7soSy1DvvMBT7XZNHNiMrkdXtYMXo3gOaobmpghOhmcDY7g1dcSTm_6DboN6rw1/s2048/Rape-of-Nanking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="2048" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDTQEXdxAfXpnFUfPx5va8fHLUhoePpsOpzHlISeUfeqUmcq_KtBN5SZGj7iIlZWhCAC7hY3lmaFU8FgQ8u0ATJFRjUiEfT7mJpsU4HM0n2IlEHqi_rLEi3zMwf7soSy1DvvMBT7XZNHNiMrkdXtYMXo3gOaobmpghOhmcDY7g1dcSTm_6DboN6rw1/s320/Rape-of-Nanking.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Another surprising but very common scene from World War 2 was soldiers posing with the bodies of people they had just killed. This was from the Rape of Nanking, but similar images exist from throughout the war, and from both sides.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC7bbfxIjqanB6BbmrexPl8kMMxfzIX56m8C_3xx0Wg-PlmAKNDchkb5Kb9pt63M1CM9ekIu7rKg2OJQOkI2Yv2iegk16s3QJfentCf60YIMBTJnJ9vJNfbUHqxR59bwEYuJbIghAigQstn3KgfbEXxdgMTF2h0qC082xkn-vhk-6HTGmvP-6pafnl/s440/Russian_spy_being_executed.jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="440" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC7bbfxIjqanB6BbmrexPl8kMMxfzIX56m8C_3xx0Wg-PlmAKNDchkb5Kb9pt63M1CM9ekIu7rKg2OJQOkI2Yv2iegk16s3QJfentCf60YIMBTJnJ9vJNfbUHqxR59bwEYuJbIghAigQstn3KgfbEXxdgMTF2h0qC082xkn-vhk-6HTGmvP-6pafnl/s320/Russian_spy_being_executed.jpg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Here, a Finnish soldier prepares to execute a smiling man identified as a Soviet spy in late 1942. It was amazing how many people on the threshold of death could appear happy, many photos show similar attitudes.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-F00lRluB7qKQFo1CZnOuuaVcBfh6dVtWm6-AmkXw5UrwXS-zEUpBJ1_3WFI4OQZqfXxR6zzXqDa7YQoIM8KCrW1BEvw3wYt1--ac0Jz1nJzr_lSEv-YXahcPD_RrVziFStgqApiVP8lIy-HFiY7zA_WdeZjFARt-lxuBSjZ5Jcnt5tLIBELl_s5q/s450/Smiling_Spy_being_executed_in_November_1942.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="450" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-F00lRluB7qKQFo1CZnOuuaVcBfh6dVtWm6-AmkXw5UrwXS-zEUpBJ1_3WFI4OQZqfXxR6zzXqDa7YQoIM8KCrW1BEvw3wYt1--ac0Jz1nJzr_lSEv-YXahcPD_RrVziFStgqApiVP8lIy-HFiY7zA_WdeZjFARt-lxuBSjZ5Jcnt5tLIBELl_s5q/s320/Smiling_Spy_being_executed_in_November_1942.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>However, smiling did not prevent a spy's inevitable fate. These photographs were classified until released by the Finnish government in 2006.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Pgt7MUTUEApBnesf4S9E0b6IVkqnwKhuPKvb1uxZ1cqeroFyami0v3IxIYJrE0ME9skNqnBKNlzKCsqRyDMI1CxqCPw0PD6Dvf3cj72o77T2FWhSyhmjEvc64cl6_KgJYyrz3z1sO7Dz35aLH_ah1ILZ7z1YH3PAVYlVjjAknqPFgSnVyawx40hL/s289/Russian_teen_Masha_Bruskina_hanged.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="289" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Pgt7MUTUEApBnesf4S9E0b6IVkqnwKhuPKvb1uxZ1cqeroFyami0v3IxIYJrE0ME9skNqnBKNlzKCsqRyDMI1CxqCPw0PD6Dvf3cj72o77T2FWhSyhmjEvc64cl6_KgJYyrz3z1sO7Dz35aLH_ah1ILZ7z1YH3PAVYlVjjAknqPFgSnVyawx40hL/s1600/Russian_teen_Masha_Bruskina_hanged.jpg" width="289" /></a></div><br /><div>Being young and female was not a way to avoid execution, either. Here, teenaged Masha Bruskina is shown being executed for being accused of partisan activities. Two other men were hanged along with her.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA85AwiqIBZZNBTwK0wUvwDxcwNqIdAXdmnXnmgVP4caIzC2J846s_3zIQyuEW2DNAn-AzFtnQo_J-ZXRJNG-HpKEbISpZUdzsrz5eutRDoCgQNmHb5XE6M9dT2-ZCf4-hgk0nXzKqKbXgayKDyooSUi6GLPx7J6Rdz_7qZqEiKCkWUnelvCFGKeOB/s1536/The_Bochnia_massacre_German-occupied_Poland_1939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1536" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA85AwiqIBZZNBTwK0wUvwDxcwNqIdAXdmnXnmgVP4caIzC2J846s_3zIQyuEW2DNAn-AzFtnQo_J-ZXRJNG-HpKEbISpZUdzsrz5eutRDoCgQNmHb5XE6M9dT2-ZCf4-hgk0nXzKqKbXgayKDyooSUi6GLPx7J6Rdz_7qZqEiKCkWUnelvCFGKeOB/s320/The_Bochnia_massacre_German-occupied_Poland_1939.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>This photo shows the Bochnia massacre. Often, especially early in the war, the Germans would just line up people in front of a firing squad. Later, they were just sent to extermination camps.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDRp4QxJ-czg60XCzZKdfvDGhYvmWP7fkPzLlUTnal7id-9Tg5DpY5KJVU7O4SQtUHKjOAvoY7nwETdGkKQv0LXAcfCp8JNfc4AJoqIVd5a1JWlpLrlXC2xZQTPpb0pHuAAZzjRe55y_3pUqzRaxWYdMXO0mbPxH_PM5R0h_7SzkSAl0eotI4GR56r/s600/German_parachutists_on_Crete.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="600" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDRp4QxJ-czg60XCzZKdfvDGhYvmWP7fkPzLlUTnal7id-9Tg5DpY5KJVU7O4SQtUHKjOAvoY7nwETdGkKQv0LXAcfCp8JNfc4AJoqIVd5a1JWlpLrlXC2xZQTPpb0pHuAAZzjRe55y_3pUqzRaxWYdMXO0mbPxH_PM5R0h_7SzkSAl0eotI4GR56r/s320/German_parachutists_on_Crete.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>About five thousand German airborne troops lost their lives during Operation Mercury, the conquest of Crete. While the invasion was successful, it shocked the Germans. Adolf Hitler vowed to never use parachute troops the same way, which may have spared Malta a year later.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIjs33Deuj5eDYGrVayhM7aem65KBW9pWivg3Iwu-seK4dJKSThA0UBCsg_0d2-ggZaSRBWawZg5vKbMDypk1WLakEOltwjXmIFNvg1wb9FZAfJRzXTOKIWuPkBy7Yc78rDeoaL_UwO0cax5JZbcN55URUm8vrcdQiMSvAdh0jOkeKAW6QyK_e8XeS/s1600/himmler_suicide_1945.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1179" data-original-width="1600" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIjs33Deuj5eDYGrVayhM7aem65KBW9pWivg3Iwu-seK4dJKSThA0UBCsg_0d2-ggZaSRBWawZg5vKbMDypk1WLakEOltwjXmIFNvg1wb9FZAfJRzXTOKIWuPkBy7Yc78rDeoaL_UwO0cax5JZbcN55URUm8vrcdQiMSvAdh0jOkeKAW6QyK_e8XeS/s320/himmler_suicide_1945.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>A truly creepy end - SS leader Heinrich Himmler dead after committing suicide following his capture by British soldiers in 1945. The location of his grave is still unknown.<br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-52667148281642582402022-07-23T13:12:00.012-06:002022-07-23T18:03:21.622-06:00German WWII Tanks And Tank Killers<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Panzers In Service Of A Doomed Effort</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBBs3Z--H15gaMO6ut6djaAeQMWtCnRddO_8C_EgDU7koL3ROI78Th-vvpiDBAwCHFyyPhsHBpSr1nN95FnDsxlod0WbPdyw-IkcLZEsF-3jkERfrkNMYBXem0m7ZV1LX8tWQXjcU9l5CBy2le7AddJsxmMEbB5H4WHZNV_YJnfxUgtfIAUcwC0jd8/s780/Panzer_VIII_Maus_1944.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German Maus Panzer VIII being examined by Soviet soldiers after World War II." border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="780" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBBs3Z--H15gaMO6ut6djaAeQMWtCnRddO_8C_EgDU7koL3ROI78Th-vvpiDBAwCHFyyPhsHBpSr1nN95FnDsxlod0WbPdyw-IkcLZEsF-3jkERfrkNMYBXem0m7ZV1LX8tWQXjcU9l5CBy2le7AddJsxmMEbB5H4WHZNV_YJnfxUgtfIAUcwC0jd8/w640-h386/Panzer_VIII_Maus_1944.jpg" title="German Maus Panzer VIII being examined by Soviet soldiers after World War II." width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A German Maus II, reassembled in Moscow after World War II, is being examined. It is now on display at the Kubinka tank museum. While a favorite of video game designers, only two or three were built, there is no evidence they were ever used in combat, and the only workable one was blown up by the Germans before it could be captured. I have a page about the Maus with <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/10/maus-panzer-viii-tank.html" target="_blank">lots of photos here.</a></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Here we take an overview of <b itemprop="name">
German armored fighting vehicles of World War II</b>. But first, a little history, because history greatly affected the development and use of panzers. This background is necessary to understand how and why German armored vehicles were used.<br /><br />Tanks as we know them today were first introduced by the British during the Battle of the Somme in September 1916. These were used as "breakthrough" vehicles, paving the way for more vulnerable infantry. They had an immediate impact, being able to cross "no-man's land" between trenches despite the intense defensive fire and even cross over trenches with their long tracks.</p><p>The Germans were keenly aware of the effectiveness of tanks but were incapable during the war of producing their own. They only built a very small number of their own, and their most effective armored vehicles became captured British models basically with only new paint jobs.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYvQcCQPo8UsRa68aHnZZsGTcWcJpv9WEyDaW2MebftbVje1O0UsoW6jXQv7RYzGy0O7iiZ6EympEuadiPxfGdk3_N8LRxRusabMAVBv34T4KkkErIja1mWUp6nyGuqzG8m9gQ3YvVHQCVYYQE9ykGOWndcbWxGokwQ4szCN-TmwfvCMGWDvQaeeHX/s800/British%20tank%20during%20World%20War%201,%201916.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="First photo of British tank going into battle, 1916." border="0" data-original-height="584" data-original-width="800" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYvQcCQPo8UsRa68aHnZZsGTcWcJpv9WEyDaW2MebftbVje1O0UsoW6jXQv7RYzGy0O7iiZ6EympEuadiPxfGdk3_N8LRxRusabMAVBv34T4KkkErIja1mWUp6nyGuqzG8m9gQ3YvVHQCVYYQE9ykGOWndcbWxGokwQ4szCN-TmwfvCMGWDvQaeeHX/w640-h468/British%20tank%20during%20World%20War%201,%201916.jpg" title="First photo of British tank going into battle, 1916." width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"The first official photograph was taken of a Tank going into action, at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette, 15th September 1916. The man shown is wearing a leather tank helmet." The tank is Mark I. Note the "rudder," or steering wheel, at the back. © IWM <a href="https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205078852" target="_blank">Q 2488</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>During the interwar period, the German military had a long enforced rest during which its officers had plenty of time to study tanks and develop their own. <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/05/heinz-guderian-very-image-of-modern.html" target="_blank">Generals Heinz Guderian</a> and <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/07/erwin-rommel-desert-fox.html" target="_blank">Erwin Rommel</a> became renowned experts in this new type of warfare and developed tactical doctrines for their use.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3VE6b9s8N9G8p4cHXWdOK8-A5DIPPrEnPN6XaHAIvUQQQYKDa9tTZ_2jhmbpENZKd9fPwyvuvyQxVvM3jkDVW_xv_foO2YWPzNXGLoCrwM9lqxd5OAM5Aj5i5uGuIrv_rOHk2TxIstcxLqztQtHW9XFBqrxygMj42nlm7sjcTcx8hYXZ78ZOxmj2R/s864/German_tank_WWI.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="World War I captured German tank." border="0" data-original-height="498" data-original-width="864" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3VE6b9s8N9G8p4cHXWdOK8-A5DIPPrEnPN6XaHAIvUQQQYKDa9tTZ_2jhmbpENZKd9fPwyvuvyQxVvM3jkDVW_xv_foO2YWPzNXGLoCrwM9lqxd5OAM5Aj5i5uGuIrv_rOHk2TxIstcxLqztQtHW9XFBqrxygMj42nlm7sjcTcx8hYXZ78ZOxmj2R/w640-h368/German_tank_WWI.jpg" title="World War I captured German tank." width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A captured German tank during World War I. New Zealand <a href="https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/WH1-Otag-fig-WH1-OtagP042a.html" target="_blank">official photograph</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>The Reich's tank doctrine as of 1939 was <i>bewegungskrieg</i>, or “War of Movement.” The British media quickly slapped the name "Blitzkrieg" (lightning war) on this during the fall of France in 1940. German tanks gained a fearsome reputation even though the basic doctrines of <i>bewegungskrieg </i>were not more generalized than simply rolling tanks out in front of infantry; the doctrine instead relied on close radio communication between army commanders, the Luftwaffe, and the artillery army to produce a coordinated assault of which tanks were simply one relatively small part. This all-arms approach proved devastating against Allied forces that generally had separate units for different classes of weapons with little communication between them.</div><p>To place things in perspective, during the Battle of France in April-June 1940, the composition of the German Panzerwaffe were as follows: 278 Panzer IVs, 349 Panzer IIIs, 955 Panzer IIs, 523 Panzer Is, 106 Panzer 35(t)s, and 228 Panzer 38(t)s. This was an impressive number for the time, though dwarfed by the thousands of tanks on both sides at later battles such as Kurk and the Allied breakout from Normandy.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWv6pqqJNqKSVqslIAGJj01ZrbRdI1-hzjQecCleY_CCSfGHLuMUG11ClUMaMqSYDBhIuLGLgEaqzUttTEEsAi1UhXvFgQT50aRYYX7v3fP5cQGwPdBTrnfDfQ_h3p4MxTTvrqdMHPxo0rm2i66cTc1t2sgt3kd6PYrnM4mFVdR_5zuatKnpQfNYZV/s500/Panzer_II_and_Panzer_I_May_1940.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="World War II German Panzer II and then Panzer I tanks.." border="0" data-original-height="351" data-original-width="500" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWv6pqqJNqKSVqslIAGJj01ZrbRdI1-hzjQecCleY_CCSfGHLuMUG11ClUMaMqSYDBhIuLGLgEaqzUttTEEsAi1UhXvFgQT50aRYYX7v3fP5cQGwPdBTrnfDfQ_h3p4MxTTvrqdMHPxo0rm2i66cTc1t2sgt3kd6PYrnM4mFVdR_5zuatKnpQfNYZV/w640-h450/Panzer_II_and_Panzer_I_May_1940.jpg" title="World War II German Panzer II and then Panzer I tanks.." width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Denmark - German Panzer II and Panzer I on parade in front of a tank commander's headquarters at Horsens on Jutland, April 1940 (Stolzenberg, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/en/search/?channelid=dcx-channel-channel_barch_bilder&query=panzer&day=&month=&yearfrom=1939&yearto=1940&imageid=&title=&DC5Anlass=&DC5Verlag=&DC5TK50=&DC5Masstab=&farbe=&kostenfrei=&ausrichtung=&sort=DateImported+ASC&submit=&page=3" target="_blank">Picture 101I-754-051N-23</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Except for the Mark IIIs and IVs and perhaps the Czech-built Panzer 38(t)s, Germany’s panzer force wasn't that impressive in these early days. It primarily was composed of light armored fighting vehicles not much better than armored cars. Even the French-built Char BI and Char BI bis tanks were arguably comparable, though they had their own deficiencies such as poor heavy use of petrol. certainly outclassed. </p><p>However, it is a mistake to overlook the early WWI German panzers. The Wehrmacht started with no tanks, and it needed a lot. It could be more of the smaller tanks in a quicker period. The smaller tanks even had some minor advantages - they were smaller targets, they used less fuel, and they were easier to train on. But, most importantly, they were available and they worked. If World War II taught anything about weapons, it was that a working weapon that was on the scene was better than some more advanced one that was not.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiihkdZU5XakwZ4hTIFQVIqwkfklGwqrjg3-ODoX93Yfv2jubaitK5m9teWlK2WNw0gwvMqe30HFP8DcjvWZeyeTk6Nlewbc00uANZ5fmLRvLQH7ZWhaVenLY-QK_AdJfsikYzCRrZNLV72OJWvmYKXGS_wCjNDkRJjmRTR6jMbaz73RTXaGD8nf1_m/s500/French_Somua_35_May_1940.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Captured French Somua 35 May 1940." border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="500" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiihkdZU5XakwZ4hTIFQVIqwkfklGwqrjg3-ODoX93Yfv2jubaitK5m9teWlK2WNw0gwvMqe30HFP8DcjvWZeyeTk6Nlewbc00uANZ5fmLRvLQH7ZWhaVenLY-QK_AdJfsikYzCRrZNLV72OJWvmYKXGS_wCjNDkRJjmRTR6jMbaz73RTXaGD8nf1_m/w640-h448/French_Somua_35_May_1940.jpg" title="Captured French Somua 35 May 1940." width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A captured French Somua 35, May 1940 (Heinz Boesig, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/en/search/?channelid=dcx-channel-channel_barch_bilder&query=Somua&day=&month=&yearfrom=1939&yearto=1940&imageid=&title=&farbe=&kostenfrei=&ausrichtung=&view=gallery&submit=" target="_blank">Picture 101I-127-0399-12A</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The French SOMUA S35 was new, but it was quite a formidable weapon for the time. The German Mark III, arguably the backbone of the Panzerwaffe in 1940, had a smaller-caliber gun than the French tanks, and the Panzer Is and IIs were no match. The British Matilda II tank was slow but otherwise could hold its own with the German panzers. The best advantage the Wehrmacht had was in the sheer number of their armor, with the British in particular having completely inadequate numbers of armored vehicles. </p><p>Part of the German doctrine was to use the panzers as the spearhead, or <i>schwerpunkt</i>, against the weakest point of the opponent's line. This "point of concentration" would hopefully produce a breakthrough or rupture of the enemy’s line, to be followed immediately by faster (but lesser armored) moving motorized infantry. To ensure proper coordination, these infantry units (<i>panzergrenadiers</i>) typically formed an intrinsic component piece of the panzer division. The typical panzer division was composed of 2 panzer battalions and 1 motorized infantry battalion with its own self-propelled artillery for support. </p><p>That wasn't all. Panzer divisions also carried with them recovery vehicles that could retrieve disabled tanks. These specialized transporters were mobile workshops that could either repair the panzers even on the field of battle or (more likely during the early campaigns) lead them onto a train headed back to Germany. </p><p>Since communication was an irreplaceable part of German doctrine, its tanks had to have radios. It took the Allies a surprisingly long tie to appreciate the importance of equipping each panzer with its own radio set. The real advantage of the early German victories lay in this excellent communication between panzers, enabling the overall commander to more effectively direct the division to critical points on the field when they were most needed. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPmbCqs04nlX7XkObhV9Z7sE7Ms9z49U3gO0gF9Q-EkiSO2z0T3RFGVCOnHepKKfRZW_ihiFizhZ-dXtmrmp_vHQG8zbqHCnPfoKHhKIP3X3U_n4sLWgB5SJu0kFUPXjXdNLot3mWBsiXDUYXFrWhpE752dUSLl0BB76e0viXTMWj3nA0WaaoFcIe/s1600/Stukas_Poland_WWII_1939_on_mission.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Luftwaffe Junkers Ju 87 Stukas over Poland 1939" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPmbCqs04nlX7XkObhV9Z7sE7Ms9z49U3gO0gF9Q-EkiSO2z0T3RFGVCOnHepKKfRZW_ihiFizhZ-dXtmrmp_vHQG8zbqHCnPfoKHhKIP3X3U_n4sLWgB5SJu0kFUPXjXdNLot3mWBsiXDUYXFrWhpE752dUSLl0BB76e0viXTMWj3nA0WaaoFcIe/w640-h480/Stukas_Poland_WWII_1939_on_mission.jpg" title="Luftwaffe Junkers Ju 87 Stukas over Poland 1939" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luftwaffe Junkers Ju 87 Stukas flying over Poland on a mission, 1939 (Heinrich Hoffman, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/en/search/?yearfrom=1939&yearto=1940&query=Ju+87&page=1" target="_blank">Picture 183-1987-1210-502</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>This appreciation of the power of communication meant that the Wehrmacht was far better integrated as far as its different services went. The Luftwaffe was designed around a vision of it being an extension of the German Heer (army), able to coordinate its attacks with panzers columns. The panzer divisions would radio circling Junkers Ju-87 Stukas to identify targets blocking the advance on the ground. </p><p>Improvisation also became critical to German success during the Battle of France. French General Charles de Gaulle surprised Rommel’s 7th Panzer Division with British Matilda II and French tanks south of Arras. For a time, the German position was desperate, but then Rommel reached into his bag of tricks and unleashed the division’s attached antiaircraft company. It used its small number of 88 mm antiaircraft guns as field artillery by simply lowering the gun barrel parallel with the ground. Astonishingly, this proved devastatingly effective, and thereafter the "88s" became renowned as tank killers. They could destroy enemy tanks with a single shot on the field. This gun became so effective that it was later used as the gun mounted on the Mark VI Tiger and the King Tiger much later in the war. This eliminated the gun's major failing, that it was completely unprotected and a delicious target for Allied gunners when anywhere near the Front.</p><div>As the war progressed, the Germans doubled down on their early success with the panzer arm and continually upgraded existing tanks, and developed new models. It was this process that earned the panzers a reputation for lethality and overall quality. The development later in the war of the Mark V Panther, Mark VI Tiger, the King Tiger, and several variants of self-propelled guns and/or “tank killers” like the STUG III, Jagdpanther, and the Jagdpanzer IV were much more effective in every way than the panzers of 1939 and 1940. Unfortunately for the Germans, however, by the time these panzers entered combat, the tide of war had turned. The "Blitzkrieg" was no longer a new innovation, and the Allies had learned all of Wehrmacht's operational tricks.</div><p>The development of the Tiger tank reflected this change in circumstances. It was a heavy tank type originally designed for effecting breakthroughs in enemy lines as part of the <i>schwerpunkt</i>. The days of big advances, however, were over, and the Tigers had to adapt to a more defensive role for which they were never designed. In this, they were moderately successful, but their design was overkill for defending static positions. Up-gunned (75 mm) Mark IV models and even mobile artillery such as the StuG series of turretless guns were much more cost-effective, though at times (such as the rescue of trapped German forces at Cherkasy in Ukraine) the Tigers still proved indispensable.</p><h1>Germany’s WWII Panzer Types & Self-Propelled Tank Killers/Assault Guns</h1><div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-weight: bold;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-2ef72a487d0dc279f9c10b3daaf4d8de-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panzer I.</td></tr></tbody></table></span></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Panzerkampfwagen I</span></h2><div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">When the Reich began re-arming in the mid-1930s, it had to start somewhere. The Panzer I </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">was already, from a purely technical aspect, obsolete by the start of the French campaign. One of the subtle lessons of World War II, though, was that "obsolete" weapons (such as biplanes) could still be effective. </span></div><div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">The Panzer Is were used en masse and helped to produce victory by overwhelming the Allied defenses. The Panzer Is were withdrawn from front-line formations thereafter but still used for a time as reconnaissance vehicles and on secondary fronts. The main armament: 20 mm cannon. An example is shown above.</span></div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-b3ccc241df7cbdbd815fc2f847ffbd52-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panzer II</td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Panzerkampfwagen II</span></h2><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Like the Mark I panzer, the Mark II panzer was also technically obsolete by the start of the French campaign. It also was used effectively, however, and played a particularly useful and extensive role as a reconnaissance vehicle. Its chassis was used to make various self-propelled gun vehicles with various levels of success. Main armament: 20 mm cannon. An example of a Mark II is shown below.</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-27e19fe84f033837d1782c9bb484a249" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panzer III</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"></span></p><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Panzerkampfwagen III</span></h2><p></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The Panzer III is one of the most underrated tanks of World War II, with its light completely outshone by later tanks. It o</span><span style="background: none;">riginally was designed as Germany’s main battle tank, and it actually was quite effective in this role. It remained significant well into the Russian campaign. The panzer’s chassis was sturdy and reliable and was used for excellent armored variant types, most famously the StuG III. Its main drawback was that it could not accommodate the large guns that became necessary as the war progressed, but it still packed a punch. Main armament: Originally a 37 mm cannon later up-gunned to a 50 mm gun.</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-bcf6758804490b11e9af0c32f857cd75-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panzer IV</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"></span></p><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Panzerkampfwagen IV</span></h2><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Another pre-war tank, the Panzer IV is the first German tank to achieve legendary status. It o</span><span style="background: none;">riginally was envisioned as the Mark III’s companion with a larger 75 mm short barrel firing high explosive anti-personnel ordinance designed to kill off infantry in high concentrations. In February 1941, Hitler insisted against the Heer's objections that Panzer IVs be up-gunned with more effective long barrels for the upcoming Operation Barbarossa. This extremely far-sighted decision became critically important later in the year.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;">The Panzer IV was the mainstay of the panzer force (<i>panzerwaffe</i>) throughout the war, getting the job done when possible while the flashier Tiger and Panther stole its thunder. Collectors, though, appreciate the Panzer IV and <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/09/paul-allen-buys-panzer-iv-maybe.html" target="_blank">they sell for millions</a> of dollars in good condition. Main armament: Both a short and long barrel 75 mm gun.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-43c46f52f222c77bac8cdbcfbbdd4b5c-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panther.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mark V Panther</span></h2>This was the first of Germany’s next-generation panzers. It was designed rapidly after the panzers ran into the Soviet T-34 and found it to be a confoundingly effective opponent. In fact, some in Germany just suggested copying the T-34 from the ground up, but German manufacturing processes would not allow that, and neither would German pride. <div><br /></div><div>Officially, the Panther was described on paper as a "medium tank," but Hitler required modifications, so ultimately it weighed in at 49.4 tons - making it anything but medium. As a result of these last-minute changes and inadequate stocks of durable metals that could withstand the additional strain imposed on delicate transmission components, the Panther had continual drivetrain problems. These were never satisfactorily resolved, and they were compounded by the fact that the Panther was over-engineered. Drivers had to learn to "baby" it and not make sudden stops, starts, or turns in order to prevent another endless delay on the roadside waiting for parts.</div><div><br /></div><div>More Panthers wound up left on the side of the road due to mechanical issues than were destroyed in combat. However, to its credit, the Panther is still acknowledged by many as the best tank of WWII. True to its origins as an antidote to the T-34, the Panther became only one of two panzer types to employ sloped armor. Main armament: 75 mm gun. I talk more about the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/08/panther-tanks-best-tanks-of-its-time.html" target="_blank">Panther here</a>.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-7b8ff38745f77a7e783f24971f6805e0" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tiger tank.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger</span></h2><div>Without question, the Tiger tank was WWII’s most celebrated “heavy” panzer (roughly 55-60 tons). Arguably - and there are a lot of arguments on both sides for this - the Henschel-designed Panzer VI was the best tank of the war. Hitler chose Ferdinand Porsche to compete in a design competition - Henschel won, while Porsche also was awarded a contract to build 90 tanks of his losing version that became the Ferdinand/Elefant tank destroyer.</div><div><br /></div><div>Designed at the same time as the Panther, it also developed issues because Hitler required upgrades that were never in the original design. Early variants had an underpowered engine that was prone to overheating…especially the two dozen that were sent to North Africa after the Allied Torch landings. The design incorporated overlapping and interleaved wheels that were adopted from half-tracks. While these made for a stable gun platform that could fire accurately while moving - unusual for tanks of the time - and other advantages like good off-road performance, it also caused a maintenance nightmare. The interleaving, among other things, were quite susceptible to jamming from mud and ice - and there was a lot of both of those in Russia. The design eventually reverted to just overlapping wheels, as off-road performance became less important as the war rolled west into more urban built-up areas. </div><div><br /></div><div>Anti-magnetic "Zimmerit" paste produced by Zimmer & Co. in Berlin was applied, giving a distinctive rough appearance, but eventually abandoned late in the war because it required an additional day to apply and the Reich simply didn't have the time. Most teething issues were ironed out relatively quickly after the Tiger I first entered service in August 1942. </div><div><br /></div><div>The Tiger's biggest problem was that there weren’t enough of them to stem the Soviet tide that began pushing west after 1942. Only 1,347 or so units were produced during the war compared to 35,120 Soviet T-34s and 48,950 T-34-85s. The Tigers were good, but they weren't good enough to overcome odds like that. Main armament: 88 mm gun. I talk a lot more about the Tiger with <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2013/09/tiger-tanks.html" target="_blank">plenty of photos here</a>.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-8321ba96a9fe4009a117c1cadb8c6705-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">King Tiger aka Tiger II.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B King Tiger</span></h2><div><p></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Developed in 1943, this heavy beast (up to 75.5 tons) incorporated all the things learned about armored warfare previously to make a true state-of-the-art tank. More than any other tank, the King Tiger was the culmination of German armored vehicles, incorporating lessons learned from the Tiger I (no interleaved wheels) and the Panther (sloped armor). One of the reasons the Tiger II was so good was that it was not a rushed wartime weapon - design and testing actually began in the late 1930s to fill the hole in the panzer lineup for a heavier tank than the Panzer IV. It usually came in around 69.5 tons, but with fewer design compromises than the Tiger even though it weighed only about 15% more.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">This was Germany’s only panzer besides the Panther to incorporate sloped armor. The Soviet T-34 basically introduced sloped armor, and the T-34's success resulted in it gaining an outsized reputation</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">, but sloped armor imposed various tradeoffs (such as space available within the tank) that were not all beneficial. The initial production of 40 King Tigers had an underpowered engine which was upgraded to a more powerful engine (</span>V-12 Maybach HL 230 P30 gasoline - all panzers ran on gasoline, btw) for the remaining production run. Many still felt it was underpowered, but based on all the testing done it was more than sufficient for what it had to do. King Tigers did not have to be fast, they just had to get to where they were going.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">This panzer incorporated some of the first electronically assisted gun sights like the Panther tank. The King Tiger really didn’t have long enough service life - only about 489 were built - to iron out the usual teething issues associated with new tanks. It replaced the Tiger I in the production lines and was a worthy successor. A</span>rmament: 88 mm (8.8 cm KwK 43). I talk more about the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/10/king-tiger-ii-lord-of-battlefield.html" target="_blank">King Tiger here.</a></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKTCklyPoAqQeRKPzGLn8-IrH5mqVvLCssiMY_lNynQ7tlHMNO3jO4srpGxJKSyfDBuFnF3XewVtybbwaRRlnUt07X7M5Ni02P_SRNMQyhlVFETYeaYnzsdT2ubrN_Lw6ZNISIbyIJ5mBcWjKkh9osAxu20r_UVAn0MXE48hbWCRshXWOgq1TfJ66F/s1920/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-313-1004-25,_Italien,_Panzer__Elefant_.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Damaged Elefant in Italy, April/May 1944" border="0" data-original-height="1352" data-original-width="1920" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKTCklyPoAqQeRKPzGLn8-IrH5mqVvLCssiMY_lNynQ7tlHMNO3jO4srpGxJKSyfDBuFnF3XewVtybbwaRRlnUt07X7M5Ni02P_SRNMQyhlVFETYeaYnzsdT2ubrN_Lw6ZNISIbyIJ5mBcWjKkh9osAxu20r_UVAn0MXE48hbWCRshXWOgq1TfJ66F/w640-h450/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-313-1004-25,_Italien,_Panzer__Elefant_.jpg" title="Damaged Panzerjäger Tiger (P) "Elefant" (Sd.Kfz. 184) (8.8cm)" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elefant in Italy April/May 1944 (Robert Vack, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/en/search/?yearfrom=1943&yearto=1946&query=Elefant" target="_blank">Picture 101I-313-1004-25</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word;">Ferdinand/Elefant Tank Destroyer</h2><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;">When the Wehrmacht finally realized what it was up against in the Soviet Union, it quickly organized a competition to design a heavy tank. The main competitors were Henschel, which had a lot of experience building tanks, and Porsche, which had virtually no such experience. Unsurprisingly, Henschel provided the more efficient vehicle - the Tiger - while Porsche came up with a design that was less like a tank and more like an artillery piece. It also was extremely heavy at about 70 tons, which made it slow and unwieldy. While inferior in the intended role of a breakthrough armored vehicle, the Porsche design still was fearsome and usable. Thus, the Wehrmacht decided on an "all of the above" strategy and ordered about 90 of them.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;">The Ferdinands, as they were called after the name of the Porsche CEO (and Hitler crony), were rushed into service at Kursk in July 1943 and actually did fairly well. However, they received a bad reputation that was exaggerated by post-war writers due to a lack of secondary armament (machine guns) that Porsche, being inexperienced in this field, did not realize were important. So, stories surfaced of Soviet soldiers creeping up on them and pouring gasoline in their engine vents to set them on fire and so forth.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;">The main point in their favor, though, was that they mounted Krupp's newly developed 88 mm (3.5 in) Panzerjägerkanone 43/2 (PaK 43). This made them more effective as artillery pieces advancing behind the front rather than, as at Kursk, being used at the tip of the <i>schwerpunkt</i>. Once used properly, they came into their own and acquired a fearsome reputation as a defensive weapon with a probably exaggerated kill ratio better than just about any other Wehrmacht armored vehicle.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;">While Porsche's lack of experience with tanks was obvious and had baleful consequences, its experience making cars for decades provided some subtle advantages in the engine and suspension areas. The Ferdinands continued providing support fire for retreating Wehrmacht troops, proving much more effective in this role, until being recalled to Germany early in 1944 for modifications (such as the installation of MG-34 machine guns for defensive purposes). They then were sent south to Italy, where they remained in service for as long as they lasted. Because of their distinctive appearance, the troops started calling them "Elefant," and eventually, on 1 May 1944, this became their semi-official name (they actually were the Panzerjäger Tiger (P), but nobody called them that). </p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;">The Elefant is the most maligned German armored vehicle, but wrongly so. Despite being prone to mechanical breakdowns as with the Panther - a common situation for World War II tanks on both sides, particularly Soviet ones - the idea that they were ineffective and extremely vulnerable is simply false. While they were all built in early 1943, a company of them lasted until the very end of the war. They saw action on the Oder Front and, finally, defending the Zossen Wehrmacht headquarters (sort of the German Pentagon) south of Berlin in late April 1945. I talk a lot more about the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/10/the-ferdinandelefants-tank-destroyer.html" target="_blank">Elefant with photos here</a>.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-11ea3274bedc7f4887c46bf24a3e1f68-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></span></p><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sturmgeschütz III (StuG III)</span></h2><div>Even though they looked similar, the Sturmgeschütz III assault gun series was developed on a completely separate track from the panzers. Rather than being designed as a "breakthrough" weapon like panzers, the StuG was intended to fulfill the need for mobile artillery that could keep up with the troops. During the German spring 1918 offensives that are now largely forgotten, one of the main drawbacks was that the infantry outran its artillery support, which had difficulty crossing over captured trenches and other rough battle-scarred terrains.</div><div><br /></div><div>The advantage of the StuG was not that it was superior to panzers because it had a fixed gun and other drawbacks. Instead, it was that it was cheap and plentiful and could accomplish 80% of what a comparable panzer could at maybe half the cost. They were with the common infantry, providing help on a daily basis, whereas panzers were usually kept in separate units often under the control of the highest authority (Hitler himself often directed Tiger and Panther employment instead of local commanders). Here we get into the issue of the theory that hindered use, as Germans recalled their WWI experience and viewed panzers inherently as forming the spear of the schwerpunkt - which, admittedly, they were designed for and very good at - whereas artillery pieces like the StuG, though quite similar, were viewed differently and thus could be allowed to be used just any old way. In a way, because they were less notorious and revered, StuGs thus were allowed to be more effective in their natural infantry-support role than the panzers could be in theirs.</div><div><br /></div>Being cheap and cost-effective, the StuGs were Germany's most-produced (over 13,500 units made) tracked armored fighting vehicle. As an example of their efficiency, eventually, they were built simply using the already proven Mark III chassis rather than being designed from the ground up, which would have required time and expense that simply wasn't available. There were multiple variants from Ausf. A through G as the Wehrmacht refined the design into an efficient killing machine, but the final design was pretty much set by 1942.</div><div><br /></div><div>Not having a turret, while otherwise a "drawback," actually had some advantages other than cost. One of these was that the StuG could carry a larger gun than a comparable Panzer III. It was a highly versatile vehicle armed originally with a short 75 mm gun barrel designed for the high explosive anti-personnel ordinance. Later variants used the long barrel 75 mm gun (7.5 cm StuK 40 L/48) that was used in the up-gunned Panzer IV from 1941 on. The assault gun’s low profile made it harder to target than other panzer types in the field, again endearing it to its crews.</div><div><br /></div><div>The German tank experts were not stupid - they appreciated the value of the StuG. When Hitler, rocked by the defeat at Stalingrad, brought renowned panzer expert Heinz Guderian back as Inspector General of Armored Troops, on 1 March 1943, he demanded and acquired control of the panzer arm - but was stunned and saddened to learn that, in his appointment order, the StuG series had been reclassified as artillery and thus was out of his control. His control over events thus was dramatically reduced even though at face value he had received a significant role.</div><div><br /></div><div>Main Armament: long/short 75 mm gun barrel.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWkqCYt3rrYNeqREOo4CaOaZGOMeMYDNqPSB6_DFffco1kdtA6Bpq00EesL_zYmtb2TkdIYkOJg2wwUjzHQm6O1g9NtLTc6srs1HUagOBQjpAnfeJCiBUy6d4c8ZBqXMppPydymppvzYGJywQ3AMC4Vdy7oqRdjsFhnbEapailQ9RyamV2ZGvb3my/s768/Sturmtiger_1944.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sturmtiger in 1944 WWII" border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="768" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWkqCYt3rrYNeqREOo4CaOaZGOMeMYDNqPSB6_DFffco1kdtA6Bpq00EesL_zYmtb2TkdIYkOJg2wwUjzHQm6O1g9NtLTc6srs1HUagOBQjpAnfeJCiBUy6d4c8ZBqXMppPydymppvzYGJywQ3AMC4Vdy7oqRdjsFhnbEapailQ9RyamV2ZGvb3my/w640-h426/Sturmtiger_1944.jpeg" title="Sturmtiger in 1944 WWII" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sturmtiger.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;">Sturmtiger Assault Tiger</h2><div>There weren't very many Sturmtigers built, but those that entered the battle made a big impression. Officially designated the Sturmmörserwagen 606/4 mit 38 cm RW 61, they were based on the late models of the Tiger I, with the same Maybach HL230 P45 V-12, water-cooled gasoline engine, hull, suspension, and many other aspects. It had sloped (at 47° from vertical) frontal armor (note: this was not a tank, but an assault gun) and additional plating that pushed its weight up to 68 tons.</div><div><br /></div><div>The most noticeable aspect of the Sturmtiger was the 380 mm RW 61 rocket launcher L/5.4 main weapon, with an additional 100 mm grenade launcher thrown in for kicks. The barrel is big enough for someone to crawl inside it, something Allied soldiers who came across one after the war liked to do. Various shells were used, with one being 376 kg (829 lb), with a maximum range of up to 6,000 m (20,000 ft). So, the Germans could park one of these four or five miles from the target and pound away.</div><div><br /></div><div>The genesis of the weapon was a need for a mobile gun that could destroy buildings, which was needed in Stalingrad. Only about 18 were completed, with the first delivered in August 1944. At least one immediately went into action to quell the Warsaw Uprising of September 1944, and it was effective in leveling the city. As with other massive German artillery pieces, the Sturmtiger could not carry much ammunition, with space for only 14 of the massive shells. They were so heavy that a loading crane at the back of the vehicle was standard equipment. There is a Sturmtiger on display at the Deutsches Panzermuseum. I talk more about the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2018/11/sturmtiger-fearsome-assault-gun-of.html" target="_blank">Sturmtiger here</a>.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsTUivAQMe4OYKs8xJUmvmtbDqat5AInCl7ubA0mFl-gU5Cynj_HaPPl-f8rN2SJT7eseUR0QfeXz59Vvy4xeud3Cg_zJbAYZ5CXBuntr2hr-3wzpu0gVoU5XXNjfnT22DL_C5MCfGG2OkXnR8GFgkncTocZVQDrcXVttsc-RCr9JFxW4NFK_gYwBy/s800/Hummel_Russia_1944.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Hummel in Russia early 1944" border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="800" height="408" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsTUivAQMe4OYKs8xJUmvmtbDqat5AInCl7ubA0mFl-gU5Cynj_HaPPl-f8rN2SJT7eseUR0QfeXz59Vvy4xeud3Cg_zJbAYZ5CXBuntr2hr-3wzpu0gVoU5XXNjfnT22DL_C5MCfGG2OkXnR8GFgkncTocZVQDrcXVttsc-RCr9JFxW4NFK_gYwBy/w640-h408/Hummel_Russia_1944.jpg" title="Hummel in Russia early 1944" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Hummel in the Soviet Union January/February 1944. Note the open tailgate (Wehmeyer, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/en/search/?yearfrom=1944&yearto=1946&query=Hummel" target="_blank">Picture 101I-278-0898-04</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;">Hummel Self-Propelled Gun</h2><div>The Hummel was sort of an advanced StuG. It was designed later and, like the StuG, used available parts to save time and design expense. In this case, it used a "Frankensteined" combination of the available chassis parts of the Panzer III (driving and steering systems) and Panzer IV (suspension and engine). The main difference from the StuG was that it mounted a much larger gun, the massive 15 cm sFH 18/1 L/30. Ironically, the main drawback of the Hummel was that the gun was too big and thus the vehicle was not able to carry enough of the large shells required for combat. So, a completely separate complementary vehicle without the main gun, the <i>Munitionsträger Hummel </i>(literally, ammunition-carrying Hummel), was built to accompany them.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Hummel was effective, and 700 were built along with 150 of their ammunition-carrying sidekicks. Hitler eventually decided they needed a more serious and warlike name - Hummel means "bumblebee" - and so on 27 February 1944 ordered that they be referred to by the far less catchy official name of <i>Panzerfeldhaubitze 18M auf Geschützwagen III/IV (Sf) Hummel, Sd.Kfz. 165 </i>- minus the "Hummel" part. Speed: 42 km/h (26 mph) - roughly the same as the StuG III.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="q-box qu-mx--n_medium" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-left: -16px; margin-right: -16px;"><div class="CssComponent-sc-1oskqb9-0 QTextImage___StyledCssComponent-sc-1yi3aau-0 cfUEeh"><div class="q-box unzoomed" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in; filter: blur(0px); margin-bottom: 1em;" tabindex="-1"><img class="q-image qu-display--block" src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-98d0212782ff11545f3563e97ee409b5-lq" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></div></div></div><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none; font-weight: bold;">Jagdpanther Sd.Kfz. 173 </span></h2><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The Jagdpanther was probably Germany’s best tank killer of the war. Unfortunately, this vehicle’s high price limited its overall success with only 415 units produced. Like the StuG series, its design made use of another proven platform, being built on the Panther’s chassis. This also meant that it inherited the Panther's issues, being excessively overengineered and having various mechanical issues. The Panther proved more difficult to convert into an assault gun/tank killer compared with the STUG III/Mark III conversion. However, its sleek design made it quite survivable for its crew. Main Armament: 75 mm gun.</span></p><div class="q-box qu-mx--n_medium" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-left: -16px; margin-right: -16px;"><div class="CssComponent-sc-1oskqb9-0 QTextImage___StyledCssComponent-sc-1yi3aau-0 cfUEeh"><h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;">Conclusion</h2><div class="q-box unzoomed" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in; filter: blur(0px); margin-bottom: 1em;" tabindex="-1">As shown above, the Wehrmacht designed a variety of armored vehicles to fill a variety of niches. The panzer series was designed as a breakthrough weapon, whereas the StuG, Hummel, Elefant, and Jagdpanther were more artillery pieces. The Wehrmacht also had some vague plans for <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/09/german-fantasy-tanks.html" target="_blank">gigantic fantasy tanks</a> that would have had guns of the same caliber as on battleships, but these never got beyond the talking stage.</div><div class="q-box unzoomed" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in; filter: blur(0px); margin-bottom: 1em;" tabindex="-1">In addition, there also were some even heavier pieces such as the Karl Gerät 1 "Thor," but here we begin moving too closely to pure artillery pieces with minimal mobility. The most versatile of them all was the StuG II, which could be used in both roles, and that is likely why more of them were built than any other German armored vehicle. </div><div class="q-box unzoomed" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in; filter: blur(0px); margin-bottom: 1em;" tabindex="-1">Overall, it was an impressive group of vehicles. However, the German economy had difficulty producing them all in sufficient quantities. In military parlance, there was too much "dispersion of effort." Germany likely would have been better served by focusing on fewer types of armored vehicles and producing more of the most efficient types.</div><div class="q-box unzoomed" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: -webkit-zoom-in; filter: blur(0px); margin-bottom: 1em;" tabindex="-1"><br /></div><div><br /></div></div></div><div></div></div></div><span class="updated">2022</span>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-35809890290222582572022-02-25T12:27:00.003-07:002022-02-25T12:27:35.782-07:00Did the Germans Try To Take Murmansk?<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>An Unexpected Roadblock Led To Critical Failure In Finland</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiku5Y4S04CCQqOQrr_FrtMNOqwdy46gIX9mWypcPYEYnxpgYxjJMSC0NUZdYZIgUR4PI686x3j9-u6mrT22TgYo1EYEOqTWOZHWpbdrMkrU6iab0kVitL1iYxRqF6fhlmeL9P24hwV7H1CXPansjqs2gcQmoc6_BjulVW0GjkfKxZKyob5GOyoR9O4=s500" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Finnish ski troops at Petsamo, April 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="339" data-original-width="500" height="434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiku5Y4S04CCQqOQrr_FrtMNOqwdy46gIX9mWypcPYEYnxpgYxjJMSC0NUZdYZIgUR4PI686x3j9-u6mrT22TgYo1EYEOqTWOZHWpbdrMkrU6iab0kVitL1iYxRqF6fhlmeL9P24hwV7H1CXPansjqs2gcQmoc6_BjulVW0GjkfKxZKyob5GOyoR9O4=w640-h434" title="Finnish ski troops at Petsamo, April 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finnish ski troops at Petsamo, 14 April 1942 (SA-kuva).</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b itemprop="name">Did the Germans try to take the northern Soviet ports during World War II?</b>
<br /><br />Taking the northern Soviet ports of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk was a priority Axis goal during the opening stages of Operation Barbarossa. In fact, the failure to take them was the first sign that Operation Barbarossa might not be quite as easy as Hitler and his generals thought.</p><p>Finland was never technically an ally of the Reich, despite all appearances. While it declared war on 25 June 1941, Finland more appropriately is classified as a co-belligerent. To the Soviets, of course, this was a distinction without a difference. German land and air forces operated from Finnish territory and the Finnish armed forces coordinated in grand strategy versus the USSR. To the Allies, it looked like the Germans and Finns were working hand-in-hand (and this almost caused the US to go to war with Finland, though it never did).</p><p>However, the distinction between “ally” and “co-belligerent” actually made a huge difference in operations. Marshal Carl Mannerheim, the leader of the Finnish military and de facto head of the entire war effort, increasingly showed an independent streak that irked the German high command. This had a major impact on the war effort in the Arctic theater.</p><p>It is common knowledge that the Wehrmacht’s main front at the beginning of Barbarossa had three main prongs: Army Groups North, Center, and South. Completely overlooked by many people was the separate effort further north in Finland. In some ways, though, this theater became the most important of all as the war dragged due to its economic impact.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiRFhbnPix3cTVJycHcAUdK9FHx-3TYs3yMVIzzdwxmH1teKZH_BaD5mWHRH-DVLCkupk8ZlxINl5MWQiJL_tHIymyYL-JjN_CFBqPhIYHzEROL1scD20aM62ANa9g6dmJPqvDeshTPvU8-N47-w-pc-6zm57Q8dOs-QiSIM4CDq3MYEeJIQneSrG9r=s500" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="General Eduard Dietl in Finland, July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="500" height="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiRFhbnPix3cTVJycHcAUdK9FHx-3TYs3yMVIzzdwxmH1teKZH_BaD5mWHRH-DVLCkupk8ZlxINl5MWQiJL_tHIymyYL-JjN_CFBqPhIYHzEROL1scD20aM62ANa9g6dmJPqvDeshTPvU8-N47-w-pc-6zm57Q8dOs-QiSIM4CDq3MYEeJIQneSrG9r=w640-h460" title="General Eduard Dietl in Finland, July 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">General Eduard Dietl, one of Hitler's favorites due to his success at Narvik in 1940, is seen during Operation Platinum Fox in July 1941 (Witt, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?channelid=dcx-channel-channel_barch_bilder&query=Dietl&day=&month=&yearfrom=1941&yearto=&imageid=&title=&farbe=&kostenfrei=&ausrichtung=&view=gallery&submit=" target="_blank">Picture 183-B16420</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>This was because the Soviet Arctic ports were the gateway for Lend-Lease supplies to flow into the Soviet Union. The flow of goods along the railway from Murmansk to the south needed to be eliminated to cut off these vital supplies. This could most effectively be accomplished by taking the ports themselves, which were tantalizingly close to the Finnish border (at least on the maps Hitler relied on, which did not show how rough the intervening ground was).</p><p>The Germans knew this potential issue before the war began and wanted to “nip it in the bud” in the opening days of the offensive. So, they sent two divisions, the 2nd and 3rd Mountain Divisions, to Kirkenes on the Finnish side of the border. Called Mountain Corps Norway, these two divisions were to first secure the nickel mines near Petsamo and then take Murmansk. This was a huge buildup for such a remote location and their presence took the Soviets completely by surprise. The overall operation toward Murmansk was Operation Silver Fox.</p><p>The first part of the operation went off flawlessly. The troops took the Kolosjoki nickel mines, badly needed by German industry, without a hitch. This was Operation Reindeer (Unternehmen Rentier). Led by perhaps Hitler’s favorite general, Eduard Dietl, the mines were secured within a week and remained in German hands until late 1944.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTmC6UzDuZE3VdQgrfoFPEjD5RvYMqY6tHg9_NVGZ9oMKT8465Pi60HQuZZCGuOeNnOS9dkzKHUEqPWIT8yfb8Da3BZvx76uxRuI0mDSTXEW3HSZXh9-EzP3T4SJh-ITIo4mVchi8mOOL819iNRBIYYwjvOU3RrOwibLa3xEtxc_OqKKrgaadREiEL=s800" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German soldiers in Lappland in 1943 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTmC6UzDuZE3VdQgrfoFPEjD5RvYMqY6tHg9_NVGZ9oMKT8465Pi60HQuZZCGuOeNnOS9dkzKHUEqPWIT8yfb8Da3BZvx76uxRuI0mDSTXEW3HSZXh9-EzP3T4SJh-ITIo4mVchi8mOOL819iNRBIYYwjvOU3RrOwibLa3xEtxc_OqKKrgaadREiEL=w640-h426" title="German soldiers in Lappland in 1943 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German soldiers in the far north, 1943 (Theobald, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?query=Bild+101I-103-0943-13" target="_blank">Picture 101I-103-0943-13</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Dietl then began the second, more critical phase of Silver Fox, codenamed Platinum Fox, about a week after the start of Barbarossa. Ferdinand Schörner, a no-nonsense general (later field marshal) known as "the butcher" who famously said “The Arctic does not exist!” when his troops complained about the cold, also made his name in the theater.</p><p>However, the Soviets now were alerted to the situation and realized the danger of losing the railway. Even as his fronts further south collapsed, Stalin directed just enough troops up the railway to slow down and eventually stop the Germans well short of Murmansk. The Wehrmacht, it turned out, had issues with the Arctic weather and the rugged terrain, whereas the Soviets had learned bitter lessons from the Winter War. These battles, incidentally, were the furthest north in the entire conflict.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhN20IMKvR7K8JOFg1qRnT183tOj9vpv1vzEBQOk1-q78_-6OSOMiiACmBDflqk5P6l4fo8R_K_J2rqgoaIIJmYRt7Wvc8xSldzXHq08_4M5X_x1JXY01iysGwCGff9DmxqL_0HUgye47SZZ7Cf2KdxB3neH7zVpKwGgsDaYkRL_sbfWTESiKxFLedz=s500" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German coastal artillery at Petsamo during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="347" data-original-width="500" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhN20IMKvR7K8JOFg1qRnT183tOj9vpv1vzEBQOk1-q78_-6OSOMiiACmBDflqk5P6l4fo8R_K_J2rqgoaIIJmYRt7Wvc8xSldzXHq08_4M5X_x1JXY01iysGwCGff9DmxqL_0HUgye47SZZ7Cf2KdxB3neH7zVpKwGgsDaYkRL_sbfWTESiKxFLedz=w640-h444" title="German coastal artillery at Petsamo during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gun emplacement at Petsamo, Finland, 1942-43 (Grub, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?channelid=dcx-channel-channel_barch_bilder&query=Petsamo&day=&month=&yearfrom=1941&yearto=&imageid=&title=&farbe=&kostenfrei=&ausrichtung=&view=gallery&submit=" target="_blank">Picture 101I-103-0908-06A</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Stymied in their frontal assault, the Axis then shifted the effort a little further south to cut off the railway. The Arctic ports, after all, would lose most of their value without the railway to ship supplies brought in by ship to the main front. This attack, directed through Salla and Kestenga toward the railway at Loukhi and Kem, required close cooperation between the Finnish and German militaries and came quite close to success.</p><p>However, Mannerheim already was getting concerned about the Wehrmacht’s slowing pace of advance on the main front and rising Finnish casualties. The Germans tried to “order” him to bolster his attack toward the railway, but he flat-out refused. They also tried to have him attack Leningrad from the north, but on 31 August 1941 Mannerheim refused. </p><p>This was a little-noticed but critical turning point in the entire war. From then on, Mannerheim only made a pretense of attacking and ordered his troops to stop at very clearly defined lines, usually at the original (pre-Winter War) border (or wherever the Finns thought the borders should have been all along). So, Mannerheim repeatedly had his troops stop well north of Leningrad, for instance, and at the Svir River despite the fact that they could have advanced further (especially on the Svir). </p><p>At Leningrad, the Finns did some shelling of the outskirts of the city (which the Russians make a big deal about but accomplished little) and some half-hearted “show” attacks that had no hope of breaking the Soviet defenses. It was all just to placate the Germans without actually putting more Finnish lives at risk than was absolutely necessary.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjZe01gXPPhNJK2Ddvdi-Fi4tXISpb7A96qGoqgAEsRHD5WI-R63HijxbNjY1PodrifMIREjrTJFU_cuYv_3gsgeMFuVpHEcH_XFs5qzyWkvA4N166iGHsdmP-_ZopgnP2feH1wO6e-iAyJPq-MMNpqoMsZ1Zt8oczGL2MJvCmfhcmeUxoE3U1AkO0S=s736" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Finnish troops near Kestenga, 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="736" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjZe01gXPPhNJK2Ddvdi-Fi4tXISpb7A96qGoqgAEsRHD5WI-R63HijxbNjY1PodrifMIREjrTJFU_cuYv_3gsgeMFuVpHEcH_XFs5qzyWkvA4N166iGHsdmP-_ZopgnP2feH1wO6e-iAyJPq-MMNpqoMsZ1Zt8oczGL2MJvCmfhcmeUxoE3U1AkO0S=w640-h448" title="Finnish troops near Kestenga, 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finnish troops near Kestenga on the road to the Murmansk railway at Loukhi during Operation Platinum Fox, 17 November 1941 (<a href="http://sa-kuva.fi/" target="_blank">SA-kuva</a>).<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The Germans had limited resources in the remote Finnish areas that were accessible only along snowy trails and it was very difficult to bring more forces and supplies in. Without an extreme Finnish effort, the attacks toward the ports, the railway, and Leningrad bogged down. This failure began a long and convoluted series of German requests that Mannerheim make strong attacks to the east, with Mannerheim repeatedly refusing (in a very courteous way).</p><p>Mannerheim’s favorite excuse was to say he would be happy to attack east - once Leningrad had fallen. Since Hitler refused to allocate sufficient forces to take the city, and Mannerheim refused to attack it himself, he had a perpetual “out” in terms of attacking elsewhere. The German forces in Finland were completely dependent on Finnish supply services, so they had no way to compel Mannerheim to do more, and he was happy just to hold what he had obtained in the opening weeks of Barbarossa.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgf-Xjb_NvwIGAdd4sKMkWDEU8UE4SQKreMCMOFCIJcJEip5bCe05fn5BJJmkbwtv5hjflAWeR5koCXiA7dnkJSm6lh3divCPUawh0mjAFyGMZwAtTQeT73oWx0BNIi_HukEvypdzazTSywwTqcrJnxC3dV2BqoyDciscxkSTpagM25RnXRaFoObTcW=s800" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="General Ferdinand Schorner, April 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="544" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgf-Xjb_NvwIGAdd4sKMkWDEU8UE4SQKreMCMOFCIJcJEip5bCe05fn5BJJmkbwtv5hjflAWeR5koCXiA7dnkJSm6lh3divCPUawh0mjAFyGMZwAtTQeT73oWx0BNIi_HukEvypdzazTSywwTqcrJnxC3dV2BqoyDciscxkSTpagM25RnXRaFoObTcW=w436-h640" title="General Ferdinand Schorner, April 1941 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="436" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ferdinand Schörner, April 1941 (Scheerer, Theodore, Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?channelid=dcx-channel-channel_barch_bilder&query=Sch%C3%B6rner&day=&month=&yearfrom=1941&yearto=&imageid=&title=&farbe=&kostenfrei=&ausrichtung=&view=gallery&submit=" target="_blank">Picture 183-L29176</a>).<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The final strategy was to bomb the ports, and at this they had some success. However, the Luftwaffe effort in the far north was dispersed between attacks on the ports and on the convoys themselves, and these attacks (primarily by Stukas) had no strategic impact. The Germans even resorted to trying to bomb hillsides to cause landslides because geologists had told them the ground was unstable, which must have confused the Soviets as to why they were dropping bombs in the forests.</p><p>So, yes, the Axis did attempt to take the ports and bomb them. It also attempted to cut them off and make them useless. All these efforts failed, and the front turned into garrison warfare with no real effect on the outcome of the conflict.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgvutkBanEJB4KV5h2J-S385AYJnAUup-kCYJ9nFDC8AC0vE1hcbXuY1j9ygr0Yj7iW6CvsadRMYRdNNkj0UN5hAyjd_qAjDoBk4MhYImCTXZTAFTZoukKduvEMimuAiIn1SGmJKUZ-vg1vZKxvkV10hWr-UyoMrmDZAxpcm6_C4LzGfnT0AIqVGnDw=s500" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Finnish border patrol at Petsamo, July 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com." border="0" data-original-height="336" data-original-width="500" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgvutkBanEJB4KV5h2J-S385AYJnAUup-kCYJ9nFDC8AC0vE1hcbXuY1j9ygr0Yj7iW6CvsadRMYRdNNkj0UN5hAyjd_qAjDoBk4MhYImCTXZTAFTZoukKduvEMimuAiIn1SGmJKUZ-vg1vZKxvkV10hWr-UyoMrmDZAxpcm6_C4LzGfnT0AIqVGnDw=w640-h430" title="Finnish border patrol at Petsamo, July 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com." width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finnish border patrol trooper at Petsamo, July 1942 (SA-kuva).</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><span class="updated">2022</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Murmansk, Murmansk Oblast, Russia68.973311299999992 33.085584840.663077463821146 -2.0706652000000005 90 68.241834799999992tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-39499978903387267612021-12-01T20:39:00.005-07:002021-12-02T05:50:29.376-07:00Have Aircraft Carriers Sunk Ships Since World War II?<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Post-War Sinkings at Sea</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sr__NklzKWk/Yag35CZAemI/AAAAAAACnAY/SZXy788PSKYcP5pN_F11_-0FymlYK1nRgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/A-6E-INTRUDER_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Grumman A-6E Intruder worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="427" data-original-width="640" height="428" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sr__NklzKWk/Yag35CZAemI/AAAAAAACnAY/SZXy788PSKYcP5pN_F11_-0FymlYK1nRgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h428/A-6E-INTRUDER_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Grumman A-6E Intruder worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Grumman A-6E Intruder was accepted for service in 1963 and was in service with the United States Navy and Marine Corps between 1963 and 1997. They were involved in several sinkings of enemy vessels during that period. This photo was taken on 23 November 1981 (National Archives <a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/6364507" target="_blank">6364507</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Aircraft launched from ships that sank other vessels was fairly common during World War II, especially in the Pacific Theater of Operation. However, since then it hasn’t happened that often. There are always details about the incidents that deviate them from classic airstrikes such as at the Battle of Midway. However, when the situation called for it, naval aviation was able to deliver results several times during the post-war era.</p><p><b itemprop="name">So, here we look at incidents since World War II when carrier-launched aircraft sank ships.</b></p><p>The major powers that deploy aircraft carriers haven’t really engaged in heated conflicts with any maritime powers since World War II. In my view, that alone sets WWII apart from all later conflicts. Seapower is the hallmark of a Great Power, and military conflicts at sea between Great Powers have been extremely limited since WWII.</p><p>However, on occasion, aircraft carriers have sunk enemy shipping. Usually, these incidents are one-offs and relatively minor, involving gunboats or with inconclusive results.</p><p>I’ll just list a few examples to give a gist of the kinds of actions that aircraft carriers or vessels carrying aircraft (times have changed, not only aircraft carriers carry aircraft these days) have taken against enemy shipping since World War II. There are probably more, but any other such incidents would be along these same lines.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HnOfSm9KD-M/Yag0rUwVsoI/AAAAAAACnAI/eYxtkcc5P4wevFrMZbQb5G7sYukh8W0aQCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/Westland_Wasp_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Royal Navy Westland Wasp worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="640" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HnOfSm9KD-M/Yag0rUwVsoI/AAAAAAACnAI/eYxtkcc5P4wevFrMZbQb5G7sYukh8W0aQCNcBGAsYHQ/w640-h424/Westland_Wasp_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Royal Navy Westland Wasp worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Royal Navy Westland Wasp (<a href="https://www.airliners.net/photo/Westland-Wasp-HAS1/1120975/L" target="_blank">Mike Freer</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>During the Falklands War in 1983, aircraft launched from Royal Navy vessels badly damaged the Argentinian submarine ARA Santa Fe. The submarine was hit by missiles and depth charges but barely made it back to port, where it was abandoned and eventually sank. The asterisk to this incident is that none of the British vessels were actually aircraft carriers, but naval aircraft such as Westland Wasp and Westland Lynx helicopters launched from naval vessels did the damage.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xmGChEL7RVY/YagvPLBd2NI/AAAAAAACnAA/7HqSS4z0SsMRvz9Vm4ZcasdngGJgDLW8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s646/USS_Ticonderoga_%2528CV-14%2529_burning_in_Jan_1945_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Ticonderoga burning in January 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="646" height="372" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xmGChEL7RVY/YagvPLBd2NI/AAAAAAACnAA/7HqSS4z0SsMRvz9Vm4ZcasdngGJgDLW8ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h372/USS_Ticonderoga_%2528CV-14%2529_burning_in_Jan_1945_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="USS Ticonderoga burning in January 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Ticonderoga, shown here burning in January 1945, sank ships both during and after World War II. As shown above, she survived kamikaze attacks during WWII. It was one of several WWII carriers to participate in the Vietnam War (US Navy)</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Aircraft carriers have been involved in collisions that resulted in ships sinking. USS Wasp (CV-17) collided with destroyer USS Hobson on 26 April 1952, sinking Hobson and causing 176 deaths. On 10 February 1964, Australian light aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne (launched during World War II) rammed and sank the RAN destroyer HMAS Voyager, which had cut across its path. Voyager sank with 82 deaths. Melbourne also collided with US Navy destroyer Frank E. Evans on 3 June 1969. While Evans did not sink, 74 sailors died. In each instance, the aircraft carrier sustained damage to its bows but returned to port for successful repairs.</p><p>In the early days of the Vietnam War in 1964, USS Ticonderoga (CV-14) had several incidents with North Vietnamese shipping. The (North) Vietnam People's Navy attacked some US destroyers, so the Ticonderago launched rocket-armed F8E Crusaders that sank a handful of North Vietnamese gunboats. Ticonderoga and Constellation then launched airstrikes against the NV bases and destroyed/sank 25 gunboats. During the winter of 1965–66, Ticonderoga sank more enemy shipping during a general interdiction campaign.</p><p>In May 1972, the Midway, Coral Sea, Kitty Hawk, and Constellation laid naval mines off North Vietnamese ports such as Haiphong. Exactly how many ships sank from the mines is unclear, but it’s hard to believe there weren’t any victims. The ships also participated in Operations Linebacker and Linebacker II later that year which undoubtedly sank some ships in port.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G7-nRtcB64w/Yag55KynLPI/AAAAAAACnAg/sGmbxLWblQEkrm001EVG5TOWDigr1aXFACNcBGAsYHQ/s640/French-built_patrol_boat_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="French-built patrol boat worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="409" data-original-width="640" height="410" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G7-nRtcB64w/Yag55KynLPI/AAAAAAACnAg/sGmbxLWblQEkrm001EVG5TOWDigr1aXFACNcBGAsYHQ/w640-h410/French-built_patrol_boat_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="French-built patrol boat worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A French-built a La Combattante IIa-class FACM Guided-Missile Patrol Craft (PTG) (Source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Jebulon" target="_blank">Jebulon</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>In Operation Attain Document in March 1986, U.S. Navy aircraft and ships of the Sixth Fleet entered the Gulf of Sidra (off Libya) and met with Libyan attacks. Aircraft carriers USS America, Coral Sea, and Saratoga were involved. Essentially, it was a dispute over territorial waters and freedom of the seas. Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi then sent in attacks to prevent the U.S. ships from entering the Gulf. Following unsuccessful Libyan missile strikes and air attacks, Grumman A-6E Intruders from VA-34 (USS America) and VA-85 (Saratoga) sank a Libyan French-built La Combattante IIa-class patrol boat using Harpoon missiles and cluster bombs. A-6Es from VA-55 of Coral Sea then badly damaged a Libyan corvette and patrol boat. Saratoga A6-Es of VA-85 later sank a Libyan corvette, ending the battles.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qx5uw4NjYR4/Yag2Nw7B-_I/AAAAAAACnAQ/Eh4oJZ0kGJwG6NiYZ_Aaufz12jO87VhoQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/A-6E-INTRUDER_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Grumman A-6E Intruder worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="356" data-original-width="640" height="356" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qx5uw4NjYR4/Yag2Nw7B-_I/AAAAAAACnAQ/Eh4oJZ0kGJwG6NiYZ_Aaufz12jO87VhoQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h356/A-6E-INTRUDER_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Grumman A-6E Intruder worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Grumman A-6E Intruder (<a href="https://usslexington.com/portfolio/a-6e-intruder/" target="_blank">USS Lexington</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>During Operation Praying Mantis in April 1988, fighting between U.S. and Iranian forces began after a US ship, the guided-missile frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts, struck an Iranian mine in the Persian Gulf. As part of retaliatory actions around an Iranian oil platform, A-6Es from VA-95 flying from USS Enterprise sank two Iranian speedboats. Later, two A-6Es responded to a missile attack from the Iranian frigate IRIS Sahand. They sank it using Harpoon missiles. Other A-6Es later responded to attacks from another Iranian frigate, IRIS Sabalan, by dropping bombs on it. They disabled the Iranian ship and forced it to be towed to port. After some more unsuccessful Iranian missile firings, the battle ended. This was the largest carrier action since WWII.</p><p>During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, USS Ranger (CV-61) conducted a general suppression campaign against Iraq. In addition to hitting many land targets, the ship’s Grumman A-6E Intruders sank enemy shipping in port.</p><p>While these operations may not seem particularly dramatic, they got the job done and sent some steel to the bottom.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VCUTFiCPaHA/Yag7r-WWP1I/AAAAAAACnAo/ZPPJT_ExSwIE_pTp--OOTsiKLoPOGJ58QCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/USS_Ranger_CV-61_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Ranger CV-61 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="640" height="512" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VCUTFiCPaHA/Yag7r-WWP1I/AAAAAAACnAo/ZPPJT_ExSwIE_pTp--OOTsiKLoPOGJ58QCNcBGAsYHQ/w640-h512/USS_Ranger_CV-61_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" title="USS Ranger CV-61 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Ranger CV-61.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />
<span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-2748120498264900022021-11-25T03:03:00.011-07:002021-11-30T06:58:25.584-07:00Why Weren't There Survivors of HMAS Sydney?<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>A Silent Tragedy</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5JSUTdzscOw/YZ9RaGUGopI/AAAAAAACm8o/EsrQxccRg14XQYsoj3dHB4ZdtUEE8Q_NgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Sydney_sinking_crew_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sailors of HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="482" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5JSUTdzscOw/YZ9RaGUGopI/AAAAAAACm8o/EsrQxccRg14XQYsoj3dHB4ZdtUEE8Q_NgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h482/Sydney_sinking_crew_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Sailors of HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sydney crewmen in Alexandria, Egypt, sometime in 1940. Can't wait to get back to Down Under far from the war where it is safe! Source: <a href="https://www.navy.gov.au/hmas-sydney-ii" target="_blank">Royal Australian Navy Sydney Memorial</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<b itemprop="name"><br /></b></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><b itemprop="name">Why didn't anyone survive the sinking of HMAS Sydney?</b><br /><br />
The <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2019/02/november-19-1941-sydney-vs-kormoran-duel.html" target="_blank">sinking of HMAS Sydney on or about 19 November 1941</a> was one of the great tragedies of World War II that has received the least attention. I sometimes see people claim that World War II wasn’t actually a “world” war because “nothing happened in the Indian Ocean.” Well, in fact, quite a bit of combat happened in the Indian Ocean, with the biggest clash of all being between Sydney and German raider Kormoran.<p>One of the reasons the action has received so little attention outside of Australia is that nobody from Sydney survived to tell the tale and the German survivors weren’t all that keen to talk about it and were in POW camps for five years. Not only did nobody survive Sydney, for the longest time it was believed that not even a single body was recovered. Sydney just disappeared.</p><p>That wasn’t terribly unusual during World War II. Of course, it happened quite often with submarines sunk by depth charges, where the men had no chance to escape. Probably the most famous example was <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2017/03/march-7-1941-prien-goes-under.html" target="_blank">U-47, which disappeared in March 1941</a> with the famous Günther Prien aboard. That was just one example of dozens and dozens of submarines that disappeared with all hands.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GS3ZnphD_eA/YZ9XHtRpK6I/AAAAAAACm9Q/1thnOJmzMhkllHZsQcY4efWe6cRc_BIyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMAS_Sydney_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="465" data-original-width="640" height="466" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GS3ZnphD_eA/YZ9XHtRpK6I/AAAAAAACm9Q/1thnOJmzMhkllHZsQcY4efWe6cRc_BIyQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h466/HMAS_Sydney_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HMAS Sydney 1940 in the Mediterranean. Source: Australian War Memorial <a href="https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/301473" target="_blank">301473</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Submarines may seem like a special case. After all, they’re often caught underwater to begin with. However, it also happened with many, many surface ships, including both naval and commercial ships.</p><p>Ships sunk with few survivors included USS Juneau, with only ten survivors out of 697 crewmen, and German heavy battlecruiser Scharnhorst, with 36 survivors out of 1986 crewmen. Destroyer USS Jarvis had no survivors out of 233 crewmen early in the Guadalcanal campaign.</p><p>There were literally hundreds of naval vessels sunk during World War II with no survivors. Hundreds of ships. That's right, hundreds of ships with no survivors.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o45CTCCwqwI/YZ9TLZxvVSI/AAAAAAACm8w/ZBTuuGW2KN87xgV4FYdpaP5KKPvG3w3ZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Sydney_sinking_crew_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sailors of HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="640" height="460" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o45CTCCwqwI/YZ9TLZxvVSI/AAAAAAACm8w/ZBTuuGW2KN87xgV4FYdpaP5KKPvG3w3ZQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h460/Sydney_sinking_crew_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Sailors of HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crewmen of HMAS Sydney at Alexandria, Egypt, 1940. Source: Royal Australian Navy Sydney Memorial. </td></tr></tbody></table><p>So, HMAS Sydney had a lot of company in having none of its 645 men survive. It’s all conjecture, but there are several likely causes for the lack of survivors.</p><p>Survival at sea requires you to jump over numerous obstacles. Each one, individually, may not seem like much when we’re reading about it 80 years later, but each obstacle whittles down the number of people who can then try to hurdle the next one. It’s a pretty grim cut-down process.</p><p>First, the sinking happened around midnight. Tough to get your bearings in the dark, with no lights in an endless sea. Not easy to spot anything to grab onto.</p><p>And, there wouldn’t have been much to grab onto anyway. We’re all familiar with how warships look. What’s not obvious until you think about it is that there isn’t a lot of floatable material on deck. Cruise ships are lined with lifeboats on the “boat deck” - cruisers don’t have boat decks. There will be a launch or two, some rafts, and that’s it.</p><p>It’s not like everybody would have been standing around on deck waiting for the right time to jump into the water. They would have been below, fighting fires, manning pumps, trying to get the engines to work.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qpsTOhqHXmE/YZ9ZtRoLAxI/AAAAAAACm9g/L97q9ZgdGh4BQPShCYXUn4eOJt_wcT1WwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Sydney_sinking_crew_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sailors of HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="482" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qpsTOhqHXmE/YZ9ZtRoLAxI/AAAAAAACm9g/L97q9ZgdGh4BQPShCYXUn4eOJt_wcT1WwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h482/Sydney_sinking_crew_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Sailors of HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sailors of HMAS Sydney while serving in the Mediterranean, 1940. Source: Royal Australian Navy Sydney Memorial. </td></tr></tbody></table><p>When discovered in 2008, Sydney was found to have sunk after its bow snapped off. Since the bow was found near the rest of the vessel, that probably precipitated the final plunge (as with RMS Titanic). The ship then sank vertically, which would have been quite fast. It’s not easy to climb ladders and stairs when they’re horizontal. People normally topside in the superstructure was killed during the battle, so the survivors of the battle are mostly below the waterline - not a good place to be in a sinking ship.</p><p>And that ship, your home perhaps for years by now, the place you knew like the back of your hand and could "walk through blindfolded," is now suddenly alien territory. It is trying to kill you, with nothing where you expect it to be. Oh, wait, that corridor isn't there anymore because a shell destroyed it, better go to Plan B! Maybe that corridor you used to walk down in ten seconds is now vertical - hard to climb up steel plating. You have to think through every move - where you used to turn left, which way do you go now to get to the surface, and which exit (that you normally don't use very often) is still going to be above water? - and thinking things over with the sea surging in isn't a good plan.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6XicNyFSJ6I/YZ9YH4Uup9I/AAAAAAACm9Y/tCDJVa7A7F4OUkbGINSb8WMe57xbZEZ6wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMAS_Sydney_sailor_found_at_Christmas_Island_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Able Seaman Thomas Clark of HMAS Sydney, who made it to a carley raft but then found the real struggle had only just begun worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="640" height="544" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6XicNyFSJ6I/YZ9YH4Uup9I/AAAAAAACm9Y/tCDJVa7A7F4OUkbGINSb8WMe57xbZEZ6wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h544/HMAS_Sydney_sailor_found_at_Christmas_Island_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Able Seaman Thomas Clark of HMAS Sydney, who made it to a carley raft but then found the real struggle had only just begun worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Able Seaman Thomas Welsby Clark hurdled all the obstacles and made it to carley raft. Having survived a brutal Darwinian cut-down process, this enabled him to wait out endless days and nights with no food or water, waiting for help that never came. Source: Royal Australian Navy via <a href="https://quadrant.org.au/opinion/in-memoriam/2021/11/the-dying-moments-of-hmas-sydney/" target="_blank">Quadrant Online</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There aren't a lot of openings to the outside in a cruiser to crawl through. There is a set number of exits with no skylights or anything like that where you might get out to safety. Heavy watertight doors will be closed and they open at funny angles that may be against gravity. Water is coming in at random places from shell and torpedo damage. And the lights have failed and there’s total darkness and things have fallen in your way that you have to crawl over. And you’re exhausted from manning the pumps for hours. "Don't tell me it's impossible, lads, you either get 'er done or we all die." And a dozen other sailors, your mates, are in the same corridor blocking your way as the precious seconds tick by. Some of them are dead or dying, maybe calling out for help - do you stop to aid them?</p><p>And getting out of the dying ship is only the beginning. So, a small number of lucky sailors would have found their way topside. Avoid getting pulled under from the suction! They would have been struggling in the water in pitch darkness. The sea undoubtedly was covered in oil, perhaps some of it on fire, which makes swimming difficult. You hear voices of dying men crying out for help or just, well, crying out because they know what's coming next.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G_SgXaw5hms/YZ9WGAKTWCI/AAAAAAACm9I/vik49ntlfKc9bH-H74Lw8Us1KKdZvcAKwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Carley_float_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Carley rafts during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="640" height="490" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G_SgXaw5hms/YZ9WGAKTWCI/AAAAAAACm9I/vik49ntlfKc9bH-H74Lw8Us1KKdZvcAKwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h490/Carley_float_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Carley rafts during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carley floats were stored in out-of-the-way places and designed to float free in the event of a really bad day. Source: <a href="https://legionmagazine.com/en/2016/07/the-carley-float/" target="_blank">Legion Magazine</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Okay, well, you can handle all that, right? You're out, you watch that dark shadow of the ship slide under a few meters from you, it's nice, warm water because it's summertime Down Under. All's good, you're the lucky one, the clever one, the overachiever who got out! Wasn't so hard! They should have taught those other blokes who didn't get out what's what! At that point, you just tread water and wait for daylight. Look for one of those rafts that you never noticed during your daily routine, what were they called again - oh, sure, carley rafts. With the sun will come the rescuers because that’s what always happens in the movies, right?</p><p>Well, the crew of Sydney didn’t get off any distress messages because the Kormoran’s very first salvo destroyed the bridge, killing the bridge crew and likely terminating the radio apparatus. So, nobody even knew that the Sydney had been sunk for five days. A search wasn’t even begun until 24 November and lasted only through 29 November. The men in the water (and there were likely some from Kormoran, too, though miles away from the Sydney men) were probably all dead before the first ship left a harbor or the first plane took off to look for them.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5BnFMtwTny4/YZ9QDVxJWvI/AAAAAAACm8g/4piolY-2tMY0Zmnnpv_HbgPYwZgw-fMKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s966/Sydney_sinking_locationt_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Map of Sydney location and where the only body was found worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="966" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5BnFMtwTny4/YZ9QDVxJWvI/AAAAAAACm8g/4piolY-2tMY0Zmnnpv_HbgPYwZgw-fMKQCLcBGAsYHQ/w424-h640/Sydney_sinking_locationt_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Map of Sydney location and where the only body was found worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="424" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">May of Sydney sinking and where the carley float was found about three months later.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The men in the water wouldn’t see any rescuers at dawn or at any other time because it’s a big ocean and things get lost there very easily. I’m sure you’ve heard about that Malaysian plane, MH 370, that disappeared in 2014. When someone asked me then how long it would take to find it, I said “never.” I compared it to flying a helicopter over the United States looking for a plane that had crashed but you had only the vaguest notion of in which state it might have happened. “Look in the Midwest first.” Yeah, good luck with that. Incidentally, <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/06/1942-plane-crash-site-found-in-vancouver.html" target="_blank">there are many WWII plane crashes that have never been found</a>, too.</p><p>But anyway, the men would have been struggling in the water not just until morning, but for one endless day after another. As far as they were concerned, they would be struggling in the water for eternity, getting thirstier, hungrier, weaker, and more sunburned until they finally just accepted it or drank some water ("it can't be as bad as they say") or drowned in the waves.</p><p>Some, injured during the battle, would have succumbed quickly. Sailors fighting fires in the bowels of the ship or in the engine room wouldn’t have been wearing much (it would have been hot as Hades below decks), hence had little protection from the cold at night and the burning sun during the day Water sucks the heat out of you much faster than air. Others would have lasted a day, some two days, maybe a few for longer. But each day would have been another obstacle, and notice what I said above about obstacles. No food, no potable water, no shade from the sun beating down on you… it’s not a pretty picture even if you do somehow make it to a raft.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kBTLu2B7Wo0/YZ9VRzCmxXI/AAAAAAACm9A/yDeT3KR_BuQBeeBwscbQt0n-Tu18NdBHACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/USS_Indianapolis_wreckage_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Wreckage of USS Indianapolis worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kBTLu2B7Wo0/YZ9VRzCmxXI/AAAAAAACm9A/yDeT3KR_BuQBeeBwscbQt0n-Tu18NdBHACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/USS_Indianapolis_wreckage_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Wreckage of USS Indianapolis worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wreckage of USS Indianapolis from a National Geographic documentary. Source: <a href="https://tbivision.com/2019/05/17/nat-geo-picks-up-uss-indianapolis-doc-from-drive/" target="_blank">Television Business International</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/07/last-voyage-of-uss-indianapolis.html" target="_blank">The experience of the USS Indianapolis in 1945</a> will give you chills if you read about it. There were many, many men struggling to survive in the water after it was torpedoed just after delivering an atomic bomb for special air mail delivery to Japan. They grouped together, holding onto each other to survive until rescuers came.</p><p>And then the sharks came.</p><p>So, the number of survivors of the Sydney was dropping constantly for a variety of factors. There’s one more fact that will make the point. The wreck was discovered about 222 km west of Australia. Okay, so maybe some men would have somehow swum to shore or drifted there, right? You know how wreckage always winds up ashore, some of them should have made it. Well, if they were champion endurance swimmers with perfect preparation, perhaps. But there’s one last fact you need to know before you reach that conclusion: </p><p></p><blockquote>the currents in that part of the Indian Ocean sweep in a counterclockwise circular pattern away from Australia and toward Africa. They head north, then west. Not toward land. Even if you made landfall before making the big left turn toward Africa, it would take months - months - to see land in the distance. And, it's not easy to see land far away when you're bobbing in the water.</blockquote><p></p><p>That’s why bits of the wreckage of MH 370, which could have crashed within a few miles from the Sydney’s wreck for all we know, are still being found in South Africa and on islands off the African coast. Thousands of nautical miles away. And it took months, even years, to get there.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kgJS63aqFBY/YZ9EjB1eGdI/AAAAAAACm8M/fL0usLjUsvstHCJ8NEY78zacFYwpSTC1ACLcBGAsYHQ/s800/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1985-074-27%252C_Hilfskreuzer_Kormoran.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German raider HSK Kormoran worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="521" data-original-width="800" height="416" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kgJS63aqFBY/YZ9EjB1eGdI/AAAAAAACm8M/fL0usLjUsvstHCJ8NEY78zacFYwpSTC1ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h416/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1985-074-27%252C_Hilfskreuzer_Kormoran.jpg" title="German raider HSK Kormoran worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German raider Kormoran, which sank around the same time as HMAS Sydney after their battle (Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?query=Bild+146-1985-074-27" target="_blank">Image 146-1985-074-27</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p>A fair question is how there were 318 survivors of Kormoran’s 399 -man crew but none from Sydney. Well, it was the luck of the draw. The crewmen on the German raider realized early on that their ship - never built to survive gun battles and thus not expected to take punishment from a cruiser and survive - was going to sink. So, they abandoned the ship early on in good order. That apparently wasn’t the case with the crew of Sydney. And things would have been easier for the Germans after the sinking, too. A converted merchantman would have had plenty of stuff lying around that would float and give men something to grab onto to keep themselves from drowning. The Kormoran even had lifeboats, helpful as a part of the disguise of being an Allied merchantman.</p><p>Even then, with the Germans being questioned, it wasn't clear what happened. The German survivors didn't see the Sydney sink. They all had different stories based on the bits of information they did know. Among other things, they didn't know the precise position of the battle. And then, the Germans didn't know how long it took Sydney to sink or which direction it went in (south by southeast, it turned out). The currents by then already had five days to work their magic and take the survivors far away from that location in some random direction anyway.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dyyDpCh8GiU/YZ9UIHQHBbI/AAAAAAACm84/y5TQx0JgIi8wkOx0-B7U1maYKgtNulJGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Carley_float_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Carley raft from HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dyyDpCh8GiU/YZ9UIHQHBbI/AAAAAAACm84/y5TQx0JgIi8wkOx0-B7U1maYKgtNulJGwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Carley_float_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Carley raft from HMAS Sydney worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A carley float from HMAS Sydney that didn't save anyone. Source: <a href="https://www.navyhistory.org.au/naval-heritage-sites/hmas-sydney-ii-and-the-hsk-kormoran-shipwreck-sites/sydney-carley-float-high/" target="_blank">Naval Historical Society of Australia</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Days passed with nothing for the survivors to look at but the endless sky. The few sailors nearby that kept you company would have drifted away during the nights, so eventually you were all alone. Hard to spot a single man with no bright clothing or other clear identifiers in the middle of the ocean. Even if you somehow had a flare gun, there aren't a lot of passing ships because you weren't on a freighter on a normal trade route. You were just out there in some random place in the middle of nowhere.</p><p>Being adrift after your ship sinks or your plane crashes is one of the worst ways to die. You have plenty of time to think things over and often not a thing you can do to avert the inevitable unless you get lucky and someone happens by and spots your head slightly above the waves.</p><p>A passing tanker finding the Germans five days later was the first indication to the authorities that there had even been a battle. Nothing happened in the Indian Ocean during the war, right, so why would there have been a battle? Maybe if the tanker had found Sydney survivors in the water, the losses would have been more even. The Germans got lucky - some even made landfall on their own, in their boats - and the Sydney sailors didn't. Luck of the draw.</p><p>This is all just cold, hard reality, and the same thing could happen to any of us at sea.</p><p>To show how World War II still haunts the world, just last week - 19 November 2021 - Australia announced that <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2019/09/february-6-1942-christmas-island-body.html" target="_blank">a body found in a carley float near Christmas Island on 6 February 1942</a> was, as long thought, a certain crewman from Sydney. He was identified using DNA testing of relatives. The sailor, Able Seaman Thomas Welsby Clark, had two shrapnel wounds to his head, one in his left forehead and one above and behind his left ear that destroyed his skull. How he ever made it into a raft is a miracle in itself. Men in the water would have had wounds, too. It's never a pretty sight after a fierce battle.</p><p>Even a lucky sailor who somehow made it to a raft couldn’t make it over all the final obstacles. The men in the water had no chance at all.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IlewOFxDHvs/YZ9OBUaJxCI/AAAAAAACm8Y/APuKvzCMHBcbiwcNUUAL9WH2ji1Nw1vAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/Carley_float_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Carley raft in a South African museum worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IlewOFxDHvs/YZ9OBUaJxCI/AAAAAAACm8Y/APuKvzCMHBcbiwcNUUAL9WH2ji1Nw1vAQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h426/Carley_float_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Carley raft in a South African museum worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A carley float in a museum in South Africa. One of these helped one sailor from Sydney die slower. Source: Photograph by Mike Peel (<a href="http://www.mikepeel.net">www.mikepeel.net</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span class="updated">2021</span></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Wreck site of HMAS Sydney.-29.6219468 107.2628851-59.837450826416472 72.1066351 0.59355722641647191 142.4191351tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-73147101632518737862021-11-20T15:34:00.000-07:002021-11-20T15:34:01.958-07:00WWII Planes in Action: P-51 Mustang<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>The Iconic P-51 Fighter</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7JLS4ssa3UA/YZldB-RSwlI/AAAAAAACm70/rLlisio3Gq8yZ-OirwBi9fIS6Yafq_IQACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/P-51_Mustang_1.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="P-51 escort fighter worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7JLS4ssa3UA/YZldB-RSwlI/AAAAAAACm70/rLlisio3Gq8yZ-OirwBi9fIS6Yafq_IQACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/P-51_Mustang_1.gif" title="P-51 escort fighter worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The P-51 was a classic escort fighter.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The United States Army Air Force (USAAF) had several excellent fighters during World War II. Among them were the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2016/05/vintage-p-47-thunderbolt-crashes.html" target="_blank">P-47 Thunderbolt</a>, and the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2017/04/p-38-lightning-fork-tailed-devil.html" target="_blank">P-38 Lightning</a>.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The most iconic of them all, though, was the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/09/p-51-mustang.html" target="_blank">North American Aviation P-51 Mustang</a>.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ma5EzZv8Nys" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />The P-51 achieved its legendary status through a sequence of unusual circumstances. It was conceived as a concept pitched to the <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2016/07/july-23-1940-invasion-false-alarm.html" target="_blank">British Purchasing Commission</a>, in a tremendous rush for new planes during the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/05/why-was-raf-marshal-hugh-dowding-fired.html" target="_blank">Battle of Britain</a>, by North American Aviation as a more modern alternative to the P-40. During this period before Lend Lease (<a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2017/03/march-11-1941-lend-lease-become-law.html" target="_blank">Lend Lease became U.S. law on 11 March 1941</a>), the British were still paying cash for their orders and not just taking whatever the Americans chose to give them.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Taking the company on faith, the British placed their order. North American's top designer, Edgar Schmued, then quickly went to work designing and building an actual plane. Using advanced wind tunnel design techniques, he created advanced and extremely aerodynamic wings and fuselage that were very fuel-efficient. The company finished a prototype in an astonishingly short period of 102 days even though the United States was not at war and not under any particular pressure. The prototype first flew six weeks later, on 26 October 1940, during the dying days of the Battle of Britain.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e2YT-uSQyS0/YZldacsSffI/AAAAAAACm78/nSRDcVLEY78tJo5GTchKddG0hDNI5KjqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/P-51_Mustang_2.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="P-51 escort fighter worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e2YT-uSQyS0/YZldacsSffI/AAAAAAACm78/nSRDcVLEY78tJo5GTchKddG0hDNI5KjqQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/P-51_Mustang_2.gif" title="P-51 escort fighter worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Never forget the pilots who made the P-51 into a legend.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The British weren't happy when they got their first versions of the P-51, designated Mark I. Its Allison V-1710 engine was fine below 15,000 feet and the plane's flight characteristics were fine. However, due to its single-stage supercharger, the engine lost its power at higher altitudes. The <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/06/bf-109-workhorse-of-luftwaffe.html" target="_blank">Luftwaffe's Bf-109 fighter</a>, powered by a Daimler-Benz DB 601 and then 605 engine, had fuel injection that provided superior performance at higher altitudes. This was a big problem because the Luftwaffe pilots preferred the high ground anyway.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/njoUIz2jl6Q" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />Prospects looked bleak for the P-51. It appeared it would be relegated to the decidedly unprestigious roles of tactical reconnaissance and ground-attack fighter-bomber. However, a Rolls Royce test pilot, Ronald Harker, had an inspiration. The airframe was excellent, he reasoned. Why not put a Rolls Royce Merlin engine used in the Royal Air Force's <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/03/spitfire.html" target="_blank">Supermarine Spitfire</a> into the Mustang, since it did not have the Allison engine's high-altitude failings? The idea made perfect logical sense and was immediately embraced by the RAF.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1GLzoxzep5k" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />The engine chosen was the Merlin 61. Unlike the Allison engine, it had a two-speed, two-stage, inter-cooled supercharger, designed by Stanley Hooker of Rolls-Royce, that gave it superior performance at higher altitudes. This change increased the Mustang's 390 mph (340 knots, 630 km/h) at ~15,000 feet (4,600 m) to around 440 mph (380 knots 710 km/h) at 28,100 feet (8,600 m). This was a dramatic difference that made the Mustang a competitor as an air superiority fighter. This version became the Mustang Mk X.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/062Ns07zKHo" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />At North American Aviation, the hard decision was made to scrap the Allison engine and replace it with a US license-built Packard version of the Merlin engine. Basically, it was the same Merlin 61 engine, just made in a United States factory. Performance of this version gave a top speed of 445 mph (387 knots, 716 km/h) at 28,000 feet (8,500 m), with a service ceiling of 42,000 feet (13,000 m). This was more than sufficient to compete with the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/06/bf-109-workhorse-of-luftwaffe.html" target="_blank">Bf 109 fighter</a>, let alone the new <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2016/04/focke-wulf-fw-190-top-german-fighter.html" target="_blank">Focke Wulf Fw-190</a>, which was the Luftwaffe's top fighter at lower altitudes.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JPKNek5v8bI" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />After some design changes to the Mustang to accommodate the 350-lb heavier Merlin engine led to the P-51B, the USAAF asked in July 1943 that the plane be further modified to maximize fuel capacity. The goal was to enable the Mustang to accompany bombers to the heart of the Reich. The company did some further design changes and added an additional 85 US gal (320 liter, 71 imp gal) fuel tank in the fuselage behind the pilot. This version, the P-51C, had greatly increased range. A bonus was that the P-51Bs could be converted into P-51Cs by using a kit supplied by North American Aviation.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/B7zJH51fmCA" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />The final and definitive version of the Mustang, the P-51D, appeared in mid-1944. It had a Packard V-1650-7 engine, a license-built version of the two-speed, two-stage-supercharged Merlin 66. The P-51D had a range of 1,650 mi (2,660 km, 1,434 nautical miles) with external tanks, allowing it to accompany bombers all the way to Berlin. While the later Spitfire versions could achieve roughly the same maximum speed as the Mustang and perhaps fly even a little faster, they were interceptor fighters, not escort fighters, and could only stay in the air for a little over an hour. The Mustangs could fly for hours and hours, lingering over the Reich and waiting for opportunities.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N5lbkQsjnOs" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />The enhanced performance of the P-51C and P-51D had a dramatic impact on the battle for aerial supremacy. Major General James Doolittle, the commander of the 8th Air Force and hero of the <a href="https://worldwartwodaily2.filminspector.com/2020/09/april-18-1942-doolittle-raid-bombs-japan.html" target="_blank">"Doolittle Raid" against Tokyo</a>, was so satisfied with the Mustang's capabilities that he changed the rules of engagement in early 1944. Thereafter, Mustang pilots could only loosely cover the bomber stream while they hunted for Luftwaffe fighters and attacked their airfields. This had a dramatic effect on loosening the Luftwaffe's control of the skies over the Reich, let alone Allied territory.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-wiNM-vNdQg" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />As control of the skies shifted to the Allies, it enabled major changes in strategy. The RAF was able to return to daylight bombing in 1944 after years of night raids. This greatly increased bombing accuracy and further weakened the Luftwaffe's ability to defend the skies.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Uub7-b5-c58" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />While the Luftwaffe fought back with new tactics and planes, such as the <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2019/12/the-brilliant-me-262-german-jet-fighter.html" target="_blank">jet-engine Me 262 Swallow fighter</a>, the P-51D fighters basically cleared the skies over the Western Front. Whereas in the past the Wehrmacht had been able to use the Luftwaffe to help its ground battles, now it had to plan attacks - such as the Battle of the Bulge - for poor weather conditions in which neither side's planes could operate. Thus, the evolution of the Mustang fighter affected both strategy and tactics to the benefit of the Allies, shifting the entire course of the war.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7N6dFCPFJ7M" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br /><a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/06/hermann-goering-reichsmarshall-and.html" target="_blank">Reichsmarshall Hermann Goering</a>, the head of the Luftwaffe, admitted upon his capture that, "When I saw Mustangs over Berlin, I knew the jig was up." Those fighters were P-51 Mustangs. No other fighter of World War II had as profound an impact on events as did the North American Aviation P-51 Mustang.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sEBges2fjfE/YZleYAjRPDI/AAAAAAACm8E/LxSPltuVlAA_kzlHJgI-fozHt6CPZRnpQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/P-51_in_Switzerland_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="P-51 in Switzerland worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="427" data-original-width="640" height="428" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sEBges2fjfE/YZleYAjRPDI/AAAAAAACm8E/LxSPltuVlAA_kzlHJgI-fozHt6CPZRnpQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h428/P-51_in_Switzerland_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="P-51 in Switzerland worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A P-51 shot down in Switzerland after straying across the border.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-43367128265202969272021-11-14T19:40:00.007-07:002021-11-14T19:50:39.570-07:00WWII Strafing Runs on Axis Targets<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Lightnings, Mosquitoes, Thunderbolts, Mustangs, Warhawks, Oh My!</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xkHrU02KpCc/YZHGeWAgmsI/AAAAAAACm58/QV_HXVEYUBwsoDCeuPFkxa8KL4vMgUp3QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/P-40_Rendova_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="P-40 Warhawk providing cover for the invasion of Rendova 1943 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="640" height="498" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xkHrU02KpCc/YZHGeWAgmsI/AAAAAAACm58/QV_HXVEYUBwsoDCeuPFkxa8KL4vMgUp3QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h498/P-40_Rendova_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="P-40 Warhawk providing cover for the invasion of Rendova 1943 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Rendova Island Invasion, June 30, 1943. Landing craft debouch U.S. amphibious troops who run for the trees. Overhead a USAAF P-40 provides air coverage." Naval History and Heritage Command <a href="https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/museums/nmusn/explore/photography/wwii/wwii-pacific/south-southwestern-pacific/new-georgia-campaign/rendova-island-invasion/80-g-52671.html" target="_blank">80-G-52671</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Fighters play many roles beyond air superiority. As shown in the photo above of the invasion of Rendova (Operation Toenail) on 30 June 1942, one of their important roles was <b itemprop="name">strafing enemy targets during World War II</b>.<br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ctMVxVWOEms/YZHATrN0F-I/AAAAAAACm5s/nt3M8Ts36lMsgw1xhR16TTBRlXVtjIStACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Strafing_run_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Strafing a Luftwaffe bomber during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ctMVxVWOEms/YZHATrN0F-I/AAAAAAACm5s/nt3M8Ts36lMsgw1xhR16TTBRlXVtjIStACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Strafing_run_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" title="Strafing a Luftwaffe bomber during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Captain A.F. Eaton of 84th Squadron, VIII Air Force, strafes a Luftwaffe bomber parked on the airfield, 19 July 1944.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Strafing runs were a common feature of both sides during World War II. Sometimes escort fighters would strafe targets after a bombing run, other times it was a planned operation to disrupt ground supply. And, at times, it was just a way for fighter pilots to kill some boredom during long patrols through empty skies.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/c8d3a4axI88" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />We start off with fighters strafing a <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2013/09/tiger-tanks.html" target="_blank">Tiger tank</a> that is on the move during the day in the European Theater of Operations. While bullets often bounced harmlessly off of tank armor, you might get lucky and hit something explosive.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2-96dZyOwCs" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />Next, we turn to some strafing runs against trains and fast-moving vehicles in Occupied Europe. It became very dangerous for Germans to drive during the day. In fact, <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/07/erwin-rommel-desert-fox.html" target="_blank">German General Erwin Rommel</a> was badly wounded when he tried this about a week after <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/06/d-day-june-6-1944-operation-overlord.html" target="_blank">D-Day</a> in June 1944. His driver, a war hero during the Norwegian campaign, was killed and he was in the hospital for some time.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gb9CIQekhPs" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />US Navy planes flew many strafing runs in support of island invasions in the Pacific Theater of Operations. Here, fighters strafe targets on Okinawa during the invasion of April 1945.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pvsdFIq-I3I" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />US Air Force fighter bombers fired rockets at ground targets during the final year of the war. Here, some fire at Japanese resistance on Okinawa in 1945.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YZ9Ge06Yj0s" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />Returning to the ETO, the US Army Air Force spent weeks attacking ground targets prior to D-Day, 6 June 1944, in order to seal off the beachhead area and starve it of supplies. Here, fighters strafe a Luftwaffe airfield.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1AnFFMY6WHc" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br /><a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/01/why-did-germans-defend-italy.html" target="_blank">The campaign up the boot of Italy</a> in 1943-45 was a long, hard slog. The Germans occupied a series of mountain defensive positions that were very strong. They held out for six months on the "Winter Line," a position anchored on the monastery at Monte Cassino. Finally, the Allies succeeded in dislodging them in May 1944 after destroying their supply lines from northern Italy. This was Operation Strangle. Here, Republic P-47 Thunderbolts attack an Italian supply train.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/StF-TiipV0s" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />Above is another view of USAAF fighters strafing German ground targets. Sometimes, the pilots would get lucky and hit a fuel storage tank or something similar that would blow up in a huge explosion.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XVG3jYnBLA8" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />Above, Allied <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2017/04/p-38-lightning-fork-tailed-devil.html" target="_blank">P-38 Lightning fighters</a> strafe German trains. The Germans learned to fear the P-38, which they called the "fork-tailed devil" due to its distinctive appearance with two booms. These kinds of attacks led to the "German glance," which was a worried look back over your shoulder in case an Allied fighter was approaching.<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3RaC1LZMcik" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Throughout 1945, the USAAF launched a series of bombing raids on Tokyo. The <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/09/p-51-mustang.html" target="_blank">P-51 Mustang escort fighters</a> would guard the bombers, but once the mission was done, the pilots could choose ground targets at will to liven up the day. Here, they strafe Japanese shipping near Tokyo.</div><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Sd-mK7YI9dI" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe><br /><br />In 1944, the RAF launched a series of raids against German naval shipping that was hiding out in Norwegian fjords. These were difficult missions because the Germans had a lot of defensive artillery that could throw up a lot of flak, and the harbors were surrounded by mountain peaks that required swooping actions and quick pull-up to avoid crashing into the hills. Here, de Havilland Mosquito bombers attack a Kriegsmarine ship in a Norwegian fjord during the summer of 1944.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qKh6KQqlIxo/YZG_SSqSaCI/AAAAAAACm5k/O8Y05ye-RqwsB3hPCsYq7gJkzm-EPsHuACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Strafing_run_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Strafing shipping during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qKh6KQqlIxo/YZG_SSqSaCI/AAAAAAACm5k/O8Y05ye-RqwsB3hPCsYq7gJkzm-EPsHuACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Strafing_run_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="Strafing shipping during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Strafing by fighters was often more effective against shipping than using level bombers. Even though they were only firing machine guns, they were much, much more accurate.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-52537108102034098492021-11-07T22:26:00.005-07:002021-11-07T22:26:55.262-07:00Aerial Combat Footage in the Pacific WWII<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Massive Destruction From The Air</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HleBRXblFZ8/YYivz1r_TbI/AAAAAAACmz8/Xb61l8aLP54FdvaKGH8IjqHjJzWieF7EgCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/B-25.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="B-25 bomber during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HleBRXblFZ8/YYivz1r_TbI/AAAAAAACmz8/Xb61l8aLP54FdvaKGH8IjqHjJzWieF7EgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/B-25.gif" title="B-25 bomber during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A B-25 bomber in action during World War II.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Here we have collected some <b itemprop="name">aerial combat footage from the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II</b>. The US Army Air Force went to great pains to document their operations during the war. Gun-camera footage is usually brief because the cameras only operate while the guns are firing. Naturally, pilots were interested in conserving their ammunition for further encounters and thus usually fired the guns only for short bursts.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/h_l1NlMsC98" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />During the closing days of World War II, the US Army Air Force had free reign over Japan. Long-range P-51 Mustang escort fighters and other advanced planes could linger over Japanese industry and military installations and pound them at their leisure.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/djALUPa9REE" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Kamikaze attacks were a severe threat in 1944 and 1945. These were one-way trips for the pilot, determined to hit a US Navy warship as his last act of bravery for the Emperor.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IBGYeh39ecU" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div><div>The "para-frag" bomb was invented by George Kenney in the 1920s. Conditions were ideal for its use in the Southwest Pacific Theater of Operations. The para frag was a relatively small bomb (24 pounds or 11 kilograms) designed to shatter into 1" (25mm) fragments upon its impact. The bombs dropped slowly toward their targets under a small parachute.</div></div><div><br /></div><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dSB40jQTVO8" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Japanese airpower lost its punch as the war progressed. The experienced Japanese pilots from early in the war could not be replaced by men of similar quality, so the battles became increasingly one-sided.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aT2yxzXVVKU" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div>Still, even in 1944, the Japanese could muster hundreds of aircraft to attack the US fleet. They scored dramatic successes off Okinawa and other islands, sinking ships and causing the US Navy to reorient its strategy. <br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-hutqU_BojQ" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div>The ultimate solution to the kamikaze attacks was to station destroyers as picket ships far out from the main force. They could alert the aircraft carriers in the center of the fleet in time to launch their defensive aircraft. Other ships could prepare their anti-aircraft defenses with plenty of warning.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Eqi1wj7qwio" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />Of course, the downside of this strategy was that the destroyers serving far away from the rest of the fleet were vulnerable. Many of these destroyers were sunk with large loss of life. Their sacrifice protected the more valuable capital ships supporting invasions.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DeqssHh7VVk" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div>US bombers such as the B-25 attacked Japanese airfields with increasing success as the war wore on. The development of long-range escorts that could stay in the air for up to eight hours enabled the bombers to carry out long-range missions as far as Tokyo.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nk8KFDUJCXg" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8gQRGBMkhc/YYixZSC94QI/AAAAAAACm0M/Gb_MGrC6TUgMrtRsNawQ_KtDyM_ssOn7gCLcBGAsYHQ/s777/Para_Frag_Bomb_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Para-frag bombs in use, 1944 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="777" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8gQRGBMkhc/YYixZSC94QI/AAAAAAACm0M/Gb_MGrC6TUgMrtRsNawQ_KtDyM_ssOn7gCLcBGAsYHQ/w528-h640/Para_Frag_Bomb_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" title="Para-frag bombs in use, 1944 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="528" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">American M-40 para-frag bombs fall toward a Japanese Ki-21 bomber, Buru Island, 1944.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-50195254931136838732021-10-28T21:04:00.007-06:002021-10-29T01:37:24.549-06:00WWII Tanks in Action: Blitzkrieg<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Blitzkrieg!</h1><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0I5EQt-P_KU/YXsVYHGYG0I/AAAAAAACmuM/vcSFiA8SxXgg0aGU_YLE5zYh1GwLPCGQgCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Blasting a building during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0I5EQt-P_KU/YXsVYHGYG0I/AAAAAAACmuM/vcSFiA8SxXgg0aGU_YLE5zYh1GwLPCGQgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" title="Blasting a building during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>There are a lot of war documentaries and lots of footage of pretty much everything related to World War II. However, sometimes you just want to focus on one particular topic without having to sit through hours of footage.<br /><br />So, this series takes a microscope to World War II and focuses just on one particular aspect of the war. This page looks at <b itemprop="name">panzers during the early Blitzkrieg days of World War II</b>. So, click on the videos below if you would like to see some good footage of German tanks blowing stuff up!<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gfXLTUs2v_s/YXs_6Optf0I/AAAAAAACmus/Pg2MN3G7X-0CH9_AV-Xx1aFYPcH8-pzLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/General_Guderian_at_the_Meuse_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="General Heinz Guderian at the Meuse River during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gfXLTUs2v_s/YXs_6Optf0I/AAAAAAACmus/Pg2MN3G7X-0CH9_AV-Xx1aFYPcH8-pzLwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/General_Guderian_at_the_Meuse_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="General Heinz Guderian at the Meuse River during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">General Heinz Guderian at the Meuse crossing in 1940.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2015/05/heinz-guderian-very-image-of-modern.html" target="_blank">Heinz Wilhelm Guderian</a> was a German general who literally wrote the book on armored tactics during the 1930s. Many consider him the top authority on tank tactics. "Panzer Leader" is a must-read if you want to understand panzer tactics. Incidentally, Guderian was the top German leader during the Third Reich who avoided any conviction for war crimes.<div><br /></div><div>While not in charge of all tanks during the early stages of the war, Guderian built a solid reputation of success and was the key innovator who blew the hole in the French lines at Sedan in May 1940 that led to victory in that campaign.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jjF2EoKbeGQ/YXs-QWOxZCI/AAAAAAACmuk/qCkmUydvq8gMTmN_OcLb52rTBdSrjRxwQCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.gif" style="text-align: center;"><img alt="General HeinzGerman troops advancing in Warsaw, Poland, during 1939 in World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jjF2EoKbeGQ/YXs-QWOxZCI/AAAAAAACmuk/qCkmUydvq8gMTmN_OcLb52rTBdSrjRxwQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.gif" title="General HeinzGerman troops advancing in Warsaw, Poland, during 1939 in World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Guderian took his XIX Corps across the gap between Germany and East Prussia in a lightning dash in September 1939. Then, he took his corps south to Warsaw. This brilliant generalship broke Polish resistance at its most critical points, depriving the Poles of their access to the Baltic.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fqslyb9mCoQ/YXsZ-SZJxfI/AAAAAAACmuU/VYGkqlro9xMoZ1L4cXc8l0vEgFmbGrfIACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="A fast Soviet tank during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fqslyb9mCoQ/YXsZ-SZJxfI/AAAAAAACmuU/VYGkqlro9xMoZ1L4cXc8l0vEgFmbGrfIACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.gif" title="A fast Soviet tank during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> This fast Soviet scout tank was demonstrated in Moscow before the war. Speedy tanks turned out to be one of those pre-war concepts that didn't really play out well during the war.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Guderian's troops finished the Polish campaign by taking the Polish city of Brest-Litovsk shortly before Red Army troops, driving in from the east, arrived. This led to one of the most unusual events of World War II, a <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2016/03/september-22-1939-joint-soviet-nazi.html" target="_blank">joint military parade between Soviet and Wehrmacht troops on 22 September 1939</a>. Guderian stood on a podium with Soviet Kombrig Semyon Krivoshein, both grinning widely.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/myZ5Ms-g8_c" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br />After taking Poland and splitting it with the Soviet Union, the Wehrmacht turned its attention west. This required a concentrated effort and some superior tactics. The Germans showed that they could do both against some tough opponents.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kKtt5QY5RxY" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div>The main opponent during the German offensive in the west was France. Although having only half the population of Germany, France had a storied military reputation and had spent lavishly on fortifications during the 1930s. Unfortunately for France, budget constraints and disapproval by its ally Belgium prevented it from completing those fortifications past the norther French city of Sedan.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ndmfq0D1bWk" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div>The French weren't too worried about this, though, as that area of the front was considered impassible by heavy weapons due to narrow, winding roads and heavy forests. The Germans wisely decided to take a chance and sent Guderian's troops through the Ardennes straight toward Sedan. This plan was thought up by General Erich von Manstein and Adolf Hitler, with many others contributing suggestions, signing off on the plan, and taking the necessary actions for the plan to succeed.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hhOwQP2lwLQ" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div>The main obstacle for the Germans turned out to be the Meuse River. However, the Germans silenced French artillery on the west bank and built bridges across. <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/02/germanys-fiercest-soldier-erwin-rommel.html" target="_blank">General Erwin Rommel</a>, a World War I hero, found a way across for his men without even building a bridge by finding a shallow spot and a weir. Once on the other side, the Germans were unstoppable.</div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6gSr3lXk_1E" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br />The Germans did not call their tactics "Blitzkrieg." That was an invention of British media. However, it was an apt term to describe the revolutionary German tactics that made the invasion of the Netherlands, Belgium, and France quite speedy, in contrast to the long, tough slog it had been in World War I.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-Mxmghka8c/YXukfe8MRuI/AAAAAAACmu8/e1u0ewYjBnw4GdBg7C6nYEJ5q9_CNikpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="French tanks 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-Mxmghka8c/YXukfe8MRuI/AAAAAAACmu8/e1u0ewYjBnw4GdBg7C6nYEJ5q9_CNikpgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Tanks_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.gif" title="French tanks 1940 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>The Blitzkrieg philosophy involves the tight coordination of troops, tanks, and aircraft to create a concentrated effort at the enemy's weakest spot. This coordination is achieved through the use of radios, so that ground commanders can call in airstrikes to blast a hole through the enemy lines at the <i>schwerpunkt</i>, or spearhead of the advance. While the French had good equipment, they were completely overwhelmed by the German Blitzkrieg tactics.</div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PIT3GENrjs8" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br />Once across the Meuse, the Germans again confounded the French by heading west toward the English Channel rather than south toward Paris, as had been done during World War I. This proved quite successful and threatened to trap the English Expeditionary Army. However, the British escaped by a sea evacuation at Dunkirk. Once they were gone, all the Germans had to worry about was French resistance, which was spotty and inconsistent.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/12pf2uy-JS8" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div><div>To break remaining French resistance, <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/07/erwin-rommel-desert-fox.html" target="_blank">General Rommel</a> led his 7th Panzer Division south in a lightning dash through French towns toward the narrowest part of the Channel. With French resistance collapsing, Rommel reached the coast at Dieppe on 10 June 1940. The 7th Panzer then headed south to prevent another British evacuation at Cherbourg, advancing an astonishing 240 km (150 mi) in 24 hours. The division's moves were so fast that even the German high command didn't know where Rommel was from day to day.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s_ciaDbp-Dw" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div><div>Rommel's vivid display of the power of the Blitzkrieg was a major factor in causing French resistance to collapse. With their ports threatened, the British panicked and decided to pull all of their forces out of France, including the Royal Air Force. This led to a cascading decline of French defensive power like a row of Dominos falling over. The Wehrmacht continued advancing into the heart of France with relative ease until the French sued for peace. It was all due to the lightning strokes achieved by the German panzer troops under Guderian, Rommel, and other panzer leaders.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/U1nPdrPj-IQ" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div><div><a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2016/07/june-22-1940-france-is-done.html" target="_blank">On 22 June 1940, the French formally surrendered at Compiègne in northern France</a>. Hitler chose this spot for the surrender because it was the same spot where the German Empire had surrendered to the French in 1918. He even used the same railway car for the ceremony. The Germans allowed a rump French government to continue in the spa town of Vichy while they took Paris, all of northern France, and the Atlantic coastal region.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/72u7hYnY21s" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div>While the Wehrmacht had great success in the opening stages of Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, in mid-1941, it never again enjoyed the same level of success as it had in France in 1940. The French then had to endure a four-year occupation that was relieved only after <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/06/d-day-june-6-1944-operation-overlord.html" target="_blank">the 6 June 1944 D-Day landings</a>.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8OtR5quoGCk" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br />Stay tuned for more entries in this series where we look at footage related to particular parts of World War II.<br /><br />
</div><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-31591807791430624822021-10-25T21:14:00.002-06:002021-10-25T21:35:30.209-06:00German Soldiers Surrendering<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Some Surprising Surrender Scenes</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w7Gp4zFLK6E/YXdqgBQ8MiI/AAAAAAACmtk/QHsE6b80Dtg8WMtEkv5u0yJP0cr2pS-pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_soldiers_surrender_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German officers surrender in Brest. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w7Gp4zFLK6E/YXdqgBQ8MiI/AAAAAAACmtk/QHsE6b80Dtg8WMtEkv5u0yJP0cr2pS-pwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/German_soldiers_surrender_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="German officers surrender in Brest. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Field Marshal Keitel surrenders.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>This page looks at<b itemprop="name"> German surrenders in World War II</b>.</div><div><br /></div><div>The final act of any war is delicate. The defeated are looking for ways to surrender, while the victors are still busy prosecuting their successful campaign.</div><div><br /></div><div>I decided to collect together scenes of German soldiers surrendering in 1944 and 1945 because it's important to understand what defeat looks like.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SE1M-NieI1w/YXdpW5fKHjI/AAAAAAACmtc/g3uujqYFLA4i0SnShpLA51Ps3h57QHmkACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_soldiers_surrender_at_Brest_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German officers surrender in Brest. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SE1M-NieI1w/YXdpW5fKHjI/AAAAAAACmtc/g3uujqYFLA4i0SnShpLA51Ps3h57QHmkACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/German_soldiers_surrender_at_Brest_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="German officers surrender in Brest. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German officers surrender in Brest, France, 1944.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />While the ideology of the Third Reich made surrender seem unthinkable, it because quite easy to do. There was an art to it. The most important factor was determining who you were going to surrender to. Wehrmacht soldiers went to great lengths to avoid surrendering to the Red Army.<div><br /></div><div>Field Marshal Ferdinand Schörner even went so far as to fly out of his pocket in the East so that he could find some Americans to accept his surrender. His men, of course, weren't so lucky.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bTO5gbBwj7s" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div>When looking at these clips, it may strike you that these don't always look like soldiers and think we've mixed in some footage of ordinary refugees. You're 100% correct that they don't look like soldiers, but they were. There were boys, old men, women, old women. Such people were all pressed into service in the final days of the Third Reich because so many young men imbued with the Third Reich ideology had died because of it.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NuFwOepjJ8E" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div>Of course, there were plenty of younger men, too. But not nearly as many as there had been five years earlier.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/G5c5GWG5HZs" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div>A lot of the soldiers surrendering were wounded. They didn't always receive medical care. That was another reason to choose the people who were going to accept your surrender carefully.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LtIb3MegAuk" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div>Nearly 3 million Wehrmacht troops surrendered to the Western Allies from D-Day, 6 June 1944, until V-E Day, 8 May 1945. Quite a few, probably around the same number, surrendered to the Red Army, but figures from there are harder to come by. About 800,000 soldiers surrendered to the Soviets just in 1945.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RobFCmWJHAo" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />Isolated battles continued throughout May 1945 long after the Reich officially surrendered. German soldiers particularly resisted strongly when faced with surrender to the Red Army.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ttF0dAqFvD8" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div>There was a Japanese delegation in Berlin. Every man committed suicide rather than surrender, which was customary for Japanese troops in World War II.</div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/59e1zhXKhFU" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />Some isolated outposts were unable to surrender because there was nobody to surrender to. A small German meteorological party on Bear Island in the Arctic finally surrendered to some Finnish seal hunters on 4 September 1945. This was after even the Japanese had surrendered.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bTauRSjV39g" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />German U-boats usually surrendered as quickly as they could find some way to surrender. A couple of U-boats, however, continued on after news of the end of the war and did not surrender until July and August 1945. U-977 held out until finally giving in at Mar Del Plata, Argentina, on 17 August 1945. There were rumors that one U-boat even torpedoed a Brazilian ship after the surrender, but that's considered just a legend.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e1D_ubQdIB8" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />Fighting continued on the Dutch island of Texel until 20 May 1945 between Georgian conscripts and German soldiers. Hundreds of men on both sides perished after the conscripts revolted. When they returned to the Soviet Union, the Georgian rebels were treated as criminals and traitors by the Stalin regime for having worked for the Germans.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qIOvrdQ8kEs" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div>One Japanese soldier, Hiroo Onoda, survived in the hills of the Philippines. He refused to surrender even when told repeatedly that the war was over. Finally, he surrendered in 1974 after his former commanding officer gave him a specific order to do so.<br /><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9bGPun2bnIQ" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div>Now, of course, it's all just a distant memory. But it's always good to know what happens when you lose a hard war.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BVl2Kk99sGc/YXdoPKn1HKI/AAAAAAACmtU/5V9BomKVXbEiJz3Z2MyJS-AIJP-sqSsZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_soldiers_surrender_at_Marburg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German soldiers surrender at Marburg worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BVl2Kk99sGc/YXdoPKn1HKI/AAAAAAACmtU/5V9BomKVXbEiJz3Z2MyJS-AIJP-sqSsZQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/German_soldiers_surrender_at_Marburg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="German soldiers surrender at Marburg worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German soldiers surrender at Marburg.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-46833191282543795242021-10-21T21:06:00.003-06:002021-10-25T13:02:34.471-06:00The Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Ghostly Reminders of World War II</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QUfoQn1zlPg/YXIk5Cz4pDI/AAAAAAACmro/GmRrR1UUGpkF6J5Orjt8yiHeQ1sKcORPACLcBGAsYHQ/s865/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_10.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="865" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QUfoQn1zlPg/YXIk5Cz4pDI/AAAAAAACmro/GmRrR1UUGpkF6J5Orjt8yiHeQ1sKcORPACLcBGAsYHQ/w474-h640/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_10.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="474" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b itemprop="name">Ghost ships of Iwo Jima.</b></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>Iwo Jima is remote, and it has no permanent inhabitants. Almost nobody is allowed to visit, and those that do get permission must travel on special tours that are conducted once a year. But some news just came out of Iwo Jima that bring alive the ghosts of the past.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some eerie happenings on Iwo Jima in late 2021 are unearthing things long thought forgotten. I'll get to those below. But the past is haunting the present on one of the ultimate battlefields of World War II. If you've never seen any of the pictures on here before, there's a good reason for it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-16facK5tVMI/YXIjxEprAQI/AAAAAAACmrY/TuVfQKyV3_oz31r1fZy5OlahIOlU-XLhgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1376/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="562" data-original-width="1376" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-16facK5tVMI/YXIjxEprAQI/AAAAAAACmrY/TuVfQKyV3_oz31r1fZy5OlahIOlU-XLhgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h262/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>The Battle for Iwo Jima (Operation Detachment) was one of the fiercest of the Pacific Campaign. Lasting from February 19 through March 26, 1945, the battle cost many thousands of lives on both sides (roughly 30,000 in total along with many U.S. casualties; only about 200 of 20,000 Japanese soldiers survived). While the United States secured the island after this vicious fight, nobody really won anything useful.</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2017/11/iwo-jima-operation-detachment.html">I discuss the Battle for Iwo Jima here.</a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MWW1mZq0ZI8/YXIpUhse3jI/AAAAAAACmsA/-mEbk831aDsSZ6OYB-s80u9bJYWjfN8owCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_13.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MWW1mZq0ZI8/YXIpUhse3jI/AAAAAAACmsA/-mEbk831aDsSZ6OYB-s80u9bJYWjfN8owCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_13.gif" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>There are a lot of misconceptions and misunderstandings about Iwo Jima. Everyone knows it was a "great victory" for the United States Marines. The photos of the flag raisings are known by everyone and the most famous one was turned into a fabulous memorial in Washington, D.C.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S7J-fBx0_fw/YXIkQQYr4YI/AAAAAAACmrg/ZaQBQC4Z7tITtXqu43q7BuUN9rMMSVSlQCLcBGAsYHQ/s762/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="762" data-original-width="556" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S7J-fBx0_fw/YXIkQQYr4YI/AAAAAAACmrg/ZaQBQC4Z7tITtXqu43q7BuUN9rMMSVSlQCLcBGAsYHQ/w466-h640/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_9.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="466" /></a></div><br /><div>Once you scratch below the surface, that is when the legend engine goes off the rails. Let me make plain this was not the fault of any man who fought there, not to demean them, not to diminish what they did. Every man who sacrificed himself on Iwo Jima died a hero. The truth, however, is better than a lie.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5j7k4dYykl0/YXIfAAMWPsI/AAAAAAACmrQ/3o_fq_HRdUoLMCeUex6QUWMRrLPzAvO8QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1500/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5j7k4dYykl0/YXIfAAMWPsI/AAAAAAACmrQ/3o_fq_HRdUoLMCeUex6QUWMRrLPzAvO8QCLcBGAsYHQ/w426-h640/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="426" /></a></div><br /><div>Many people think that Iwo Jima was vital to the bombing and projected invasion of Japan. In fact, Iwo Jima was not needed at all for either of those objectives. Iwo Jima would have played no role in the invasion had it occurred, and no bombers ever flew from Iwo Jima to drop atomic bombs on Japan or, well, any bombs at all.</div><div><br /></div><div>That's right. No bombers flew from Iwo Jima to bomb Japan. None.</div><div><br /></div><div>The reason that Iwo Jima was basically useless is simple. The island has no harbor and ships cannot dock and unload supplies there. This made the island incapable of supporting bombing operations against Japan despite its location being much more suited for that role than other nearby islands that did have harbors.</div><div><br /></div><div>For these reasons, it is my view that <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/01/the-usas-biggest-error-of-world-war-ii.html" target="_blank">taking Iwo Jima at such a tremendous cost of life was the United States' biggest blunder of World War II.</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R0Tcv000beA/YXIlNEoduQI/AAAAAAACmrw/2pl60xo4yIIONuql4f-OOLPQmHcUu9niwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1440" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R0Tcv000beA/YXIlNEoduQI/AAAAAAACmrw/2pl60xo4yIIONuql4f-OOLPQmHcUu9niwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>Bombs are heavy, 1945 atomic bombs were the heaviest of all, and it's just not logistically feasible to bring any bombs ashore on lighters or landing craft. If you're going to fly bombs in to load them on Iwo Jima, you might just as well just skip that step and fly them straight for air delivery to Tokyo itself.</div><div><br /></div><div>Along with Guam, the site of a major U.S. airbase before World War II, The US Army Air Force used airfields on Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands for Twentieth Air Force B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers. While these islands were several more hours flying time from Japan than Iwo Jima, they did have harbors.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the Spring of 1945, after the battle to capture Iwo Jima, the U.S. Navy decided to try and make an artificial harbor there to justify the wild loss of life capturing it. That worked off the beaches of Normandy, though that was a drastically different situation. There, the military could tow across "Mulberry Harbors," temporary portable harbors developed by the United Kingdom.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_p-vbAn4-fs/YXIA3lWQ8XI/AAAAAAACmrA/3t8pNuuabiQidSXrCR7AQZwK6dvGfWfIwCLcBGAsYHQ/s854/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="854" height="412" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_p-vbAn4-fs/YXIA3lWQ8XI/AAAAAAACmrA/3t8pNuuabiQidSXrCR7AQZwK6dvGfWfIwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h412/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The location of the wrecks on the western shore of Iwo Jima is marked on this Google Earth map. The beach is dark because it is black volcanic sand. This beach was where many U.S. Marines took their last breaths. </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Unfortunately, Mulberry Harbors are huge and it would have been extremely difficult and time-consuming to get them to Iwo Jima. Since bringing Mulberry Harbors halfway around the world was not feasible, the U.S. military improvised. Navy Seabees sank 24 captured Japanese transport ships off the western coast of Iwo Jima to establish a breakwater. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X5YL8cbZEVY/YXICFUCpL6I/AAAAAAACmrI/S78ERYav2nIRKqpJdFSLUZjn0y8zr9cawCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X5YL8cbZEVY/YXICFUCpL6I/AAAAAAACmrI/S78ERYav2nIRKqpJdFSLUZjn0y8zr9cawCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h426/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Site of the sunken Japanese ships. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 </span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank">International Public License</a><span style="text-align: left;"> (Photos: Kelly Warrick</span>).</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>This project was a complete failure and the Seabees quickly abandoned it. The wrecks are still there.</div><div><br /></div><div>The reason why I'm writing about this now in October 2021 is that Mount Suribachi, which dominates Iwo Jima, has been rumbling recently. Some fear that it could erupt. But what it's already done is expose these old shipwrecks that haven't been seen since 1945.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k1F621OZATw/YXImKWNFmuI/AAAAAAACmr4/6ylvX6vS-ZA-i2c9R2Nd29yooODiGR_3QCLcBGAsYHQ/s708/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_12.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="708" height="610" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k1F621OZATw/YXImKWNFmuI/AAAAAAACmr4/6ylvX6vS-ZA-i2c9R2Nd29yooODiGR_3QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h610/Iwo_Jima_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_12.jpg" title="Ghost Ships of Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>That's why you've never seen most of these shots before - because the ghost ships only recently appeared. This is big news in Japan, but you'd probably never hear about it anywhere else.</div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uTGGhRrHo0Q" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center></div><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div><br /><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-65810667455054313222021-10-09T18:52:00.037-06:002021-10-12T15:21:18.623-06:00What Was the "Stab in the Back" During WWI?<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Hitler's Most Successful Message During His Rise</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sre_i59TA2Q/YWIpQEdl1mI/AAAAAAACmjM/M0oGxSz0ycU7Y4A_LlMERLrqiVoiHttygCLcBGAsYHQ/s873/Stab_in_the_back_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="A representation of the "stab in the back" worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="873" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sre_i59TA2Q/YWIpQEdl1mI/AAAAAAACmjM/M0oGxSz0ycU7Y4A_LlMERLrqiVoiHttygCLcBGAsYHQ/w470-h640/Stab_in_the_back_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="A representation of the "stab in the back" worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="470" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A contemporary illustration of the "stab in the back" theory.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-style: italic;"><i><br /></i></div><div><b itemprop="name">What was this "stab in the back" theory</b> that is so often associated with Adolf Hitler and the Second World War? It was a simplistic, erroneous, and distorted explanation for Germany's defeat during World War I. It is said that the seeds for World War II were planted during the conclusion of World War I. The "stab in the back" theory played a major role in Hitler's rise to power and the German desire to avenge past defeats.</div><div><br /></div><div>The basic "stab in the back" theory stated that the German military was not responsible for the loss of World War I because uprisings and betrayals at the homefront caused the German government to surrender while the war was still winnable, or at least before the Army was defeated. These uprisings and betrayals supposedly included actions by sinister actors, including communists and Jews. These actions "stabbed the German Army in the back" at a pivotal moment and deprived it of victory.</div><div><div><div><br /></div><div>It is critical to point out here that there is and never was direct evidence to prove the "stab in the back" theory. It is an early example of a conspiracy theory that is believed because it is more comfortable to do so than to accept the pitiless reality. Everything surrounding the "stab in the back" theory is circumstantial, highly debatable, belied by actual evidence, and based on stereotypes of standard "enemies" and "outsiders" in dominant German culture.</div><div><br /></div></div><div>The <i>Dolchstoß </i>theory, or <i>Dolchstoßlegende</i> as the Germans call the "stab in the back" theory, became a central feature of Third Reich propaganda with increasing anti-Semitic overtones. It was promulgated by German generals who failed during World War I and were looking for easy excuses for their own failures. It also was a way to stiffen resentment of communism, blamed along with the Jews for the uprising.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>Going over the immediate background is necessary to understand the "stab in the back" theory and why it was contrary to the facts.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4J5qshWDyDU/YWIq4xEA4_I/AAAAAAACmjk/ULuhdn4MDqg8k7XMyCYg-8HhvnAjS2jIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s837/Stab_in_the_back_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="A representation of the "stab in the back" worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="837" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4J5qshWDyDU/YWIq4xEA4_I/AAAAAAACmjk/ULuhdn4MDqg8k7XMyCYg-8HhvnAjS2jIgCLcBGAsYHQ/w490-h640/Stab_in_the_back_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="A representation of the "stab in the back" worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="490" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><h2>The 1918 Situation</h2><div>By late 1918, World War I (then usually called the "Great War") had ground on for four long years. German fortunes had their ups and downs during that time, but by September 1918 it was in serious trouble.</div><div><div><br /></div><div>German defeat was extremely likely by the fall of 1918. The Western Allies were advancing at what seemed like an impossible speed after years of trench warfare where the front hadn't change more than a hundred meters every year. The Australian, Canadian, British and French armies launched the successful Hundred Days Offensive in August 1918 with the Battle of Amiens and Battle of Montdidier. The initial offensive enjoyed immediate success and gained 12 miles (19 km). </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2WlzzMn_YEI/YWItQSdnGDI/AAAAAAACmj0/TUdbCxTFbzYAOZGG8Raw0Dl8LcWveIJCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Canadian tank in 1918 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="640" height="506" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2WlzzMn_YEI/YWItQSdnGDI/AAAAAAACmj0/TUdbCxTFbzYAOZGG8Raw0Dl8LcWveIJCgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h506/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Canadian tank in 1918 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German prisoners carry Canadian wounded past a Canadian tank during the Battle of Amiens, August 1918 (<a href="https://www.warmuseum.ca/firstworldwar/history/battles-and-fighting/land-battles/amiens/" target="_blank">Canadian War Museum</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>The German collapse was so swift and unexpected that General der Infanterie Erich Ludendorff, effectively running the German war effort as First Quartermaster General of the Great General Staff, referred to 8 August as “<i>Der Schwarztag des Deutschen Heeres</i>” (the Black Day of the German Army). The Allied success led to further offensives in August, such as the Third Army at Albert (the Battle of Albert) and the Second Battle of Noyon. </div><div><br /></div><div>Things just went from bad to worse for the Germans. The arrival of the Americans was especially dispiriting. They were fresh troops, well-armed, and physically impressive (on average, the Americans were taller than other soldiers on either side). Crown Prince Ruprecht, during a 15 August 1918 conversation with Prince Max of Baden, lamented:</div><div></div><blockquote><div><b>The Americans are multiplying in a way we never dreamt of... At the present time, there already are thirty-one American divisions in France.</b></div><div></div></blockquote><div>In a war that everyone by now knew was fairly evenly balanced before the arrival of the U.S. Army, this sudden influx of powerful forces had extremely negative connotations.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-huwY8Ip41Uo/YWIriflBrtI/AAAAAAACmjs/lmTiHWHUCmYo-R5xcMw3LpadMmoZNn70gCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Canadian tank in 1918 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="640" height="466" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-huwY8Ip41Uo/YWIriflBrtI/AAAAAAACmjs/lmTiHWHUCmYo-R5xcMw3LpadMmoZNn70gCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h466/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Canadian tank in 1918 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Canadian troops using tanks along the Arras-Cambrai Road before the Battle of Cambrai, September 1918 (Library and Archives Canada <a href="https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/CollectionSearch/Pages/record.aspx?app=fonandcol&IdNumber=3194821" target="_blank">3194821</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>But at this point, it wasn't even clear if the Allies even needed American troops. The British broke the main German line of defense called the "Hindenburg Line" at the Second Battle of Cambra in early October and the Germans retreated rapidly, abandoning large supply stores and equipment along the way. These sudden Allied victories were rapidly eating up all of the German war gains in the West.</div><div><br /></div><div>However, as dramatic as the Allies' 1918 breakthrough was, Germany was not yet militarily defeated even though that result seemed inevitable to many observers. The German Army was still fighting outside Germany’s border. Germany had defeated the Russian Empire and forced an advantageous peace, occupying vast stretches of territory in the East. This realized a long-held dream of many Germans for eastward expansion, taking land from people many considered backward and inferior. </div><div><br /></div><div>Just six months before the surrender, a German offensive in the West had some success and almost broke the French Army. This was known as "Operation Michael" and had brought the German Army to the Marne River for the first time since 1918. There, they were finally repulsed with the assistance of American troops under General John "Black Jack" Pershing entering combat for the first time.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fS7HlTVZYgk/YWIuOXGnC3I/AAAAAAACmj8/dceBJPKnoMcdnDEbUyjhR_b7XJdUBDNngCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Ludendorff_Kaiser-Wilhelm_Hindenburg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ludendorff, Kaiser Wilhelm, and Hindenburg worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fS7HlTVZYgk/YWIuOXGnC3I/AAAAAAACmj8/dceBJPKnoMcdnDEbUyjhR_b7XJdUBDNngCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Ludendorff_Kaiser-Wilhelm_Hindenburg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Ludendorff, Kaiser Wilhelm, and Hindenburg worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">General Paul von Hindenburg, Kaiser Wilhelm, and General Erich Ludendorff. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (cph 3a42618)</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><h2>Ludendorff's Personal Issues</h2><div>So, the German war situation in 1918 was dire. Germany, blockaded by the Allies, no longer had the resources to continue the war. The "stab in the back" theory, though, had nothing to do with that. Its origins were far more ethereal.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nUQFZe_xr_o/YWKOfYUXBlI/AAAAAAACmlE/vbbXXzYOBFsbUuhVYomwMeuDn7edTRONACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Russian_soldiers_surrender_Battle_of_Tannenberg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Russian soldiers surrender at the Tannenberg 1914 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="329" data-original-width="640" height="330" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nUQFZe_xr_o/YWKOfYUXBlI/AAAAAAACmlE/vbbXXzYOBFsbUuhVYomwMeuDn7edTRONACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h330/Russian_soldiers_surrender_Battle_of_Tannenberg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Russian soldiers surrender at the Tannenberg 1914 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Russian soldiers surrender at the Battle of Tannenberg, one of the great German victories of World War I.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Ludendorff, nominally under the command of Chief of the German Great General Staff Paul von Hindenburg, was the general actually running the German military. His strategies in 1914 prevented a potentially war-ending Russian breakthrough at the Battle of Tannenburg. Hindenburg involved himself with strategy now and then, but mostly he just acted as the "front man" for the Duo. He would entertain the Kaiser and diplomats over cognac and schnapps during the evening and receive briefings on the state of the war from Ludendorff.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Allies' Hundred Days Offensive claimed its most prominent victim in the German High Command. Ludendorff had a classic nervous breakdown from all the stress. Among other things, his son had fallen in combat and this affected Ludendorff, who took to visiting his son's grave at Avesnes, greatly. Ludendorff's boss, Hindenburg, grew concerned about Ludendorff's condition and asked his own doctor to take a look. Hindenburg's physician observed Ludendorff getting increasingly agitated, with mood swings and more drinking, and referred Ludendorff to a psychiatrist, Dr. Hochheimer. The psychiatrist quickly divined that the problem was Ludendorff's micro-managing of the troops.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--x63YiFJwWI/YWIxtSMrq5I/AAAAAAACmkM/tvb2TnLE7nc-3I_8y0bcvDUBI4uHm0EUACLcBGAsYHQ/s1003/Ludendorff_and_Hindenburg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ludendorff and Hindenburg worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="1003" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--x63YiFJwWI/YWIxtSMrq5I/AAAAAAACmkM/tvb2TnLE7nc-3I_8y0bcvDUBI4uHm0EUACLcBGAsYHQ/w408-h640/Ludendorff_and_Hindenburg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Ludendorff and Hindenburg worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="408" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul von Hindenburg (left) and Erich Ludendorff (right) took over control of the German war effort as a team, replace Erich von Falkenhayn in August 1916. Informally, they were known as "The Duo."</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Psychiatry was a new profession in 1918, but Hochheimer had some interesting ideas. He recommended that Ludendorff take deeper breaths, relax, maybe try some yodeling to let off steam, take some days off, and basically ordered him to take a vacation. However, Ludendorff could not break away and his condition grew worse throughout the fall of 1918.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ludendorff's mental state is significant because his views on the military situation were colored by his personal problems. He had very good advice on the true state of affairs and even wrote an insightful paper that cast much of the blame for the Allies' sudden success on their use of mass tanks (the British used 500 tanks at the breakthrough Battle of Cambrai).</div><div><br /></div><div>The Germans struggled to develop effective defenses against tanks and produced very few tanks of their own. The ones that Germany did build were ponderous and ineffective. While Germany did capture some useable Allied tanks and put them into service, there weren't nearly enough to hold back the Allies.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, there were good reasons for the Allies' sudden success. Ludendorff knew all about them. In fact, he knew the reasons so well that he was educating his subordinate commanders about them. But, for convenience and due to his personal issues, Ludendorff suddenly developed a radical new theory to explain his own failures as a commander.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xz_9oQDGCtE/YWIyux4YdrI/AAAAAAACmkU/INYI6B-HPlQQzfOB0Y8GDx-7wYk0IwqAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German World War I tank worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xz_9oQDGCtE/YWIyux4YdrI/AAAAAAACmkU/INYI6B-HPlQQzfOB0Y8GDx-7wYk0IwqAQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="German World War I tank worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A captured World War I German tank. They were large, ponderous, underpowered, and ineffective.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><h2>The Origination of the Stab in the Back Theory</h2><div>To summarize this section: Ludendorff actually knew the war was lost and took decisive actions to make sure it ended. But, once he had done that, he quickly turned around and concocted a theory to absolve himself and the military of any blame for the defeat.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ludendorff's mercurial temperament in the fall of 1918 created a lot of anxiety at the highest levels of the German government. He told Hindenburg on 28 September 1918 that the government needed to sue for peace immediately. Rattled by this demand, Hindenburg took Ludendorff to see the Kaiser the following day. Ludendorff said the same thing, only promising to be able to retreat to the German border to avoid a "shameful peace." This started the ball rolling for peace talks and the fall of the German government.</div><div><br /></div><div>Once he had vented to the Kaiser about the true situation at the front and established a framework for peace negotiations, though, Ludendorff changed his tune. He took an entirely different view at a cabinet meeting on 9 October when he claimed the army could protect Germany's borders into 1919. Ludendorff opined that Germany still had time to negotiate from a position of strength even though, due to his own agitation, this was now impossible. He reiterated this at a 14 October cabinet meeting. By then, a new German government full of Socialists was considering President Wilson's peace proposals seriously.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fvcmu8OT63s/YWKMfYXDOrI/AAAAAAACmk0/3ngSy4jqrgoEgbUXfADew-1Fpv5vyDWWwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Russian_soldiers_charge_Battle_of_Tannenberg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Russian soldiers attack at the Battle of Tannenberg 1914 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="231" data-original-width="640" height="232" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fvcmu8OT63s/YWKMfYXDOrI/AAAAAAACmk0/3ngSy4jqrgoEgbUXfADew-1Fpv5vyDWWwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h232/Russian_soldiers_charge_Battle_of_Tannenberg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Russian soldiers attack at the Battle of Tannenberg 1914 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Russian soldiers charge at the Battle of Tannenberg.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>A close look at Ludendorff's own history suggests that his mental issues during the final months of the war were not unusual for him. His sole claim to fame was the Battle of Tannenberg in August 1914, an undeniably great victory. However, Hindenburg revealed shortly before his death that Ludendorff had completely lost his nerve and become severely agitated at a critical point in the battle, right before a great encirclement won it. This is exactly the kind of behavior Ludendorff demonstrated in September 2018, completely losing his nerve under stress. This revelation put everything that happened at the end of World War I into proper perspective.</div><div><br /></div><div>Another inconvenient fact about the Tannenberg victory was that Ludendorff's responsibility is a bit questionable. Two subordinate commanders, General Max Hoffmann and Lt. Gen. Hermann von François, played much larger roles in issuing the commands that led to victory. At key points in the battle, François, a field commander, acted on his own initiative without orders and achieved vital results. Without the dash and initiative of François, victory may have slipped away.</div><div><br /></div><div>Hoffmann was Chief of Staff of the Eastern Front during the Battle of Tannenberg and its follow-up, the Battle of the Masurian Lakes. Anyone familiar with military commands knows that the chief of staff is usually the guy running around getting things done. After receiving no credit, Hoffmann remained bitter for the rest of his life.</div><div><br /></div><div>However, it was in the interest of the German Empire to create heroes for morale purposes. Ludendorff and Hindenburg were technically in command and thus received all of the plaudits. Let's just say that Ludendorff may not have been quite the master battle strategist that he was made out to be by the propaganda bureaus. However, the public adored the Duo.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm sure you've heard of Ludendorff and Hindenburg. Everyone has. Have you ever heard of Hoffmann and François? Unless you are a student of war history, probably not. That is a vivid demonstration of the power of the press. However, Hoffmann is still used as a model for the ideal staff officer at the United States Army Command and General Staff College. He was the German unsung hero of World War I.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zJkZpUgfzWM/YWKNO1bIslI/AAAAAAACmk8/0c8UaRjyY6omQJgcMQ3mbGOW0ziJWn_owCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HHindenburg_Ludendorff_Battle_of_Tannenberg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Hindenburg, Ludendorff, and Hoffman at the Tannenberg 1914 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="640" height="490" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zJkZpUgfzWM/YWKNO1bIslI/AAAAAAACmk8/0c8UaRjyY6omQJgcMQ3mbGOW0ziJWn_owCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h490/HHindenburg_Ludendorff_Battle_of_Tannenberg_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Hindenburg, Ludendorff, and Hoffman at the Tannenberg 1914 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hindenburg looks through field glasses at the Battle of Tannenberg while Ludendorff (second from right) and Hoffman - the forgotten man - look on.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Even Hindenburg was a bit resentful of the acclaim that Ludendorff received. Late in life, he pointedly remarked that he did have some impact on the victory, stating, "I was, after all, the instructor of tactics at the War Academy for six years."</div><div><br /></div><div>It is important to emphasize here that the Battle of Tannenberg indeed was a great German victory that saved the Empire. The point is that the German government found it expedient to have the press tout Ludendorff as a master strategist when, in fact, the victory was attributable to the efforts of others as much as the role he played in it. This led to his elevation to a position where he was running the entire war effort. This fulfilled the cynical Peter principle, which states that people will be promoted to their maximum level of incompetence.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ludendorff's erratic behavior finally brought about his downfall. On 24 October 1918, he sent an unauthorized telegram to the troops telling them that President Woodrow Wilson's terms for ending the war were "unacceptable" and that the troops must fight on. He did this without going through normal channels or consulting the civilian government.</div><div><br /></div><div>Kaiser Wilhelm found Ludendorff's telegram insulting to his own power. He quickly called Ludendorff and Hindenburg in and abruptly fired Ludendorff for insubordination. Hindenburg offered to resign as well but was flatly refused.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w_ILGnrl4_c/YWIzoMT4xBI/AAAAAAACmkc/G7NrykYanQ4YRI-sopirUnWEKZjhGYoggCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="1917 German World War I tank The Sturmpanzerwagen A7V worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="431" data-original-width="640" height="432" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w_ILGnrl4_c/YWIzoMT4xBI/AAAAAAACmkc/G7NrykYanQ4YRI-sopirUnWEKZjhGYoggCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h432/WWI_tank_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" title="1917 German World War I tank The Sturmpanzerwagen A7V worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1917 German Sturmpanzerwagen A7V tank.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>It is now that the Stab in the Back theory developed. Ludendorff fled to Sweden using a disguise and false papers to wait until revolutionary fervor in Berlin cooled down. Hindenburg retired (again) in June 1919 to Hannover. Both men wrote memoirs that created the "stab in the back' thesis, that the war was going fine until problems developed on the homefront.</div><div><br /></div><div>However, Ludendorff wrote his memoirs in a mad rush, publishing "My War Memories" on 1 January 1919. In this, he was the first to write about the "stab in the back" by the homefront. Hindenburg's memoirs (written with the aid of a journalist who undoubtedly was familiar with Ludendorff's version) just repeats Ludendorff's stab-in-the-back theory but greatly amplified its exposure to the public.</div><div><br /></div><div>The facts, though, run counter to Ludendorff's sudden self-serving explanation for Germany's defeat. He was the main advocate of seeking peace in August and September 1918 due to the Allies' sudden success at breaking the logjam on the Western Front. The homefront had nothing to do with Ludendorff's opinion then. It was only after a change in government to one with many Socialists in it (who could be blamed for the defeat) in October 1918 that he changed his tune and claimed the army could fight on, though to what purpose is unclear.</div><div><br /></div><div>Even before that, Ludendorff had established a tendency to blame others for the growing crisis. On 6 September 1918, he told the assembled army chiefs of staff at a meeting held at his headquarters in Avesnes that the blame for recent defeats lay with failures by the troops and their officers. About Ludendorff's comments at this meeting, General Friedrich von Lossberg wrote in his 1939 memoirs that "the real fault lay in his own defective generalship."</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9K-dmXIjwzM/YWI1M1SCXtI/AAAAAAACmkk/bUPfSjwU8qYlOqxNSb4es7eDhr6PmG6RwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_1918_revolustion_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Dr. Karl Liebknecht proclaims a German socialist republic November 1918 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="640" height="482" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9K-dmXIjwzM/YWI1M1SCXtI/AAAAAAACmkk/bUPfSjwU8qYlOqxNSb4es7eDhr6PmG6RwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h482/German_1918_revolustion_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Dr. Karl Liebknecht proclaims a German socialist republic November 1918 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr. Karl Liebknecht proclaims a German socialist republic in November 1918. The real uprisings began after the war was over, such as the Spartacist uprising of January 1919.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>It is important to note that while Ludendorff was panicking in August and September 1918, he never blamed the army's troubles on the homefront. That was never even a consideration. The Allies were beating the German Army on the field of battle, and that was decisive to the outcome of the war. The revolts and mutinies came later and were likely in part instigated by the military defeats. The famous Kiel Mutiny did not occur until 3 November 1918, long after the war was decided.</div><div><br /></div><div>Germany's allies were dropping out during the fall of 2018 without regard to Germany's internal issues. Bulgaria capitulated on 29 September (right when Ludendorff was telling the Kaiser he should do the same), the Ottoman Empire surrendered on 30 October (just as Ludendorff was leaving his position), and on 3 November the Austro-Hungarian Empire gave up (and ceased to exist). If Germany wasn't winning the war with these powerful partners, it's hard to see how they could get along without them. There were no "stabs in the back" in these other countries. The clear implication is that the problem was the overall military balance of power.</div><div><br /></div><div>The beauty of the "stab in the back" theory from Ludendorff's perspective was that it could not be disproven. It also absolved him from all responsibility for the defeat. Other top German generals, though, completely disagreed with this theory. On 27 May 1922, General Wilhelm Groener, for instance, wrote the following:</div><div></div><blockquote><div><b>It would be the greatest injustice to defame the German people for their collapse at the end of the lost world war. They had sacrificed their youth on the battlefields. They had proven themselves by magnificent feats of arms in the field, in unrelenting work, in privation and sufferings in the homeland. They had been led to the mountain peak of an illusionary world in which they were held by hope after hope of certain victory... In the end, the blame for the continued self-deception and the mistaken employment of defensive tactics rests on the military. The victories... were not victories in the strategic and political sense.</b></div><div></div></blockquote><div>Ludendorff went on to support revolutionary crackpots who embraced his stab-in-the-back theory for political purposes. These included Wolfgang Kapp and Adolf Hitler, both right-wing extremists who staged unsuccessful coup attempts in the early 1920s. </div><div><br /></div><div>The stab-in-the-back theory was extremely useful to Hitler, who used it to rouse his followers with the "injustices" of the Treaty of Versailles and the need to re-arm to reclaim Germany's place in the world. The millions of unemployed or underemployed former German soldiers who still felt loyalty to Ludendorff and Hindenburg eagerly embraced this myth, which absolved them and the army for all blame for the defeat.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H1WPm52NLUQ/YWIv1hwbxbI/AAAAAAACmkE/bjKRx74vmekjHnafH1C8RgT91nfzXHH4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s871/Ludendorff_and_Hitler_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ludendorff and Hitler worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="871" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H1WPm52NLUQ/YWIv1hwbxbI/AAAAAAACmkE/bjKRx74vmekjHnafH1C8RgT91nfzXHH4gCLcBGAsYHQ/w470-h640/Ludendorff_and_Hitler_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Ludendorff and Hitler worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="470" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ludendorff and Adolf Hitler following the failed 1923 Putsch. 26 March 1924. The Third Reich used this picture for propaganda purposes during the 1930s (see Federal Archive <a href="https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?query=Bild+102-16742" target="_blank">Image 102-16742</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><h2>Conclusion</h2><div>Germans in 1918 who wanted to be delusional about their war prospects could see certain silver linings despite all the military catastrophes during the Allies' Hundred Days Offensive. If distance makes the heart grow fonder, then time makes a losing military situation more salvageable (especially if it's long in the past and you don't have to go through the added deprivations now). It’s difficult now to understand the “fight to the bitter end” mindset, but it obviously affected a lot of Germans.</div><div><br /></div><div>Was the “stab in the back” thesis accurate? No. But it had just enough of a kernel of truth to sway the masses for Adolf Hitler’s benefit.</div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hLf9bxxd1fE/YWI4uJkB13I/AAAAAAACmks/1bri5v-B6ikpJTXnb0zBVoLJnegoUk8YACLcBGAsYHQ/s997/Stab_in_the_back_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stab in the back worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="997" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hLf9bxxd1fE/YWI4uJkB13I/AAAAAAACmks/1bri5v-B6ikpJTXnb0zBVoLJnegoUk8YACLcBGAsYHQ/w410-h640/Stab_in_the_back_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Stab in the back worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="410" /></a></div><br /><div><br />
<span class="updated">2021</span>
</div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-28306763755412012132021-10-07T14:15:00.063-06:002021-10-09T14:45:29.643-06:00Ruined German Cities 1945 in Color<h1>Life Amidst the Rubble</h1><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VwCo24lVj1w/YV9T7vsO8yI/AAAAAAACmiI/ksH8ezzaoNUXwGg1pIxhEPmX7H7lrH8uwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Cologne_TN.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Germany in 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="415" data-original-width="640" height="416" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VwCo24lVj1w/YV9T7vsO8yI/AAAAAAACmiI/ksH8ezzaoNUXwGg1pIxhEPmX7H7lrH8uwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h416/Cologne_TN.jpg" title="Germany in 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Germany in 1945.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>The <b itemprop="name">war damage in Germany</b> was insane. The devastation in Germany by the war's conclusion was immense. It was so immense that it's difficult to grasp. Fortunately, the U.S. Army made a point of documenting the destruction wrought by six years of war so that we don't have to just imagine it, but we can actually see it.</div><div><br /></div><div>The RAF bombed Berlin several times early in the war with scattered success. Some bombs hit the opera house that Adolf Hitler treasured, angering him. He rebuilt it and vowed to defend the city better. As losses mounted, Bomber Command concentrated more on other targets that were nearer and not as well defended. This was a smart strategy, but it left Berlin largely intact until a change in tactics in November 1943 saw a full-scale assault on the city. After that, the city disintegrated rapidly.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HcyWmRPGNTE/YV_GN5TAM2I/AAAAAAACmig/r4ZaNSlsuhgwwC8o8mSmJS7TumgrHOA1wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1593/Berghof_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Berghof postcard worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="1593" data-original-width="1216" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HcyWmRPGNTE/YV_GN5TAM2I/AAAAAAACmig/r4ZaNSlsuhgwwC8o8mSmJS7TumgrHOA1wCLcBGAsYHQ/w488-h640/Berghof_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Berghof postcard worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="488" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was a popular German postcard before World War II showing Hitler's Berghof in Berchtesgaden.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Using the best equipment available, director George Stevens led a team of the U.S. Army Signal Corps that filmed the German cities that had been torn apart by years of bombing raids and last-ditch fighting. Stevens was no slouch, having already directed some Ginger Rogers/ Fred Astaire films and directed dozens of from 1930 onward.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LXqpQTX07Bs/YWDfLyruohI/AAAAAAACmi8/Gw2ZXEDOu9IvUykww-K03otar-EMH4MSACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/The_Berghof_in_1945_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Berghof in 1945 after the surrender worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LXqpQTX07Bs/YWDfLyruohI/AAAAAAACmi8/Gw2ZXEDOu9IvUykww-K03otar-EMH4MSACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/The_Berghof_in_1945_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="The Berghof in 1945 after the surrender worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hitler's Berghof shortly after the defeat.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Having broken into the film business as a cameraman, Stevens had a good eye for composition. This was perfect training for recording bombed-out buildings and people struggling to rebuild them. The experience had a big effect on Stevens' later work. His post-war films showed a noticeable shift, becoming more pointed and dramatic as opposed to his romantic comedies of the pre-war endeavors. He went on to new heights after the war, directing "A Place in the Sun" (1951) and "Giant" (1956) among other enduring works. Directing religious epic "The Greatest Story Ever Told" (1965) showed just how much Stevens' mindset had changed.</div><div><div><br /></div><div>There also were other filmmakers involved in recording the aftereffects of the war. These included, for instance, Capt. Oren Haglund (USAAF) of the 1st. Motion Picture Unit, who captured the dramatic footage of the "<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2016/07/pretty-girls-of-world-war-ii.html" target="_blank">lost German girl</a>" I've written about before. But Stevens had the good fortune to be in the right places at the right time to capture the best images of the overall devastation.</div><h2>Berlin 1945</h2>
<br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iKxr7fth6vo" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nl-2SSSTZx0" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M7RNYObEUf4" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YZiAhOdaDiI" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e1TsDBX7bJk" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center>
<br /><center><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/O8_SI5TzB2o" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></center>
<br /><center><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Xhhy8C_C_dA" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></center>
<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ogo9-cd1h8I/YWENUZG5CDI/AAAAAAACmjE/n5-WkdoASRgm03wugZj2ROUJFRbDLIhQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/German_Refugees_1945.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="German refugees 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ogo9-cd1h8I/YWENUZG5CDI/AAAAAAACmjE/n5-WkdoASRgm03wugZj2ROUJFRbDLIhQQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/German_Refugees_1945.gif" title="German refugees 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Let's hope this never has to happen again!</div><center></center>
<br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-30895085224250858992021-09-26T14:34:00.001-06:002021-09-26T14:36:32.368-06:00A Glimpse of Pre-War Berlin<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Before the Hurricane</h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pEJq_AkBlms/YVDSYjbX-GI/AAAAAAACmYU/pJ-PYyWTaugP1FjiQJf6wjIWOlPOeLOGQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="640" height="464" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pEJq_AkBlms/YVDSYjbX-GI/AAAAAAACmYU/pJ-PYyWTaugP1FjiQJf6wjIWOlPOeLOGQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h464/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>Here are a couple of <b itemprop="name">color videos of Berlin from 1936</b> that have been enhanced using modern Artificial Intelligence software. If you ever wondered what Germany looked like before Adolf Hitler and the war destroyed it, this is a good place to start.</div><div><br /></div><div>Of course, all of this beauty and grandeur masked truly nefarious forces working in the background. History's verdict is that Germany brought its troubles on itself and has only itself to blame. But it was truly criminal to risk all this for nebulous nothings and sinister intentions.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yQ-aoun7Y6M/YVDS-aueZSI/AAAAAAACmYc/Jdc02DP194k2RxbLoQzDpPStw7ddnu-hQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="465" data-original-width="640" height="466" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yQ-aoun7Y6M/YVDS-aueZSI/AAAAAAACmYc/Jdc02DP194k2RxbLoQzDpPStw7ddnu-hQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h466/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>The film is a little unusual because the original was in color. That makes the colors more accurate and vibrant than in the typical case with these types of AI exercises.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G5LzdMemSwY/YVDOTV44RWI/AAAAAAACmX8/Rd79exN4R6YPCF2miJ0x0vjIcT6PwogbACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G5LzdMemSwY/YVDOTV44RWI/AAAAAAACmX8/Rd79exN4R6YPCF2miJ0x0vjIcT6PwogbACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>There are troops and military vehicles, but they are not at war and are just going about their business, just as in other countries of the time. What surprises me a little is how militaristic the society had become, and not just during the 1930s. It had been like that for a long, long time, as indicated by some of the artwork that is shown.</div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/g_ckV9WzqIE" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br />Despite all the historic architecture, the scenes look surprisingly modern to me. People are just going about their business, parents with children, sightseers, and businessmen.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C3Qzq3RjgVk/YVDQDPqDraI/AAAAAAACmYE/5s9Rq8Uu4sQGypOC1U5TIvGE2AWHCX8ZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C3Qzq3RjgVk/YVDQDPqDraI/AAAAAAACmYE/5s9Rq8Uu4sQGypOC1U5TIvGE2AWHCX8ZwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not much traffic compared to now!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The city is all decked out for the 1936 Olympics. That's when the government pulled out all the stops for an impressive showing to the worldwide audience. It was like Berlin's coming-out party.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOdl-QMTXdk/YVDTyMknQ0I/AAAAAAACmYk/waGK0B8SUVYYizDbYZD52AVnnSEt2j5lgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="461" data-original-width="640" height="462" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOdl-QMTXdk/YVDTyMknQ0I/AAAAAAACmYk/waGK0B8SUVYYizDbYZD52AVnnSEt2j5lgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h462/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.jpg" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Those huge banners you see in the WWII movies were certainly real! </td></tr></tbody></table><br />The Germans already had cable television to show the Olympics to city dwellers. The cables ran from the stadium to theaters in the heart of Berlin, where people could sit and watch the events on the screen for free.</div><div><br /></div><div>This cable TV later found war purposes, of course. Many of the technicians who worked on it later became hugely important to the development of broadcasting in the post-war era.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S6oL8rM2rZA/YVDU5tmoxPI/AAAAAAACmYs/G8JafPtKKKMWQDTcS24BvUDzpmX7eo35gCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_7.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S6oL8rM2rZA/YVDU5tmoxPI/AAAAAAACmYs/G8JafPtKKKMWQDTcS24BvUDzpmX7eo35gCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_7.gif" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back when cars were still allowed to have vibrant colors!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Watching films like this may give you an idea of how tragic World War II was, how much was lost due to warmongering and repression.<br /><br />
<center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/g_ckV9WzqIE" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe> </center>
<br />You can catch glimpses of the Brandenburger Gate, The Siege Saule, Unter den Linden, the Haus des Rundfunks (radio broadcast building), Berlin Zoo, the subway, and outdoor sculptures.<br /><br />Anyway, I'm always interested in windows to the past. If only Germany had taken a different path. I hope you enjoy it!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xbYGzU6T-6c/YVDRsaBydNI/AAAAAAACmYM/UcSHbrR55lsD4IfVFGzkTGo94Id2DfgcwCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xbYGzU6T-6c/YVDRsaBydNI/AAAAAAACmYM/UcSHbrR55lsD4IfVFGzkTGo94Id2DfgcwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Berlin_1936_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" title="Berlin 1936 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<br /></div><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-83563350780751717312021-08-23T19:31:00.047-06:002021-08-29T19:21:46.107-06:00Stuka Disaster at Neuhammer!<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Stuka Catastrophe!</h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5LN_A99EeAE/YSRIdTa0jFI/AAAAAAACmM0/8eKcJOcT_eQnHpapFrn87qj2ctc77BcZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_7.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5LN_A99EeAE/YSRIdTa0jFI/AAAAAAACmM0/8eKcJOcT_eQnHpapFrn87qj2ctc77BcZwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_7.gif" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Some of the worst military disasters occur during training exercises. For instance, at least 749 American servicemen died during a practice landing at Slapton Sands, Devon, UK, on 27 April 1944 while preparing for the D-Day landings (Exercise Tiger). That they happen during exercises doesn't make deaths any less painful or heroic or important. Dead is dead.</p><p>This is about a great tragedy that befell the Luftwaffe on the eve of World War 2. There are lessons to be learned about the importance of placing safety first and not taking anything for granted, but mostly this is a story about needless deaths. </p><h2>The Stuka Always Has Been Controversial</h2><p>The Junkers Ju 87 Sturzkampfflugzeug ("Stuka") dive bomber always has been a controversial plane, and I mean that literally. From the day they were first considered by the Luftwaffe, <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/02/stuka.html">Stukas</a> had many doubters. Its first flight was on 17 September 1935, and for that time it was reasonably capable but not considered a world-beater. Stukas were used in the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War with success, but a lot of doubts remain about the utility of divebombing and the Stuka in particular. For one thing, air defenses in Spain weren't of the caliber the Luftwaffe could expect to see elsewhere.</p><p>Many experts considered the Stuka to be underpowered or, in other words, slow and vulnerable. Rear gunners couldn't adequately protect planes that waddled along in their missions and then presented fat targets after dropping their payloads. The whole ground-attack concept by a dive bomber, in fact, was hotly debated during the inter-war period. Some air force generals considered dive bombers to be almost suicidal due to the manner in which they attacked targets. The Royal Air Force, in particular, took a dim view of dive bombers. Only the United States embraced the dive bomber concept early on, and then only for its naval air units where accuracy was essential.</p><p>But, on the other hand, dive bombers did offer greater accuracy than level bombers. With the Wehrmacht interested in destroying heavy fortifications being built by its nearest neighbors, accuracy was very desirable.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4v_BwMHQ1iQ/YSRJaIiYkdI/AAAAAAACmM8/KAsZvNYa1sECvezK6qj6m-odjFxlp8ndwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Richtofen_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Richtofen worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4v_BwMHQ1iQ/YSRJaIiYkdI/AAAAAAACmM8/KAsZvNYa1sECvezK6qj6m-odjFxlp8ndwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Richtofen_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="General Richtofen worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> General der Flieger Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen. Cousin of the Red Baron and a World War I ace, Richtofen was a master strategist relied on time and time again by Adolf Hitler to save lost situations.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>Luftwaffe General Wolfram von Richthofen was one of the chief Stuka doubters. The difference between Richtofen and many others was that he was in a position to do something about it. Richtofen was in charge of developing and testing new aircraft in the <i>Technisches Amt</i>, or Technical Service, under the overall direction of Hermann Goering's favorite Ernst Udet. While Udet was more of a barnstorming pilot (and quite possibly the best in the world at aerobatics) than an executive type, he had Goering's ear. This meant that Udet held all of the real power in the Luftwaffe's plane development that there was to hold.</p><p>On 9 June 1936, Richtofen took a bold step and canceled the Stuka development. He did this based on the advice of experts for the reasons mentioned above. </p><p>There was only one problem with this decision. Richtofen didn't know that Udet, for whatever reason, had strong feelings about the Stuka. Apparently, Udet had studied two Curtiss Hawk IIs purchased from the United States and really liked the dive bomber concept. Udet even flew one of the US dive bombers during the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. What transpired is that Udet, and thus Goering, decided that a dive bomber offered cheap but effective tactical performance. Experts be damned!</p><p>Udet overruled Richtofen the very next day and the Stuka was built.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pDCi_rGVITg/YSdFp54Y5mI/AAAAAAACmOc/i_LEcWJNUz4109kttNCimZCK4kCilptQACLcBGAsYHQ/s930/Udet_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ernst Udet worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="930" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pDCi_rGVITg/YSdFp54Y5mI/AAAAAAACmOc/i_LEcWJNUz4109kttNCimZCK4kCilptQACLcBGAsYHQ/w440-h640/Udet_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Ernst Udet worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="440" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ernst Udet was the "real deal." He was the top-scoring surviving pilot of World War I with 62 confirmed kills and a world-renowned aerobatic pilot. Even as head of the Luftwaffe's development office, Udet occasionally served as his own test pilot, as above.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>That's how widely opinion varied about the Stuka from the very start. The controversy has continued ever since, as some believe the Stuka was a highly effective dive bomber while others just as correctly point to its extreme vulnerability to attack. For the Stukas to become truly effective, Wehrmacht generals had to be convinced to trust the Stukas to come to the aid of ground soldiers. That led to the demonstration discussed below.</p><p>Oh, by the way, you may be wondering who was right - Udet or Richtofen. Well, that's... controversial. But I'll note in passing that Udet put a gun to his head a few years later. And I'll also note that Stukas flew effectively to the very last day of the war.</p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-puLFpgea3HQ/YSRBySJmc6I/AAAAAAACmME/NO8r8lDx4RMCdef6oDNifbKPHx6FJZ1bACLcBGAsYHQ/s266/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="266" height="481" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-puLFpgea3HQ/YSRBySJmc6I/AAAAAAACmME/NO8r8lDx4RMCdef6oDNifbKPHx6FJZ1bACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h481/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.webp" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></p><h2>The Disastrous Neuhammer Demonstration</h2><p>With war fast approaching, the Luftwaffe decided to prove to the army generals how effective the Stukas could be. Accordingly, Army (<i>Heer</i>) and Luftwaffe generals (including Wolfram von Richthofen, now the Stuka’s boss, and Generals Hugo Sperrle and Bruno Loerzer) gathered at the airfield near Neuhammer-am-Queis, Silesia (present-day Świętoszów, Poland) on <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2016/04/august-15-1939-u-boats-put-to-sea.html" target="_blank">15 August 1939</a>. They were there to witness a demonstration of divebombing accuracy by the still fairly new Stukas. The demonstration exercise involved bombing a ground target, with the intent to inspire confidence in the army generals. The Luftwaffe wanted them to willing to call in air support for their troops at the front. They would require pinpoint accuracy so as to avoid having the Stukas drop their bombs mistakenly on nearby German soldiers.</p><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">Instead of a successful demonstration, they witnessed a catastrophe. Within the Luftwaffe, this event became known as the "<b itemprop="name">Neuhammer Stuka Disaster</b>" (<i>Neuhammer Stuka-Unglück</i>).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CVygEpVJbFY/YSRDDAwjlcI/AAAAAAACmMM/i0NEv1BmG8wRN2PAIks-gyPrzfhLtWo3QCLcBGAsYHQ/s384/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="384" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CVygEpVJbFY/YSRDDAwjlcI/AAAAAAACmMM/i0NEv1BmG8wRN2PAIks-gyPrzfhLtWo3QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">There were clouds over the target area. However, the meteorologists reported clear visibility underneath the cloud layer reported to be around 2500 feet. Ordinarily, training flights would be canceled in such circumstances. However, this was no ordinary training flight, but a demonstration prepared for the top names in the Wehrmacht. The Luftwaffe decided to go ahead with the exercise.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">It is easy to understand the Luftwaffe generals' thinking. It would be an impressive sight for the army generals to see the Ju 87 B-1 Stukas descend out of the clouds, hit the target, and then fly back up into the clouds without incident. Any danger, the Luftwaffe flight controllers decided, was minimal because the pilots would be able to complete their dives easily within 2500 feet of visibility.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qPXoxa8NSqM/YSRHq0Br2-I/AAAAAAACmMs/xnlw9ZFk8skGmG2xoljBFsBFFrF5EeDngCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qPXoxa8NSqM/YSRHq0Br2-I/AAAAAAACmMs/xnlw9ZFk8skGmG2xoljBFsBFFrF5EeDngCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.gif" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">The demonstration began as planned. Hauptmann Walter Sigel led a three-plane <i>Schwarm </i>of Staffel 2 of STG76 (<i>Sturzkampfgeschwader </i>76) down out of the clouds first, with one wingman on either side. Why Staffel 2 went first is a bit of a mystery, perhaps simply a function of random plane positioning in the sky. The three pilots dove down through the clouds, essentially blind, waiting patiently for the skies to clear so they could complete their bomb runs.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">However, the meteorological reports turned out to be erroneous. Instead of clear visibility up to 2500 feet, it turned out the clouds came down to 300-600 feet. Whether this was because of poor weather staff work or perhaps because of a late change in conditions is unclear. The important thing is that the lower ceiling did not give the pilots enough time to recover.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QxIDm3dmYQ0/YSREMu7MZmI/AAAAAAACmMU/Q2Ys3cOArzYgosNMB7FtgwVGBwrXGfLLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s384/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="384" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QxIDm3dmYQ0/YSREMu7MZmI/AAAAAAACmMU/Q2Ys3cOArzYgosNMB7FtgwVGBwrXGfLLgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">At the last moment, while exiting the clouds in a power dive, Sigel, who was carefully scanning for the target, saw the darker ground appear much closer than he expected. He yanked back on the stick in a panic and yelled to the others to do the same. Sigel just barely escaped with his life, his Stuka practically grazing the ground as he pulled out of the dive. However, his two companion pilots could not recover quickly enough (likely because they were focusing on Sigel's plane for positioning purposes rather than the ground). Those two planes both crashed, killing the two men (pilot and rear gunner) in each plane. </div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">But that was just the beginning of the horror.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gX6O6MX74X8/YSRN2EY_7YI/AAAAAAACmNM/SMSj2U2igg8lYl0sRWQuA5CV9eRQ5pdDACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Neuhammer_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Neuhammer Stuka Disaster worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="640" height="362" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gX6O6MX74X8/YSRN2EY_7YI/AAAAAAACmNM/SMSj2U2igg8lYl0sRWQuA5CV9eRQ5pdDACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h362/Neuhammer_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Neuhammer Stuka Disaster worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Losses at the Neuhammer Stuka Diaster on 15 August 1939.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">The demonstration continued despite the crashes due to inadequate communication and the close order of bombers. Once in their dives, the planes followed one after another like a waterfall coming down over a cliff. One side note is that Stukas were equipped with automatic pull-out systems. These provided that, once the bomb had been dropped, the airplane automatically began a 5–6 g recovery. This could save the airplane if the pilot became target-fixated, or blacked out. However, particularly early in Stuka history, pilots preferred to rely on their own senses and typically disconnected these systems. These systems probably wouldn't have saved the planes in this particular situation anyway.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f1fngg-iKWs/YSRFht1U9LI/AAAAAAACmMc/1VFUedzgk-wPf3El_EBnXUT8_SMEdaZ-QCLcBGAsYHQ/s384/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas crew worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="384" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f1fngg-iKWs/YSRFht1U9LI/AAAAAAACmMc/1VFUedzgk-wPf3El_EBnXUT8_SMEdaZ-QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.gif" title="Stukas crew worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">A total of 13 Stukas crashed an Neuhammer., carrying their 26 aircrews to their graves. All right in front of the top military brass in the Wehrmacht.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">The devastation could have been even greater. However, Squadron Kommandeur Hauptmann Rudolf Braun, circling above in his own Stuka with the Stab (headquarters) pilots waiting to take their turn last (again, the Staffel ordering is unexplained), heard Sigel's frantic shouts of danger. This prevented him from leading his own pilots down to certain death. Others weren't so lucky. All nine following Stukas of Staffel 2 also crashed, along with two more of Staffel 3.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">This was among the worst losses Stukas suffered in any one day during the entire war. It was exceeded only on <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2016/08/august-18-1940-hardest-day.html">18 August 1940</a> during the Battle of Britain, when 17 Stukas were lost due to enemy action (with many others damaged). That day resulted in the effective withdrawal of Stukas from the Battle of Britain.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-83hnozHyhp8/YSRGYThq1dI/AAAAAAACmMk/0F99IelxJ_0NMKUVrXoH6O_3nDl44X5RwCLcBGAsYHQ/s384/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="384" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-83hnozHyhp8/YSRGYThq1dI/AAAAAAACmMk/0F99IelxJ_0NMKUVrXoH6O_3nDl44X5RwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.gif" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><h2>The Aftermath</h2><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">Despite the Neuhammer tragedy, Stukas remained highly popular among the top leaders of the Luftwaffe. They remained in service until the very last day of World War II, achieving some great tactical successes even though they often were more dangerous to their own crewmen than to the enemy. And, you guessed it, the degree to which the Stukas actually succeeded was controversial then and now.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">Scapegoats had to be found. Sigel was cleared in the resulting investigation and served throughout the war with distinction. He ultimately was promoted to commander of the Luftwaffe in Norway - these types of safe postings were usually given to top pilots the Luftwaffe didn't want to be exposed to danger any longer. Sigel was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 2 September 1942.</div><div><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Thing">However, danger still haunted Sigel. During an inspection flight over the Tirpitz on 8 May 1944, Sigel crashed and died when his plane hit power lines in deep fog. Other notables involved in the Neuhammer incident were luckier. The commander of Staffel 1, Oberleutnant Dietrich Peltz, who later became the Luftwaffe's commander of its entire bomber force, was among the Stuka pilots in the units who were warned from diving at the last minute. He survived the war and died peacefully on 10 August 2001.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q5JM3cfH_-E/YSRKk4Gi4wI/AAAAAAACmNE/EVcL6VSp_A0EDRp8VtBLRUrnVJMwPHSfQCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q5JM3cfH_-E/YSRKk4Gi4wI/AAAAAAACmNE/EVcL6VSp_A0EDRp8VtBLRUrnVJMwPHSfQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Stuka_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.gif" title="Stukas worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div>
<span class="updated"><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><span class="updated"><br /></span></div>2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Świętoszów, Poland51.4762572 15.386302123.166023363821154 -19.7699479 79.786491036178845 50.5425521tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-78580382478818955852021-04-24T13:13:00.011-06:002021-04-26T00:24:35.761-06:00London During World War II<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Ordinary People in Extraordinary Times</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-16s1r8d7zoo/YIRiGdr8TFI/AAAAAAACk5A/PSux6Cus9UIxV-q4uFOxJQzhmNrKXq0TgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="London in wartime worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="640" height="444" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-16s1r8d7zoo/YIRiGdr8TFI/AAAAAAACk5A/PSux6Cus9UIxV-q4uFOxJQzhmNrKXq0TgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h444/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="London in wartime worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) personnel at their anti-aircraft equipment in a London park. Doesn't appear to be a gun, perhaps a range-finder for batteries nearby. At least, I believe they are WAAFs.</td></tr></tbody></table>Historical events often seem "different," as if people weren't people as they are today but instead weird caricatures. For many years, films of World War II showed people walking fast in dimly lit and jerky scenes. Oh, they were so odd back then, right? And so old and cranky if we met them later. Nothing like us. But let's take <b itemprop="name">a look at the real wartime London, in vivid color</b>.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Y-0oUYxd9s/YIRkr4vWz4I/AAAAAAACk5Y/s5LDtDTCxk44K7fzHs0O7DUy5H-ukXL2ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="640" height="448" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Y-0oUYxd9s/YIRkr4vWz4I/AAAAAAACk5Y/s5LDtDTCxk44K7fzHs0O7DUy5H-ukXL2ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h448/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Waterloo Station, an express train pulls in from Bournemouth or one of the other cities along the coast. How do we know that? The passengers are overwhelmingly sailors on leave. </td></tr></tbody></table><div>Well, modern technology has come to the rescue. It turns out the skies actually were blue, people walked about normally just doing their business as they do now, and things looked pretty similar.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9yhnWvPTD2s/YIRmCVsc4zI/AAAAAAACk5g/S56Ci8yT03ofrmlmb4rjTRYpAL1HgCC7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="402" data-original-width="640" height="402" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9yhnWvPTD2s/YIRmCVsc4zI/AAAAAAACk5g/S56Ci8yT03ofrmlmb4rjTRYpAL1HgCC7wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h402/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A barrage balloon raised in Westminster Gardens near the Houses of Parliament. Mainly women took care of tasks like these.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>There has been an explosion of conversions of obscure old black-and-white newsreel footage due to improved artificial intelligence software. There are still limitations and they are bound to improve more with further enhancements, but these restored films are getting good enough to really open a window into the past.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-abaczlJC_y8/YIRnYnl0e0I/AAAAAAACk5o/ubBnjuKNspI6p89vK6_0LTmrBkYGhxE_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="London in wartime. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="640" height="444" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-abaczlJC_y8/YIRnYnl0e0I/AAAAAAACk5o/ubBnjuKNspI6p89vK6_0LTmrBkYGhxE_ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h444/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" title="London in wartime. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A naval officer likely on leave, perfect bearing and cadence, passes in front of a smoke shop. Off to the far left, a man who likely is a veteran of the Great War stands on his crutches. He had his days in the sun, too. It's like a before-and-after shot.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The film in question shows ordinary street scenes of London sometime during World War II. Nothing special, just ordinary people during extraordinary times. Yes, it obviously was produced as a film project of some sort, but the scenes show reality rather than Hollywood artifice. If you want to understand the war years - and I assume you do since you're here - this is a good place to start.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vcdFahSvSs4/YIRosqhl7YI/AAAAAAACk5w/s3RNoWz5pNY8QJhO-xPDhN11__iUDE_qwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Soldiers in wartime London. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="640" height="452" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vcdFahSvSs4/YIRosqhl7YI/AAAAAAACk5w/s3RNoWz5pNY8QJhO-xPDhN11__iUDE_qwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h452/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.jpg" title="Soldiers in wartime London. worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soldiers reading the war news. It might be weeks or even months old and approved by Churchill's censors, but it was the only way to know what was going on.</td></tr></tbody></table>There are many reasons why films like this are valuable. You get the small details of life that Hollywood films leave out such as people waiting on queues for the evening newspaper, injured victims of the war, the casual dress that people wore. Even amidst the privations, people still took pride in their appearance. It was a different time, but not so different underneath it all. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SFEjsvhluEk/YIRqEV2vJRI/AAAAAAACk54/58QpBv3FBVogDjTx7ZReByafKQfISpnLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_7.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Houses of Parliament worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="640" height="444" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SFEjsvhluEk/YIRqEV2vJRI/AAAAAAACk54/58QpBv3FBVogDjTx7ZReByafKQfISpnLwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h444/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_7.jpg" title="Houses of Parliament worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking over Westminster Bridge to the Houses of Parliament. Not much traffic on such a nice day, right? Getting petrol except for official government use wasn't easy. You wanted to ride, you climbed aboard one of those ubiquitous massive double-decker buses.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>If you look closely at the vehicles, you'll notice that most have their headlamps covered. There was a blackout, you know. The few that don't stand out.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--bNgYvSFJXE/YIRrCfggQWI/AAAAAAACk6A/2Rlwxau2zTMv4VSi3Vi1frnWqgT4LEiCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Buckingham Palace in wartime worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="640" height="448" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--bNgYvSFJXE/YIRrCfggQWI/AAAAAAACk6A/2Rlwxau2zTMv4VSi3Vi1frnWqgT4LEiCQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h448/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.jpg" title="Buckingham Palace in wartime worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A military parade outside the palace - the <i>real </i>palace. Perhaps for VE Day. Patriotism was quite in fashion during the war years. Buckingham Palace sustained some bomb damage during the Blitz, but it certainly stands like a rock amidst the chaos in this shot.</td></tr></tbody></table>Among other things, you'll notice the huge proportion of military personnel in most of the shots. You may also pick out a US serviceman here and there. These scenes all appear to be mid to late-war scenes, as there weren't many Yanks on the scene until mid-1942.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d8hmkl5Egwg/YIRse0VGbXI/AAAAAAACk6I/Zrpo0K592Ewk9TieJG0A7-Foffy98ocgQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_9.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Bomb damage in London worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="416" data-original-width="640" height="416" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d8hmkl5Egwg/YIRse0VGbXI/AAAAAAACk6I/Zrpo0K592Ewk9TieJG0A7-Foffy98ocgQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h416/London_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_9.jpg" title="Bomb damage in London worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some London Bobbies patrolling amidst the ruins. Undoubtedly a staged scene, but that is what it looked like.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Anyway, I hope my casual observations provide a little context to the film, which speaks for itself. If I have gotten anything wrong, kindly let me know in the comments. I hope you enjoy it!</div><div><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QLbPYQcUcgM" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br /></div>
<span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-20860940073318291292021-03-22T19:13:00.022-06:002021-03-24T11:23:17.570-06:00What Happened to Warplanes After WWII?<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>A Massive Salvage Job!</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iqaC1RtQlF4/YFk8S98S_5I/AAAAAAACkWM/W74Juj_nbpQSmr0LnCRVZbYMrj5u5-YHACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/B-24s_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="B-24 bombers being scrapped worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iqaC1RtQlF4/YFk8S98S_5I/AAAAAAACkWM/W74Juj_nbpQSmr0LnCRVZbYMrj5u5-YHACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/B-24s_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="B-24 bombers being scrapped worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">B-24 bombers at Mokmer Field, Biak, Indonesia.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>A common question in military forums is <b itemprop="name">what happened to all the military planes after World War II?</b> Most weren't of military use any longer due to improving technology and a vastly reduced post-war military, so they littered airfields all around the world and within the United States. </div><div><br /></div><div>It's difficult now to appreciate just how many planes were left over from the war. Production skyrocketed as the war went on. Production continued right up until the end of the war, and many brand-new planes were never even used. The United States alone produced 303,713 warplanes. While 21,583 (7.34%) were lost domestically during test flights, ferrying, training accidents, and the like, and another 43,581 were lost en route to the war and in overseas operations, that left a sizable number well in excess of 200,000.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, let's take a look at their fates. I'm going to focus on US warplanes, but similar fates awaited discarded warplanes from other nations.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-niAd8ul4y2E/YFk2flot9MI/AAAAAAACkV0/gq5OvZ9EWKgvz_0O1TmsxFJfNASnJw5EwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Kingman_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Kingman AFB storing World War II aircraft worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="640" height="380" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-niAd8ul4y2E/YFk2flot9MI/AAAAAAACkV0/gq5OvZ9EWKgvz_0O1TmsxFJfNASnJw5EwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h380/Kingman_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Kingman AFB storing World War II aircraft worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">World War II planes being stored at Kingman AFB. There were roughly 5500 surplus aircraft there at one point.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<h2>Most Warplanes Were Destined for the Scrapyard</h2><div>While warplanes were made as quickly and cheaply as possible to meet the urgent national security need, they contained valuable materials. Thus, most planes were salvaged.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3vEL-3VyzJ0/YFkM5TiTPRI/AAAAAAACkUk/KRxaxrszKrAz_b83cgNVMvmmlZmS6gGuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s448/Best_Years_Of_Our_Lives_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black;"><img alt="Onta4rio Army Airfield in The Best Years of Our Lives worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="448" height="458" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3vEL-3VyzJ0/YFkM5TiTPRI/AAAAAAACkUk/KRxaxrszKrAz_b83cgNVMvmmlZmS6gGuwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h458/Best_Years_Of_Our_Lives_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.gif" title="Onta4rio Army Airfield in The Best Years of Our Lives worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dana Andrews walks through a "boneyard" while filming "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946). This one was located at Ontario Army Airfield, California (located 1.6 km east of Ontario).</td></tr></tbody></table>The War Assets Administration (WAA) and the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) handled the salvaging and disposal of left-over aircraft. They established 30 sales-storage depots and 23 sales centers around the country. Key components considered to still have some value such as engines were removed. The rest was shoved into a blast furnace and melted down for scrap.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8EAyCv_SWL8/YFkQhBHcp1I/AAAAAAACkUs/bUYX7Le1cXcstVQvzATmU5hO50PYWPoEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s448/Best_Years_Of_Our_Lives_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Best Years of Our Lives worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="448" height="458" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8EAyCv_SWL8/YFkQhBHcp1I/AAAAAAACkUs/bUYX7Le1cXcstVQvzATmU5hO50PYWPoEgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h458/Best_Years_Of_Our_Lives_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.gif" title="The Best Years of Our Lives worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"We're breaking them up" - the epitaph for most World War II warplanes. "The Best Years Or Our Lives" (1946).</td></tr></tbody></table>There was enough aluminum in most planes of the era to make the smelting process profitable. It was melted down ingots and sold to airlines and other customers. These airport salvage yards were located at Kingman, Arizona, Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, and many similar locations. Some planes went into long-term storage at desert locations such as Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, and Kingman, but that just postponed their eventual fate. It took a few years to dispose of these aircraft, but the massive job at Kingman was completed by 1949, when the air force base itself was declared surplus and returned to civil authorities.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dHzO9CUvmJ8/YFk1LLPw4dI/AAAAAAACkVs/4CoaqMLUX8AtwI0OUnBDpxAz5LVFUWd9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/B-29_bombers_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="B-29s parked at Davis-Monthan AFB worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="640" height="238" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dHzO9CUvmJ8/YFk1LLPw4dI/AAAAAAACkVs/4CoaqMLUX8AtwI0OUnBDpxAz5LVFUWd9QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h238/B-29_bombers_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="B-29s parked at Davis-Monthan AFB worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">B-29 bombers in long-term storage at Davis-Monthan AFB a few years after World War II. Eventually, they were melted down like their predecessors except for some selected for museums.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><h2>Airlines Bought Some Surplus Air Force Cargo Planes</h2><div>During World War II, the Allies gave a lot of thought to the future of civil aviation in the post-war era. The Chicago Conference in 1944 led to the "Five Freedoms of the Air" (a play on President Franklin Roosevelt's famous "Four Freedoms"). These required reciprocal flyover and landing rights for international airlines and created the International Civil Aviation Organization as part of the United Nations. This regulated safety and set the standards for international air travel. L. Welch Pogue, chairman of the Civil Aeronautics Board, helped shape the Bermuda Agreement of 1946, which detailed routes, rates, and air rights between the United States and Great Britain. The world was ready to move and it didn't need old bombers to do so.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WaGcpoMazK0/YFkWXs_fkCI/AAAAAAACkU0/KXkvcIhAZHEVMRGmn3IsZ8KIB2mSYYJQACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Cuban_DC-3_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="A Cuban DC-3 in 1946 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="261" data-original-width="640" height="260" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WaGcpoMazK0/YFkWXs_fkCI/AAAAAAACkU0/KXkvcIhAZHEVMRGmn3IsZ8KIB2mSYYJQACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h260/Cuban_DC-3_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="A Cuban DC-3 in 1946 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Cuban DC-3 in 1946. These planes were perfect for the short hop from Havana to Miami.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The "Five Freedoms of the Air" and other innovations led to a post-war airline boom. Not all military aircraft were suitable for civilian use, but some were perfect for it. Over 10,000 Douglas DC-3 cargo planes were made for the military under the designations C-47, C-53, R4D, and Dakota, and most survived the war. While airlines had been buying DC-3s for years (it was actually a pre-war aircraft), many airlines saw a surge in business after the war and snapped them up. In fact, there were so many available that an improved version, the Super DC-3, failed to sell because there were so many surplus DC-3s available. Used DC-3s sold for their original 1930s price of about $60,000 - $80,000 into the 1960s.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a1MMknj5dBs/YFkZgjy2e-I/AAAAAAACkU8/71DzRJC5z_84azh4vnmk0Glzo_XfO-69ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Stewart_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Jimmy Stewart and Joe De Bona with their P-51C worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a1MMknj5dBs/YFkZgjy2e-I/AAAAAAACkU8/71DzRJC5z_84azh4vnmk0Glzo_XfO-69ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h640/Stewart_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Jimmy Stewart and Joe De Bona with their P-51C worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Jimmy Stewart and his partner, Joe De Bona, with their P-52C fighter that has been converted to racing use (Allan Grant/LIFE Magazine).</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>Private Collectors Bought Some Desirable Warplanes</h2><div>Some World War II warplanes were sold to private collectors. They used them for personal use, commercial purposes, or in air races. The surplus planes were not expensive at all. Individuals could buy a BT-13 trainer for as little as $450 or a B-24 bomber for $13,750. That's right, you could buy your very own bomber for less than $15k. You just had to plunk down the cash and fly it out of there - if you knew how. Few took up the offer.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QHksTuO92dU/YFk59NZlneI/AAAAAAACkV8/ECIQqneyejw-WxrnOaO2E9ymXzpRSXSEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Stewart_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Jimmy Stewart and his P-51C worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="640" height="476" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QHksTuO92dU/YFk59NZlneI/AAAAAAACkV8/ECIQqneyejw-WxrnOaO2E9ymXzpRSXSEQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h476/Stewart_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Jimmy Stewart and his P-51C worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jimmy Stewart posing in front of his very own P-51C "Thunderbird" ca. 1949, apparently after winning the Bendix Trophy.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>One such private collector was the actor and World War II hero <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/12/jimmy-stewart-world-war-ii-hero.html" target="_blank">James "Jimmy" Stewart</a>. While Stewart flew bombers, not fighters, he picked up a war surplus <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/09/p-51-mustang.html" target="_blank">P-51C</a> through his company, Joe De Bona Racing Co. (Stewart was partners with pilot Joe De Bona). It took some time to convert the warplane to racing uses by removing the self-sealing fuel cells, the fuselage fuel tank, military propellers, and other specialized attributes, but it proved to be a profitable purchase. The plane, "Thunderbird," became the 1949 Bendix Trophy Race winner.</div><div><br /></div><div>Another private collector was famed stunt pilot (and World War II veteran) Paul Mantz. He purchased a total of 475 wartime surplus bombers and fighters (including North American P-51C Mustang fighters) for $55,000 to use in film work. Mantz paid very little on a per-plane basis by buying in bulk, and he liked to joke that he had "the sixth-largest air force in the world." Like Stewart (who may have gotten the idea from him), Mantz also used one of his surplus P-51s to win the Bendix Trophy for three consecutive years (1946-1948). Ultimately, Mantz sold almost all of his war surplus planes for scrap to recover his initial investment and make a profit.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qCEu0v9UNhY/YFklXItma_I/AAAAAAACkVM/u2QUu6o1UooBmJSWD2dNUi7wk8ubDKa4wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Civil_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Civil P-51D worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="640" height="460" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qCEu0v9UNhY/YFklXItma_I/AAAAAAACkVM/u2QUu6o1UooBmJSWD2dNUi7wk8ubDKa4wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h460/Civil_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Civil P-51D worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A P-51D in private hands, seen at Oakland Airport in December 1958.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>So, the US Army Air Force sold even its latest fighters for surplus after the war. As Jimmy Stewart show, they could outfly any civilian aircraft. It's unlikely that you could buy a late-model USAF fighter today, but Elon Musk says the Russians will even sell their old ICBMs. Maybe a Mig fighter would do. However, there weren't enough collectors after World War II to keep many planes out of the boneyard.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BRu10Qj8_Yk/YFkjNisN9kI/AAAAAAACkVE/jwsZDFl9eL0OTPZapKL5b8sxecu1TlHmwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Forestry_Service_DC-3_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Forestry Service DC-3 in 1968 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="504" data-original-width="640" height="504" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BRu10Qj8_Yk/YFkjNisN9kI/AAAAAAACkVE/jwsZDFl9eL0OTPZapKL5b8sxecu1TlHmwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h504/Forestry_Service_DC-3_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Forestry Service DC-3 in 1968 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Forestry Service DC-3 drops seedlings to the Rio Grande National Forest in 1968.</td></tr></tbody></table><div></div><h2>DC-3s In Other Government Uses</h2><div>Just as some DC-3s were repurposed by civilian airlines, the United States Government also found new uses for some. The Forest Service used the DC-3 for smoke jumping and general transportation for decades. The last example was not retired until December 2015.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jpLlLUWdkNY/YFkmi_0LG-I/AAAAAAACkVU/MQOti8hFJ8gqt31MIeuzw9s4lsYZZ3vlACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Greek_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Greek P-51D worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="427" data-original-width="640" height="428" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jpLlLUWdkNY/YFkmi_0LG-I/AAAAAAACkVU/MQOti8hFJ8gqt31MIeuzw9s4lsYZZ3vlACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h428/Greek_P-51_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Greek P-51D worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A P-51D Mustang in the Greek Air Force being used as a trainer, showing aviation cadet Othon Papadimitriou (Othon Papadimitriou Archive).</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>Foreign Air Forces</h2>Some warplanes gained an outsized reputation during World War II, which made them desirable to other countries' air forces. The Royal Hellenic Air Force (RHAF) (Greek), South African, and other air forces used them for years, even decades. It was not unusual to see military P-51s on foreign airfields into the 1970s. However, you couldn't give a Curtis P-40 or a <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2017/04/p-38-lightning-fork-tailed-devil.html">P-38 Lightning</a> away.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-peKHU0DQ6JU/YFksXeTadvI/AAAAAAACkVc/FWfgCdFcCgsHFDTZhQL2zS02FlYkXKE2QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/WWII_Aviation_Museum_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Museum of WWII Aviation worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-peKHU0DQ6JU/YFksXeTadvI/AAAAAAACkVc/FWfgCdFcCgsHFDTZhQL2zS02FlYkXKE2QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/WWII_Aviation_Museum_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Museum of WWII Aviation worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The National Museum of World War II Aviation has a large collection of World War II aircraft.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>A Few Warplanes Wound Up in Museums</h2><div>There was not much demand at first from museums for World War II warplanes, but it has surged over time. Now, museums will go to great lengths and spend large sums of money to retrieve crashed planes from the bottom of the ocean or in the Arctic. The National Museum of World War II Aviation at an airport on the outskirts of Colorado Springs, Colorado, has probably the best collection of World War II military airplanes outside of the Smithsonian and perhaps a few other national museums. It is so popular that there are tentative plans to build a new home for it in downtown Colorado Springs.</div><div><br /></div><div>The planes that wound up in museums often just missed the wrecker due to their fame. The two most famous World War II museum planes, "Enola Gay" and "Bockscar," dropped the atom bombs on Japan in 1945. They were both at Davis-Monthan at one point and, but for their notoriety, would have wound up in the smelter along with the thousands of other B-29s parked there.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2JRTN7aU22Y/YFkt9uYFQRI/AAAAAAACkVk/7nDO7mZRVCkzliv1w3Pb1chaXkO7N-fUACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/P-51s_in_Korea_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="P-51 fighters in Korea in the 1950s worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="640" height="332" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2JRTN7aU22Y/YFkt9uYFQRI/AAAAAAACkVk/7nDO7mZRVCkzliv1w3Pb1chaXkO7N-fUACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h332/P-51s_in_Korea_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="P-51 fighters in Korea in the 1950s worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">P-51s in Korea in the early 1950s.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><h2>Some World War II Planes Remained in the Air Force</h2><div>Because the end of World War II coincided with the changeover to jet aircraft, most planes from that conflict already were obsolete when the war ended. Jet bombers and fighters were on the drawing boards and, in a few cases, already on the airfields. Some World War II planes remained in service, but, aside from cargo planes where speed was not a top priority, most were replaced quickly.</div><div><br /></div>The United States Army Air Force continued after World War II, of course, and it continued to use some of the planes from that conflict. Its successor, the US Air Force, used some P-51s during the Korean conflict in the 1950s. By then, the P-51 was unsuited for its original air superiority role, so it was relegated usually to ground attack operations. The P-51 also was redesignated as the F-51 and called "fighter" aircraft rather than "pursuit" planes.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-am7mpQfa9eY/YFk7GH_VpUI/AAAAAAACkWE/ra5883Dc0GsrWhWFvrmULoqekcoiBktngCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/B-24s_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="B-24 bombers waiting to be scrapped worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="640" height="516" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-am7mpQfa9eY/YFk7GH_VpUI/AAAAAAACkWE/ra5883Dc0GsrWhWFvrmULoqekcoiBktngCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h516/B-24s_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="B-24 bombers waiting to be scrapped worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">B-24 bombers in the boneyard.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><h2>Conclusion</h2>While World War II airplanes went to a variety of uses after the war, the vast majority were scrapped at central locations around the United States. They went on to new lives as the automobiles, toasters, and ovens that the post-war population wanted a lot more than now-useless military planes.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f9VL6oilOdQ/YFlAA8w1OoI/AAAAAAACkWU/V-tG1hlts18Zn5YSMQt9QIDjYEtiUUvYgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/P-40s_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Curtis P-40 fighters after World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f9VL6oilOdQ/YFlAA8w1OoI/AAAAAAACkWU/V-tG1hlts18Zn5YSMQt9QIDjYEtiUUvYgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/P-40s_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Curtis P-40 fighters after World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curtis P-40 fighters stacked for disposal at Walnut Ridge AFB just after World War II.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-68959937191833330122021-03-09T10:17:00.002-07:002021-03-12T09:35:08.609-07:00Private SNAFU in "Censored"<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Loose Lips Sink Ships!</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M5N0S05HZOk/YEenF6zgwNI/AAAAAAACkOI/CyZwfQoGMrIRg_0vYmFhzIw2vdjMmfY0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="464" data-original-width="640" height="464" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M5N0S05HZOk/YEenF6zgwNI/AAAAAAACkOI/CyZwfQoGMrIRg_0vYmFhzIw2vdjMmfY0gCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h464/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" title="Private SNAFU in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Private SNAFU's girlfriend Sally Lou has a prominent supporting role in "Censored."</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Some rules of the military are eternal. Of top priority among them is the need for proper security. Educating soldiers during World War II was a massive undertaking. There were new recruits pouring in straight off of farms and out of pool halls, many of whom had a grade school education - if that. The US Army had to find a way to reach these young, unfettered minds in a way they would keep their attention. So, mundane training films were spiced up a bit just to keep the boys from nodding off.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The US Army Signal Corps, staffed by well-known Hollywood pros who had been drafted or volunteered for service, created a lot of propaganda during World War II. Hollywood studios big and small donated their assets for wartime productions, so these efforts were of top quality using processes and actors that would have been used for typical shorts released by the studios during peacetime. Top director Frank Capra ("It's a Wonderful Life") came up with the title character of Private SNAFU, while animation legend Chuck Jones and other top animators saw to it that everything was executed properly. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RBbbsIcBW5c/YEehE40knsI/AAAAAAACkNw/eduuwUIzoocsJKZGvrCzF-y58yAJKnJ3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RBbbsIcBW5c/YEehE40knsI/AAAAAAACkNw/eduuwUIzoocsJKZGvrCzF-y58yAJKnJ3ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="Private SNAFU in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Private SNAFU gets busy underneath his blankets... writing letters home. There were obvious double entendres going on in all of these shorts.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">While many people associate animation with Disney, Warner Brothers Animation Studios led the effort in several animation areas (producer Leon Schlesinger at WB actually underbid Walt Disney, who could have used the business after several financial setbacks, by two-thirds). One of these animation projects was the "Private SNAFU" series of patriotic shorts.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">SNAFU stands for "Situation Normal, All Fouled Up," a common phrase in the military where things never seemed to go according to plan (use your imagination as to what common four-letter word was usually substituted for "Fouled"). There were 26 black-and-white Private SNAFU shorts in all, produced between 1943 and 1945. The shorts were created to instruct service personnel in an entertaining fashion about security issues, proper sanitation habits, booby traps, and other military subjects. A major aim was to improve troop morale, but they also covered many other topics that could mean life or death to an unwary soldier.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KkNlrv0iqn8/YEeklHnIwBI/AAAAAAACkOA/UwMbb4z4ptYOrlXiRaVX4tJOGMdrIwHKgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAF in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="112" data-original-width="200" height="358" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KkNlrv0iqn8/YEeklHnIwBI/AAAAAAACkOA/UwMbb4z4ptYOrlXiRaVX4tJOGMdrIwHKgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h358/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.webp" title="Private SNAF in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back home, Private SNAFU's girlfriend quickly gets on the phone to tell her mother about the "big surprise" of where he is being sent.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The Private SNAFU shorts were intended for a military audience (the name of the series itself indicates that), so, by definition, they were not aimed at children. Thus, many of the Private SNAFU shorts, like this one, contain numerous elements that were considered too risque for general audiences of that time. But this was okay, because everyone to whom these shorts were being shown was assumed to be at least age 18. Making the shorts a bit salacious also made them relevant to tired GIs who probably had little patience for yet another boring instructional film.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8mPTCSI-ulg/YEeoji0i62I/AAAAAAACkOQ/dazNeLQTSaED9jzPVBkvMyX7kfN51MHpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAF in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="112" data-original-width="200" height="358" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8mPTCSI-ulg/YEeoji0i62I/AAAAAAACkOQ/dazNeLQTSaED9jzPVBkvMyX7kfN51MHpgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h358/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.webp" title="Private SNAF in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Censored" has the usual stereotypes of the era.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">As an example, "Booby Traps" was aimed squarely at making sure that soldiers understood there were hidden dangers everywhere despite their innocuous surroundings. Attractive-looking things could be deadly, and there were people out there who did not have the GI's best interests at heart. As the cartoon proceeds, Private SNAFU comes to realize too late that just because something is fun and readily available doesn't mean that he should partake of its pleasures. That includes, among other things, attractive women, musical instruments, and food and drink. Oh, and a little fellow wearing a Hitler mustache.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qrbH6FXUy6U/YEeqU91EJUI/AAAAAAACkOY/9f3S2ENVelYvoV_Ob9lPQ6EhhzoWYOS1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAF in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="112" data-original-width="200" height="358" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qrbH6FXUy6U/YEeqU91EJUI/AAAAAAACkOY/9f3S2ENVelYvoV_Ob9lPQ6EhhzoWYOS1QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h358/Censored_Private_SNAFU_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.webp" title="Private SNAF in Censored worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Private SNAFU has a nightmare about what might happen if he tells Sally Lou all of his military security and finally wakes up to the danger.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Voice legend Mel Blanc provides most of the voices in this short directed by Frank Tashlin with music by Carl Stalling, and written by Warren Foster. Does that voice sound like Tweaky from "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century"? It does to me!</div></div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/R_VyW6Gc_DA" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div>Other Private SNAFU shorts:</div><div><br /></div><div>"<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2021/03/sexy-private-snafu-cartoons-of-wwii.html">The Home Front</a>"</div><div>"<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2021/03/private-snafu-booby-traps.html">Booby Traps</a>"</div><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-25350836395662799782021-03-08T09:34:00.002-07:002021-03-12T09:33:42.713-07:00Private SNAFU: Booby Traps<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Situation Normal, All Fouled Up</h1><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vbXkvWcYG_A/YEZCbg_r7GI/AAAAAAACkMQ/05HPftwERnAQLLkZIOaZaRFbAN5a6gxQwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Private_SNAFU_Booby_Traps_12.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="640" height="404" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vbXkvWcYG_A/YEZCbg_r7GI/AAAAAAACkMQ/05HPftwERnAQLLkZIOaZaRFbAN5a6gxQwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h404/Private_SNAFU_Booby_Traps_12.jpg" title="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Drug use was an issue during World War II just as it is today.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Educating soldiers during World War II was a massive undertaking. There were literally millions of new recruits straight off of farms and out of pool halls, many of whom didn't even have a high school education. The US Army had to find a way to reach them in a way they could easily understand.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The US Army Signal Corps, largely staffed by Hollywood pros who had been drafted or volunteered for service, created a lot of propaganda during World War II. The big Hollywood studios donated their assets for wartime productions, so these efforts were of top quality using processes and actors that would have been used for typical shorts released by the studios during peacetime.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OBrHzXfWU5M/YEZOvjnXTwI/AAAAAAACkMg/tHl0KVvcMBkesHu1D93W2CkW4c-_fP2qQCLcBGAsYHQ/s266/Booby_Traps_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_16.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="266" height="481" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OBrHzXfWU5M/YEZOvjnXTwI/AAAAAAACkMg/tHl0KVvcMBkesHu1D93W2CkW4c-_fP2qQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h481/Booby_Traps_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_16.webp" title="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nobody ever accused the US Army of being subtle!</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">While many people associate animation with Disney, Warner Brothers Animation Studios led the effort in several animation areas. One of these was the "Private SNAFU" series of patriotic shorts. SNAFU stands for "Situation Normal, All Fouled Up," a common phrase in the military where things always didn't seem to go according to plan (use your imagination as to what common four-letter word was usually substituted for "Fouled"). There were 26 black-and-white Private SNAFU shorts in all, produced between 1943 and 1945. The shorts were created to instruct service personnel in an entertaining fashion about security issues, proper sanitation habits, booby traps, and other military subjects. A major aim was to improve troop morale, but they also covered many other topics that could mean life or death to an unwary soldier.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UCUXJ-2rmY4/YEZElzsLvrI/AAAAAAACkMY/3b1CtaLKGIA1oJ4OgKdw6Omk_Dbl8dLuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Private_SNAFU_Booby_Traps_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_13.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UCUXJ-2rmY4/YEZElzsLvrI/AAAAAAACkMY/3b1CtaLKGIA1oJ4OgKdw6Omk_Dbl8dLuwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Private_SNAFU_Booby_Traps_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_13.jpg" title="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Private SNAFU finds out that not following the Army's instructions can lead to dire consequences.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The Private SNAFU shorts were intended for a military audience (the name of the series itself indicates that), so, by definition, they were not aimed at children. Thus, many of the Private SNAFU shorts, like this one, contain numerous elements that were considered too risque for general audiences of that time. But this was okay, because everyone to whom these shorts were being shown was assumed to be at least age 18. Making the shorts a bit salacious also made them relevant to tired GIs who probably had little patience for yet another boring instructional film.</div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x4HCuCzryC8/YEY2HymeBoI/AAAAAAACkLw/xqPJm3ew4XwOBFtExjjNV6WNEuC2tXhIACLcBGAsYHQ/s267/The_Home_Front_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="267" height="479" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x4HCuCzryC8/YEY2HymeBoI/AAAAAAACkLw/xqPJm3ew4XwOBFtExjjNV6WNEuC2tXhIACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h479/The_Home_Front_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.gif" title="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As usual, Private SNAFU gets distracted by non-military attractions, something the Army definitely frowned upon.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>As an example, "Booby Traps" was aimed squarely at making sure that soldiers understood there were hidden dangers everywhere despite their innocuous surroundings. Attractive-looking things could be deadly, and there were people out there who did not have the GI's best interests at heart. As the cartoon proceeds, Private SNAFU comes to realize too late that just because something is fun and readily available doesn't mean that he should partake of its pleasures. That includes, among other things, attractive women, musical instruments, and food and drink. Oh, and a little fellow wearing a Hitler mustache.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5GnyfyVBXJQ/YEY5NcoKW5I/AAAAAAACkMA/ovUzyxbJdQcOenPE61b86u26W5c9OLQfACLcBGAsYHQ/s267/Booby_Traps_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_10.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="267" height="479" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5GnyfyVBXJQ/YEY5NcoKW5I/AAAAAAACkMA/ovUzyxbJdQcOenPE61b86u26W5c9OLQfACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h479/Booby_Traps_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_10.gif" title="Private SNAFU Booby Traps worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An unexpected but oddly familiar visitor rings a bell to get Private SNAFU's attention in "Booby Traps."</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Voice legend Mel Blanc provides most of the voices in this short directed by Bob Clampett, with music by Carl Stalling, and written by Warren Foster. Does that voice sound like Bug Bunny? It does to me! Mel Blanc voiced them both, beginning with "A Wild Hare" in 1940.</div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9WRZUxeLRgk" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div>Other Private SNAFU shorts:</div><div><br /></div><div>"<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2021/03/private-snafu-in-censored.html">Censored</a>"</div><div>"<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2021/03/sexy-private-snafu-cartoons-of-wwii.html">Home Front</a>"</div><div><br /></div><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-89124041512810539282021-03-07T19:06:00.009-07:002021-03-12T09:31:33.355-07:00Sexy Private SNAFU Cartoons of WWII<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Situation Normal, All Fouled Up</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KdPqRntAS50/YEWEWa6EAWI/AAAAAAACkLY/zzQekYG7AV8pv8i6jfJDNG_FrWAQewxpQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Private_SNAFU_The_Home_Front_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="465" data-original-width="640" height="464" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KdPqRntAS50/YEWEWa6EAWI/AAAAAAACkLY/zzQekYG7AV8pv8i6jfJDNG_FrWAQewxpQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h464/Private_SNAFU_The_Home_Front_3.jpg" title="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"The Home Front" is an unusual look at morale-building within the US Army during World War II.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">The US Army Signal Corps, largely staffed by Hollywood pros who had been drafted or volunteered for service, created a lot of propaganda during World War II. The big Hollywood studios donated their assets for wartime productions, so these efforts were of top quality using processes and actors that would have been used for typical shorts released by the studios during peacetime.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fkWy2ygUMfY/YEWFNj2cvxI/AAAAAAACkLg/1nx3_jKxU9gZwrkl1RjDGJuDMxbE5NUbwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Private_SNAFU_The_Home_Front_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="640" height="474" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fkWy2ygUMfY/YEWFNj2cvxI/AAAAAAACkLg/1nx3_jKxU9gZwrkl1RjDGJuDMxbE5NUbwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h474/Private_SNAFU_The_Home_Front_2.jpg" title="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Illustrating the irreverent nature of "The Home Front," a "Technical Fairy First Class" gives our hero the "real scoop" on what's actually going on back in the States.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">While many people associate animation with Disney, Warner Brothers Animation Studios led the effort in several animation areas. One of these was the "Private SNAFU" series of patriotic shorts. SNAFU stands for "Situation Normal, All Fouled Up," a common phrase in the military where things always didn't seem to go according to plan (use your imagination as to what common four-letter word was usually substituted for "Fouled"). There were 26 black-and-white Private SNAFU shorts in all, produced between 1943 and 1945. The shorts were created to instruct service personnel in an entertaining fashion about security issues, proper sanitation habits, booby traps, and other military subjects. A major aim was to improve troop morale. </div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cnVNvmgkUz0/YEWGCZRmOcI/AAAAAAACkLo/KuScIJ9qWrQioU2Z00NvMafEw0WjL2cLQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Private_SNAFU_The_Home_Front_4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="640" height="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cnVNvmgkUz0/YEWGCZRmOcI/AAAAAAACkLo/KuScIJ9qWrQioU2Z00NvMafEw0WjL2cLQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h470/Private_SNAFU_The_Home_Front_4.jpg" title="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of Private SNAFU's misbeliefs about the homefront is that his sainted sister is hanging out in nightclubs where she is being eyed by smooth-talking horndogs. The Technical Fairy First Class sets him straight, however, that his sister actually has enlisted herself. It's fair to say that this particular image related more to soldiers worried that their girlfriends or wives were cheating on them than to worries about their sisters - which certainly did happen now and then.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Since the Private SNAFU shorts were intended for a military audience (the name of the series itself indicates that), they by definition were not aimed at children. Thus, many contain many elements that were considered too risque for general audiences.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Puo3mDYzSnM/YEWCsxanfJI/AAAAAAACkLQ/khfz59ZzVXwGO0CW6T65f7rYXsV28w1NwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/The_Home_Front_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="112" data-original-width="200" height="358" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Puo3mDYzSnM/YEWCsxanfJI/AAAAAAACkLQ/khfz59ZzVXwGO0CW6T65f7rYXsV28w1NwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h358/The_Home_Front_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.webp" title="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The dancer's pelvic thrust at the end of this clip was enough to get "The Home Front" banned.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>As an example, "The Home Front" was aimed squarely at troop morale. Soldiers resenting their separation from their families was addressed in "The Home Front," with a GI imagining that his family is living a life of ease while he is relegated to an uncomfortable outpost (which in this case appears to be Alaska). As the cartoon shows, however, everyone is pitching in for the war effort whether they are on the front lines or still at home. "The Home Front" has acquired an undeserved notorious reputation due to its being "banned," but there isn't anything in it that would offend modern audiences. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qAXuBkGY6gs/YEWA26PA-UI/AAAAAAACkLI/fFjcjAeMqrUT1s4TKD8fsxJFvi9VFpQMACLcBGAsYHQ/s480/The_Home_Front_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qAXuBkGY6gs/YEWA26PA-UI/AAAAAAACkLI/fFjcjAeMqrUT1s4TKD8fsxJFvi9VFpQMACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/The_Home_Front_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="The Home Front Private SNAFU worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is part of the sequence that got "The Home Front" banned. Grandad's reaction (and that of his binoculars) to the dancers was quite risque for the times and unmistakable.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Voice legend Mel Blanc provides most of the voices in this short directed by Frank Tashlin, with music by Carl Stalling, and written by Phil Eastman and Theodore Geisel - the latter better known as Dr. Seuss.</div><div><br /><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jkAqj_5CRNU" width="640"></iframe></center><div><br /></div><div>Other Private SNAFU shorts:</div><div>"<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2021/03/private-snafu-in-censored.html">Censored</a>"</div><div>"<a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2021/03/private-snafu-booby-traps.html">Booby Traps</a>"</div><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-71752489636139666192021-02-13T20:18:00.017-07:002021-02-16T16:18:20.977-07:00The Worst Strategy of World War II<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>A Dangerous Strategy Used By Both Sides During WWII</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0m_L6kEea3U/YCiFRjZWVCI/AAAAAAACkH4/vC6VDLmrX-UFB6el4MqZbA7_E6ALAtU4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1008/Stalingrad_14.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German POWs at Stalingrad worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="736" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0m_L6kEea3U/YCiFRjZWVCI/AAAAAAACkH4/vC6VDLmrX-UFB6el4MqZbA7_E6ALAtU4gCLcBGAsYHQ/w468-h640/Stalingrad_14.jpg" title="German POWs at Stalingrad worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="468" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German POWs at Stalingrad, awaiting their fate.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>There is a lot written about the biggest mistakes of World War II. Variously, some people put Adolf Hitler's decision to invade the Soviet Union or his declaration of war against the United States at the top of the list. And, those are good choices that combine the political and the military, but they were more decisions than strategy. Below these grand strategic questions, however, is another layer that combines elements of strategy and tactics and occurs much more often. This article is going to look at <b itemprop="name">the worst military strategy of World War II</b> that was practiced by both sides and had a low probability of success: the decision to "hold fast" in the face of overwhelming enemy power.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lufyVdHpoOg/YCiGqtOCK8I/AAAAAAACkII/Gdi0lMnUXpA_C8nrJOfM4yn6aV3Gjf-0ACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Paulus_Schmidt.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German POWs at Stalingrad worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="500" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lufyVdHpoOg/YCiGqtOCK8I/AAAAAAACkII/Gdi0lMnUXpA_C8nrJOfM4yn6aV3Gjf-0ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Paulus_Schmidt.jpg" title="German POWs at Stalingrad worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Field Marshal Paulus and General Schmidt leaving camp to surrender at Stalingrad.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<h2>The Most Common Mistake</h2><div>Easily the most common military strategy that has a huge likelihood of failure is to refuse to withdraw in the face of overpowering enemy strength. Forces that still have time to get away are told to "hold fast" and "wait for relief" when the odds of rescue are slim. It’s amazing how this happens over and over. While everyone pins the Reich’s defeat in part on Hitler’s repeated “stand fast” orders, in fact, it was a common tactic on both sides.</div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FUMJTM24Oyc/YCiFsNMviOI/AAAAAAACkIA/om6wpItRlvUzq-qBKJBO1dQgWMKkTsppQCLcBGAsYHQ/s736/Stalingrad_Italian_soldiers.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German POWs at Stalingrad worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="736" height="464" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FUMJTM24Oyc/YCiFsNMviOI/AAAAAAACkIA/om6wpItRlvUzq-qBKJBO1dQgWMKkTsppQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h464/Stalingrad_Italian_soldiers.jpg" title="German POWs at Stalingrad worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German POWs being marched east from Stalingrad.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>The Axis Ordered Many "Last Stands"</h2><div>Hitler’s most famous use of this “stand fast” tactic, at <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/02/stalingrad.html" target="_blank">Stalingrad</a>, became his most notorious defeat. "We shall hack you free!" he told the trapped men. Well, that didn't happen.</div><div><br /></div><div>However, just months before, <a href="https://worldwartwodaily2.filminspector.com/2021/01/april-21-1942-germans-relieve-demyansk.html" target="_blank">the strategy had succeeded for Hitler at Demyansk and Kholm.</a> In fact, it's arguable that the "stand fast" orders saved the entire Wehrmacht during the Soviet counteroffensive in front of Moscow in December 1941. "Holding fast" as a strategy doesn't always fail, it just has a low probability of success. </div><div><br /></div><div>It was only after the tides of war completely turned against Germany that refusing to authorize retreats became the common currency of the Wehrmacht's strategy. It became so routine that ordinary towns were routinely categorized as "fortresses" simply because that was where some unfortunate unit was to be told to make a last stand. The more this strategy was used, the less it worked, but even in 1945, the strategy did occasionally succeed (some German holdouts were even rescued during the failed Stargard counteroffensive, for instance). So, aside from accomplishing a more nihilistic goal of forcing the Allies to “bleed themselves white” reoccupying ground, the strategy did work just often enough to not be an absolute death sentence for the troops involved.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1xd3wbwUNCY/YCiIl9o2VgI/AAAAAAACkIQ/hL-1MoqkF208UtsqXdRgAf5QWoSihi8lACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Fallschirmjager_worldwartwo.filiminspector.com_50.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="German troops at Monte Cassino worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="640" height="444" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1xd3wbwUNCY/YCiIl9o2VgI/AAAAAAACkIQ/hL-1MoqkF208UtsqXdRgAf5QWoSihi8lACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h444/Fallschirmjager_worldwartwo.filiminspector.com_50.jpg" title="German troops at Monte Cassino worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The German defenders of Monte Cassino gave the Allies fits because they dug in and fought as part of a larger defensive line - and ultimately managed to get away to fight again.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Perhaps the most common justification for this tactic is "well, you have to hold somewhere." That's absolutely true. However, where you make a stand is as important as the fact that you make a stand. For instance, the right way to make a stand is as part of a defensive line. While the German parachute troops (<i><a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2017/04/fallschirmjager-german-paratroopers_10.html" target="_blank">Fallschirmjaeger</a></i>) at Monte Cassino held an exposed position, they did so as part of a larger defensive line that ran across the Italian peninsula. They could not be surrounded and had sources of supply and thus held out throughout the winter of 1943-1944. Just as in <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2016/01/the-sicily-invasion.html" target="_blank">Sicily</a> nine months earlier, the paratroopers finally withdrew and lived to fight another day, making the Italian campaign a nightmare for the Allies.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, while isolated on a mountain and undergoing grueling attacks, the German paratroopers accomplished something worthwhile for the German war effort before falling back in good order. This was at least as much as they could have accomplished if they were in some town surrounded by the enemy and told to fight to the last man. Operating as part of a cohesive defensive strategy is much different than being told to stay put in an exposed position where you could be attacked from all sides and given the cold comfort of an empty promise that "we'll save you - when we get the chance." You need to preserve your precious human assets during a long war, not just throw them away in some obviously futile gesture.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vGKIWmaOXz8/YCiJPhAIz2I/AAAAAAACkIY/SGTEpHew_80Seo8sAFHq_RHAmGoeR0CIgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/a_us_marine_demolition_team_blasting_hill_382_Iwo_Jima.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="An explosion on Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1024" height="510" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vGKIWmaOXz8/YCiJPhAIz2I/AAAAAAACkIY/SGTEpHew_80Seo8sAFHq_RHAmGoeR0CIgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h510/a_us_marine_demolition_team_blasting_hill_382_Iwo_Jima.jpg" title="An explosion on Iwo Jima worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Japanese defenders of Iwo Jima were told to fight and die there, and that is what they did - virtually to the last man. What did that accomplish? Not much, because it was not part of a consistent defensive effort.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The Japanese were notorious for garrisoning islands like <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2017/11/iwo-jima-operation-detachment.html" target="_blank">Iwo Jima</a> and then basically wiping their hands of them. The strategy was for these island garrisons to fight to the last man and then succumb either at the enemies' hands or their own. Fighting to the death for worthless islands, the thinking went, would make the Allies' progress across the vast Pacific so costly that it ultimately would fail or at least slow it down interminably. While the US did invade Iwo Jima in Operation Detachment, it did not slow them down. The US Navy successfully undermined this strategy with its "island-hopping" strategy, a form of encirclement.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fIy_RJ7H4ds/YCiLCOM6XzI/AAAAAAACkIg/CcCH7liQJRAtPYSBE7eSfWtZ2WdeiqLCwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Japanese_on_Attu_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Japanese troops invade the Aleutian Islands worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="640" height="452" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fIy_RJ7H4ds/YCiLCOM6XzI/AAAAAAACkIg/CcCH7liQJRAtPYSBE7eSfWtZ2WdeiqLCwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h452/Japanese_on_Attu_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Japanese troops invade the Aleutian Islands worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In a smart strategic move, the Japanese evacuated their forces in the Aleutians literally days before the Allies planned to invade.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>To the credit of the Japanese, they had two of the most effective withdrawals from hopeless positions of the war. These were at Guadalcanal in early February 1943 and the Aleutians that August. The Aleutians evacuation was so effective that the Allies actually invaded the Japanese-held islands only to find they had already left. It’s hard to imagine what point there would have been for the Japanese to leave the troops there to fight to the last man as usual. The Japanese undoubtedly made the right decisions and the troops were able to fight somewhere else. These two brilliant withdrawals proved the point that timely retreats from exposed positions are worthwhile strategies and certainly better than just leaving the troops there to die or be captured.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HRr4bOH76J8/YCiM8MDkucI/AAAAAAACkIo/1_uwI_pYvyEfx1wWQb0vusabJOdrKKbgwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Bastogne_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Defenders of Bastogne worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="335" data-original-width="640" height="336" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HRr4bOH76J8/YCiM8MDkucI/AAAAAAACkIo/1_uwI_pYvyEfx1wWQb0vusabJOdrKKbgwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h336/Bastogne_worldwartwo.filminspector.jpg" title="Defenders of Bastogne worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The US defense of the crossroads at Bastogne turned into a stirring victory that just as easily could have become a disaster.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<h2>The Allies "Held Fast" to Their Detriment, Too</h2><div>Usually, any analysis of this "hold fast" doctrine ends there. The implication is that the Axis used this strategy out of desperation and that is why they lost. You read all the time about "Hitler's insane hold-fast orders." You'd think that only the Germans and Japanese believed in ordering their men to stay in virtually hopeless positions.</div><div><br /></div><div>But, that's not the case. Less publicized are instances when the Allies used this “stand fast” strategy. When Hitler did it, well, it was just because he was a crazed maniac, but when the Allies did it, circumstances just turned out wrong. Right? At least, that’s how the history books would have it. So, having made that bold statement, let’s give a couple of examples.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sHf4ckpO0sw/YCiC66bgC2I/AAAAAAACkHw/HsXgupypUyIwMijAtnC9Mn_soCn0PAtegCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Bataan_Death_March_10_Arpl_1942_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Bataan Death March of April 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="413" data-original-width="640" height="412" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sHf4ckpO0sw/YCiC66bgC2I/AAAAAAACkHw/HsXgupypUyIwMijAtnC9Mn_soCn0PAtegCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h412/Bataan_Death_March_10_Arpl_1942_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Bataan Death March of April 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">US POWs during the Bataan Death March of April 1942.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>As our first example, the United States left 100,000 men in Bataan in April 1942 when there were clear signs that they had no hope of winning. The Japanese power centers were closer, they had growing control of the sea around the Philippines, and the US was virtually powerless to reinforce General Douglas MacArthur’s troops. Japanese strength was increasing and the Allied strength was decreasing at a consistent rate throughout the confrontation.</div><div><br /></div><div>A weird sense of complacency settled over the US high command as they relied on shaky Filipino allies to hold major portions of the Main Defense Line across the neck of the Bataan peninsula. It can be argued that the US couldn’t evacuate for this or that reason, but the attempt was never even made during the four months available and the supply clerks there were still ordering mundane supplies as the threat grew. This all led to the infamous <a href="https://worldwartwodaily2.filminspector.com/2020/09/april-10-1942-bataan-death-march.html" target="_blank">Bataan Death March</a>. You never see the US strategy described as a failed Hitler-like “stand fast” strategy even though that is exactly what it was. It’s hard to see any positive effect on overall US strategy from the way the Bataan battle was conducted, and it badly damaged the Allied morale.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-173Kg358FcA/YCiOCeZ6pDI/AAAAAAACkIw/y8vONn1QOqUf_Ik3pxoFapwbw8p7dp_QgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/St_Vith_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Defense of St. Vith worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="640" height="482" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-173Kg358FcA/YCiOCeZ6pDI/AAAAAAACkIw/y8vONn1QOqUf_Ik3pxoFapwbw8p7dp_QgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h482/St_Vith_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Defense of St. Vith worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">US troops dug in at St. Vith, which the Germans eventually took at great cost to both sides (US Army).</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The US Army had varied success with this “stand fast” strategy, just like all the other major powers. Everyone remembers the successful valiant stand made at Bastogne. Nobody, however, really likes to talk about the failed attempt to hold nearby St. Vith. The Americans by then, fortunately for them, had learned their lessons and ordered a fairly successful withdrawal from St. Vith at the last minute and standing there did have some marginal positive effects for the Allies. However, the Germans also did acquire a lot of badly needed supplies there when they finally occupied the town. When you attempt to hold an exposed position against overwhelming force, you are simply gambling when there really is no need to gamble at all.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TRQX4mC4K2k/YCiCbIeyKAI/AAAAAAACkHo/uoTRiuvOBfYoS0yKqtnSIApFqorEo910ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Singapore_15_February_1942_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="British surrender at Singapore 15 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="640" height="472" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TRQX4mC4K2k/YCiCbIeyKAI/AAAAAAACkHo/uoTRiuvOBfYoS0yKqtnSIApFqorEo910ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h472/Singapore_15_February_1942_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="British surrender at Singapore 15 February 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">British General Percival (not shown) was forced to surrender at Singapore on 15 February 1942 due to a failed “hold fast” strategy. Some consider this the most humiliating defeat in British military history.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Second, let’s talk about <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/02/why-did-singapore-fall-so-quickly.html" target="_blank">the fall of Singapore.</a> The British were not immune to this “stand fast” tendency, either. The British troops in the Malayan peninsula had absolutely no success holding the Japanese anywhere as they retreated - at times running - back toward Singapore. Still, the British both in Singapore and London acted as if nothing was wrong virtually until the white flag of surrender was raised on <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2019/09/february-15-1942-japan-takes-singapore.html" target="_blank">15 February 1942</a>. In fact, the British were sending troops into Singapore in the final days, not taking them out. Some Commonwealth soldiers remembered walking off the transports almost directly into the POW camps. Yes, the argument can be made that there was no hope of withdrawal, but no serious attempt was made while there was still time to do so (and they had two full months), so we’ll never know. Once again, all sorts of excuses are made about how “nobody foresaw” the defeat and so forth, but that’s a job for the military - to understand the real situation and act prudently. Nobody foresaw it because they didn’t want to even though there were tell-tale signs all along.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yDxJba_M1JI/YCiPL_ZgnxI/AAAAAAACkI4/JrX95beBz_QX3MqGJueAkC08yA3s-KHqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Kiev_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Soviet POWs at Kiev worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="449" data-original-width="640" height="448" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yDxJba_M1JI/YCiPL_ZgnxI/AAAAAAACkI4/JrX95beBz_QX3MqGJueAkC08yA3s-KHqgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h448/Kiev_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Soviet POWs at Kiev worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soviet prisoners under guard after the defeat at Kiev (Scherl/Global Look Press).</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Third, how about the Soviet Union? Soviet troops stood fast throughout Operation Barbarossa and the Germans simply drove around to encircle them. This famously happened, for instance, at Kiev (Kyiv), but also in many lesser-known battles such as Vyazma and Bryansk. One can ascribe these encirclements to swift German advances and overall superiority, but really they were the result of Soviet (primarily Stalin’s) refusal to accept reality and withdraw. Germans were astonished at Kharkiv in May 1942 when the Soviets didn’t even try to rescue their trapped comrades in a huge pocket there. Stalin just wrote off hundreds of thousands of troops because he did not want to acknowledge defeat.</div><div><br /></div><div>The argument that these encirclements “slowed the Germans down” is easy to make, but sacrificing literally hundreds of thousands of troops in each battle really isn’t a very efficient strategy. It was only after the Soviets accepted reality in mid-1942 and made some withdrawals in a timely fashion (something Stalin didn’t exactly like) that things began to turn around for them.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fkfwnkv-eug/YCiQwxaR-xI/AAAAAAACkJA/itVR9qDQlEssKKvubXzTYAxO6MaDI3YoACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Arnhem_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="British POWs at Arnhem in September 1944 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="419" data-original-width="640" height="420" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fkfwnkv-eug/YCiQwxaR-xI/AAAAAAACkJA/itVR9qDQlEssKKvubXzTYAxO6MaDI3YoACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h420/Arnhem_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="British POWs at Arnhem in September 1944 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">British prisoners at Arnhem in September 1944. "Hold until relieved" they were ordered.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<h2>Conclusion</h2><div>You may think that the utter failure throughout the war of "hold fast" orders caused military strategists to reject this strategy in the post-war years. In fact, just the opposite happened. In the 1970s, NATO developed a "hedgehog" strategy wherein it was assumed that Warsaw Pact forces would sweep across Western Europe and brush aside all attempts at defensive lines. The working strategy was that the battered NATO troops would hold out in cities ("hedgehogs"), which for some reason were considered more defensible than other areas. This was just a prettified version of the Wehrmacht's "fortress" strategy that failed spectacularly on the Eastern Front. However, in a sense, the German strategy was affirmed as NATO concluded that it was the best available recourse for a greatly outmatched defender. In that situation, however, it was assumed that the US would just need a little time to come in full bore and rescue everyone.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, the most common failed military strategy is the decision not to order a withdrawal in a timely fashion, to believe that “holding out” has some magical property all its own. This strategy is so common that I can virtually guarantee you that it will happen again in future wars. Nobody wants to accept defeat or weakness, and that goes double for military commanders. Once in a while, the strategy does succeed - the Australians holding Port Moresby, for instance, or the Germans at Demyansk - but much more often, the strategy is doomed to failure. It usually only leads to more opportunities further back to “hold out” in the mistaken belief that this will hurt the enemy more than your own side. But, in essence, it is just a reflection of a common human inability to accept one's own limitations.</div></div><div><br /></div>
<span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-78637893040108120192021-02-07T00:21:00.025-07:002021-02-07T17:49:53.832-07:00How Much Did the Royal Navy Contribute to Victory in the Pacific?<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>In Search of Political Glory</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bu6fKA4jGXs/YB-LrcENahI/AAAAAAACkD4/GVSKXqFxuSwt7EUZXkCVXUhZM8PVdcoTQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Indefatigable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Seafires of 887 Sqn. on HMS Indefatigable in November 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="640" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bu6fKA4jGXs/YB-LrcENahI/AAAAAAACkD4/GVSKXqFxuSwt7EUZXkCVXUhZM8PVdcoTQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h400/HMS_Indefatigable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Seafires of 887 Sqn. on HMS Indefatigable in November 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seafire IIIs of RAF Nos. 887 and 894 Squadron aboard HMS Indefatigable en route from Australia to New Zealand in November 1945.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>An enduring question about World War II is how <b itemprop="name">much did the Royal Navy contribute to the defeat of Japan.</b> Let's take a closer look and see what the Royal Navy did, and why.</div><div><br /></div><div>United States control of the Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO) during World War II was a product of simple reality. The US Joint Chiefs of Staff acquired complete control of the PTO on <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2020/07/march-24-1942-bataan-bombarded.html" target="_blank">24 March 1942</a>. This was part of a “grand bargain” made between President Roosevelt, who asked explicitly in a <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2019/12/march-9-1942-japanese-conquest-of-dutch.html" target="_blank">9 March 1942</a> cable for US control of the PTO, and Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Roosevelt argued then that it was time to replace the "complexity" of the "obsolescent" command arrangements in the Pacific and give the United States military sole authority there, as the US already was planning "offensives in a northwesterly direction."</div><div><br /></div><div>This "complexity" Roosevelt referred to apparently meant nominal British political control over Australia and New Zealand while the United States now conclusively had established military control. The political chain of command interfered with the <i>de facto</i> military one. In effect, Roosevelt asked for US military hegemony in the Pacific. Churchill, still reeling from the loss of Singapore, quickly agreed.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lucff-qNavk/YB-JdQv9P7I/AAAAAAACkDw/gnNdqqxk5j02vMCW-MrwysrVEqoSYc6kQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Singapore_15_February_1942_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The fall of Singapore during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="640" height="472" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lucff-qNavk/YB-JdQv9P7I/AAAAAAACkDw/gnNdqqxk5j02vMCW-MrwysrVEqoSYc6kQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h472/Singapore_15_February_1942_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="The fall of Singapore during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942 was the major turning point in Royal Navy ambitions in the Pacific. It would not return in force until 1945.</td></tr></tbody></table><div></div><h2>After Early Losses, the British largely Abandon the Pacific</h2><div>Singapore was the cornerstone of British strength in the Pacific. <a href="https://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2020/02/why-did-singapore-fall-so-quickly.html" target="_blank">Its loss in February 1942</a> ended the longstanding British power east of India for some time. The British Admiralty realized the dangers of reinforcing the Indian Ocean, much less the Pacific, following the loss of battleship Prince of Wales and cruiser Repulse off the Malayan Peninsula in December 1941. The Royal Navy was hard-pressed just protecting the North Atlantic convoys and maintaining a credible defensive presence in the British Isles themselves. Many Royal Navy warships were being repaired in US shipyards throughout 1942 and 1943 and the Admiralty did not have the ships to spare for presumably profitless expeditions to the Pacific. The Australians basically accepted their abandonment by the British when they accepted US General Douglas MacArthur as the supreme commander in the Southwest Pacific Theater of Operations on <a href="https://worldwartwodaily.filminspector.com/2020/03/march-17-1942-macarthur-arrives-in.html" target="_blank">17 March 1942</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div><div>The successful Japanese Indian Ocean Raid of early April 1942 that threatened British control of India was another eye-opener. Royal Navy weakness in the region became obvious when it was forced to move its Asian command (at that time basically just covering the Indian Ocean) all the way back to Kilindini, Kenya, the old East Africa Station, on <a href="https://worldwartwodaily2.filminspector.com/2020/09/april-11-1942-sea-war-heats-up.html" target="_blank">11 April 1942</a>. There it remained under the command of Flag Officer, East Africa, Rear-Admiral A.D. Read and his successors until the Japanese threat to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) was considered ended. This showed that the British had their hands full just defending their bastion of strength in the Indian Ocean, much less operating in strength in the Pacific.</div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XRhmDxGiL20/YB9xIYxVLyI/AAAAAAACkDE/_9oA8YZl8TsiIqu1Q17y4D3GQuF3t575QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Victorious_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="HMS Victorious in 1943 while serving with the US Navy worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="640" height="466" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XRhmDxGiL20/YB9xIYxVLyI/AAAAAAACkDE/_9oA8YZl8TsiIqu1Q17y4D3GQuF3t575QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h466/HMS_Victorious_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpeg" title="HMS Victorious in 1943 while serving with the US Navy worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HMS Victorious in 1943, during its service in the Pacific with the US Navy. Note the light square painted on its flight deck toward the left. This was a decoy intended to appear to be a vulnerable elevator to Japanese pilots. The intent was to draw their aim to the strongest part of the armored flight deck.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>The Royal Navy Helps Out On Occasion</h2><div>The US Navy was hard-pressed in the PTO throughout 1942 and 1943. US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Ernest J. King always placed naval operations there as a priority and often requested Royal Navy assistance during this period (the first request, denied, was made immediately after the Battle of Midway in June 1942). The British, though, were loathe to dispatch ships from what they considered the all-important European Theater of Operations (ETO). Thus, the US Navy was left to carry the main burden in the PTO.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Royal Navy did help out when it had the ships to spare and assistance could prove useful. After a refit at the Norfolk, Virginia, naval yard, the carrier HMS Victorious (R 38), for instance, sailed to the Pacific through the Panama Canal on 14 February 1943. Victorious was given the radio call-sign “Robin” as a security/ deception measure, though it never actually became the USS Robin and flew the British flag. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HS68jq4Z82I/YB93_O1V2KI/AAAAAAACkDM/f9RHQP0S2lUX8axTYI5IhkKKbk3-FfPpwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Victorious_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="HMS Victorious in 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="503" data-original-width="640" height="504" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HS68jq4Z82I/YB93_O1V2KI/AAAAAAACkDM/f9RHQP0S2lUX8axTYI5IhkKKbk3-FfPpwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h504/HMS_Victorious_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="HMS Victorious in 1942 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HMS Victorious flight direction room sometime during 1942. This was a strength of all Royal Navy carriers.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Victorious served as part of the US Navy Third Fleet during much of the rest of 1943 as part of Carrier Division One. This was during a period when the US Navy was short of flight decks due to the loss of USS Hornet and damage to Enterprise in the Santa Cruz islands campaign. As part of Task Force 14 (later Task Group 36.3), Victorious covered the invasion of New Georgia during Operation Cartwheel and spent a record (for the Royal Navy) 28 consecutive days in combat operations at sea. Victorious was recalled in July when the first two new US Essex-class carriers arrived at Pearl Harbor ahead of schedule, ending the temporary US shortage of available flat tops. </div><div><div><br /></div></div><div>There was no unanimity on either side about the use of Royal Navy forces in the PTO during 1942-1944. Admiral Sir Percy Noble, head of the British Admiralty Delegation in Washington, advocated strongly for an increased Royal Navy presence in the PTO as early as January 1944. He had no influence. There was no political will for transferring forces to the PTO as long as the German Kriegsmarine remained a credible threat. So, everyone waited for major developments in the North Atlantic, which were a long time in coming.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EB-B8-oSHQM/YB95ClBlThI/AAAAAAACkDU/RnH7GUrhkIAXiwbQ39__pL1TI510j2y8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Tirpitz_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Tirpitz sunk in November 1944 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="478" data-original-width="640" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EB-B8-oSHQM/YB95ClBlThI/AAAAAAACkDU/RnH7GUrhkIAXiwbQ39__pL1TI510j2y8wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h478/Tirpitz_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Tirpitz sunk in November 1944 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sinking of the German battleship Tirpitz in November 1944 finally freed up Royal Navy forces for the Pacific.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>Sinking the Tirpitz Finally Frees Up Royal Navy Forces</h2><div>British preoccupation with protecting the home islands remained the reality until the sinking of the German battleship Tirpitz on 12 November 1944 after ceaseless British attacks on it throughout the war years. This was the turning point regarding a Royal Navy presence in the Pacific. The Admiralty finally concluded at that time that the world naval situation had changed, the British Isles were no longer in jeopardy, and it was time to begin transferring units to the Pacific Theater. In my estimation, this decision was political as much as a military one, as the Churchill government would have fallen if the Tirpitz somehow, against all the odds, turned up off the coast of England and began shelling British civilians.</div><div><br /></div><div>The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was inaugurated soon thereafter on 22 November 1944 (before that, the few Royal Navy ships in the theater were in the old prewar “Eastern Fleet”). It is important to emphasize that it was a British decision to keep all of the large Royal Navy forces in the Atlantic and leave the PTO to the Americans, this was not a decision that was imposed upon them. The British would have simply abandoned the PTO without the large US presence there.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7B5DGOZXmQg/YB-OOHNKzaI/AAAAAAACkEA/6uAg16r_sgIzWP_A__QiNsLtE8irxiINACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Implacable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="HMS Implacable worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="640" height="492" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7B5DGOZXmQg/YB-OOHNKzaI/AAAAAAACkEA/6uAg16r_sgIzWP_A__QiNsLtE8irxiINACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h492/HMS_Implacable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="HMS Implacable worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The crew of HMS Implacable of the BPF stowing an Avenger into the upper hangar in 1945 (Australian War Memorial <a href="https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/019034" target="_blank">No. 019034</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><div>It’s easy to think now that changes in things like naval fleets happen immediately or quickly. That was not the case during World War II (nor is it now, for that matter). The BPF took time to set up and its main base was at Sydney, with a forward base at Manus Island. This was considered quite adventurous, as more cautious minds in the Admiralty would have placed fleet headquarters all the way back in India.</div><div><br /></div><div>There was an immediate misunderstanding with the Australian government over funding for the BPF and related issues. These may seem like pesky details, but they take time to sort out, especially while there’s a war on and leaders have other major decisions to make. Ultimately, the Royal Navy fleet did not even arrive in the PTO until 4 February 1945, and it was not at what would consider “full strength” until June. The US Navy was completely accommodating to the Royal Navy’s new presence in the theater and gave the BPF combat units the name Task Force 57 (TF-57) when they joined Admiral Raymond Spruance's United States Fifth Fleet on 15 March 1945.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fScTj37mAd0/YB9fkMYM4nI/AAAAAAACkC8/WKrELx7IFjsF3_oqXDHFqaXxB5O_xdqLACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Formidable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="HMS Formidable on fire in May 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="496" data-original-width="640" height="496" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fScTj37mAd0/YB9fkMYM4nI/AAAAAAACkC8/WKrELx7IFjsF3_oqXDHFqaXxB5O_xdqLACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h496/HMS_Formidable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="HMS Formidable on fire in May 1945 worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;">HMS Formidable (as seen from Victorious) on fire after a Kamikaze hit off Sakishima Gunto on 4 May 1945. There were eight dead and 47 wounded, with eleven Allied aircraft destroyed (© IWM </span><a href="https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205193700" style="text-align: start;" target="_blank">A 29717</a><span style="text-align: start;">).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div><h2>The Royal Navy on the Attack in the Pacific</h2><div>There was some reluctance on both sides over the commitment of major Royal Navy assets in the PTO even after the sinking of the Tirpitz. To sum up the general feeling, the British were torn between sacrificing even more men in a war they considered basically won and upholding their national honor by helping to beat Japan. The Americans, on the other hand, were suspicious of the Royal Navy's ability to help in the PTO and also a bit skeptical of British motivations in trying to horn in on claiming partial credit for the US Navy success there.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P_JstlLPTS4/YB-QTfe_GgI/AAAAAAACkEI/rttuy7mNuy0r_pg3-fcZBkmvUh1mMFwEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s879/Admiral_King_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Admiral Ernest King worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="879" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P_JstlLPTS4/YB-QTfe_GgI/AAAAAAACkEI/rttuy7mNuy0r_pg3-fcZBkmvUh1mMFwEQCLcBGAsYHQ/w466-h640/Admiral_King_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Admiral Ernest King worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="466" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">US Admiral Ernest J. King didn't get Royal Navy help when he wanted it but did when he no longer needed it.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>US Fleet Admiral (as of 19 December 1944) Chester Nimitz, for instance, questioned the ability of Royal Navy ships that had been designed for the relatively confined sphere of operations in the ETO to operate on long-range missions in the PTO. Royal Navy Rear Admiral Philip Vian (in his memoir "Action This Day") recalled:</div><div><div></div><blockquote><div><b>Meanwhile, Admiral [Bruce] Fraser, appreciating fully the great importance, from a national point of view, of the Royal Navy engaging in the most modern type of sea warfare in company with the Americans who had perfected it, had been striving to convince Admiral Nimitz that the British would not only be able to operate alongside the Americans without calling on them for logistic aid, but that their Fleet would be of real help in the task which lay ahead – defeating Japan. He found that, like Admiral King, Admiral Nimitz felt that the fast United States carrier striking forces were perfectly capable of dealing, on their own, with the operations contemplated for the final reduction of the enemy…</b></div><div></div></blockquote><div>Admiral King agreed with some British admirals that the Royal Navy was best occupied in the Indian Ocean attacking Japanese supply lines there. This hopefully, from his point of view, would provide a diversionary function and draw off some Japanese forces from the main axes of attack in the Pacific. This would make the conquest of Japan easier. It also would be less dangerous and offer less glory to the Royal Navy - or, more accurately again from King's perspective - was desirable because it would reserve all the glory for the US Navy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some read into King's position a degree of resentment over British refusals to help out earlier in the war. Vian himself, however, accepted that Admiral King's position was not rooted in anglophobia but instead what King considered best for the US Navy. There were varying degrees of national pride and resentment over unfair load-sharing during the war on both sides, of course, and justifications aplenty for every position depending on how minutely or globally one examined the issue.</div><div><br /></div><div>Just to flesh it out a bit, the British rightfully (in their eyes) resented having to carry the full military load against Hitler for over two long years and deserved a share of any glory for that reason alone, while the Americans rightfully (in their eyes) felt they had won the war in the Pacific basically by themselves and deserved all of the credit there. Neither position was 100% accurate but each did carry a grain of truth. The British also wanted to be on the scene to legitimize and protect their post-war interests in colonies in Singapore, Hong Kong, and elsewhere. There no doubt were other petty resentments and grudges on both sides.</div><div><br /></div><div>Apparently, King did more or less try to block the use of the BPF but was overruled by Roosevelt at Churchill's insistence. Due to Japan's weakness, this was a political matter more than a military one by this late point of the war.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YoEm77uZmgk/YB-HztdAqhI/AAAAAAACkDo/UXpoo69BTJMQpquDD0GQdmUXTSNgZiNUACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Formidable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Aircraft carriers of the British Pacific Fleet during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="640" height="378" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YoEm77uZmgk/YB-HztdAqhI/AAAAAAACkDo/UXpoo69BTJMQpquDD0GQdmUXTSNgZiNUACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h378/HMS_Formidable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" title="Aircraft carriers of the British Pacific Fleet during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In a politically motivated display of Royal Navy power, HMS Formidable leads the British Pacific Fleet into Sydney Harbor on 24 August 1945 after three months of operations off the coast of Japan.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Churchill, who was the final arbiter of all major British strategic decisions during the war, himself revealed the real reason for a Royal Navy commitment to the PTO during its final days. In an address to Parliament on 28 September 1944, Churchill said:</div><div></div><blockquote><div><b>The new phase of the war against Japan will command all our resources from the moment the German War is ended. We owe it to Australia and New Zealand to help them remove forever the Japanese menace to their homelands, and as they have helped us on every front in the fight against Germany we will not be behindhand in giving them effective aid.</b></div><div></div></blockquote><div>In other words, the main impetus behind the Royal Navy's entry into the PTO was purely political. The British wanted to share in the victory over Japan one way or another. Ultimately, it became a matter of British national prestige (as Vian hints at in the selected passage above). The Royal Navy was committed to the PTO in strategic operations, not a mere ancillary role.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>The BPF participated in attacks on Japanese forces throughout 1945. Naturally, the US Navy by that point had its equipment built up with landing craft and all the supply chains necessary for invasions, so the Royal Navy wasn’t about to start invading islands and planning its own campaigns and so forth. On the flip side, however, the armored flight decks of the Royal Navy carriers proved more impervious to Japanese Kamikaze attacks, though the attacks did cause long-term problems. The Royal Navy usually played a complementary role to the ongoing strike operations of the US Navy as that was its best way to contribute.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4tWTHbFlS0Q/YB-EndWTWzI/AAAAAAACkDc/H94A2fhr8eITz02HOZ1-ADksqc67qbJhACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/HMS_Formidable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Aircraft carriers of the British Pacific Fleet during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="640" height="476" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4tWTHbFlS0Q/YB-EndWTWzI/AAAAAAACkDc/H94A2fhr8eITz02HOZ1-ADksqc67qbJhACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h476/HMS_Formidable_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" title="Aircraft carriers of the British Pacific Fleet during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The pride of the British Pacific Fleet at anchor, as it spent much of its time during its brief tenure during World War II.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The Royal Navy could have played a much more prominent role in the PTO if the war had lasted longer. By August 1945, the BPF (which included ships of Australia and New Zealand, but all the capital ships were British) had six fleet carriers available:</div><div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><b>Formidable</b>: approximate air group of 36 Corsairs, 15 Avengers (Flagship 1st Aircraft Carrier Squadron)</li><li><b>Illustrious</b>: air group 36 Corsairs, 15 Avengers</li><li><b>Implacable</b>: 48 Seafire, 21 Avenger, 12 Firefly</li><li><b>Indefatigable</b>: 40 Seafire, 18 Avenger, 12 Firefly</li><li><b>Indomitable</b>: 39 Hellcats, 21 Avengers</li><li><b>Victorious</b>: 36 Corsairs, 15 Avengers, plus Walrus amphibian</li></ul></div></div><div>In addition, the BPF had thirteen light/ferry/replenishment carriers, four battleships (Howe, King George V, Duke of York, and Anson), a dozen cruisers, forty destroyers, and numerous supporting ships. This was by some measures the strongest fleet ever committed to action in the entire history of the Royal Navy. Unfortunately for British prestige, though, it had little to do because of quickly declining Japanese military fortunes. Task Force 57 was slated to play a major role in Operation Downfall, the contemplated invasion of the Japanese home islands that never took place. Due to its missed chance at political glory, the BPF is sometimes called the "Forgotten Fleet."</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2cukj1OyJJc/YB-SmGzO_gI/AAAAAAACkEQ/Ha7rEMWlMSMby6IDtlC6fCcVGFGHsruDACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Corsair_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Corsair fighter landing on an armored Royal Navy carrier during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="478" data-original-width="640" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2cukj1OyJJc/YB-SmGzO_gI/AAAAAAACkEQ/Ha7rEMWlMSMby6IDtlC6fCcVGFGHsruDACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h478/Corsair_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="Corsair fighter landing on an armored Royal Navy carrier during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"On board a British Pacific fleet carrier operating against the Japanese. Lieutenant Commander (A) Freddy Charlton, British Fleet Air Arm pilot, had a remarkable escape when the long-range petrol tank of his Chance-Vought Corsair fighter burst into flames (seen here) as he landed on the deck of the aircraft carrier. Both pilot and plane escaped damage." © IWM <a href="https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205187630" target="_blank">A 29720</a>. </td></tr></tbody></table><div>The last naval air action of World War II occurred on VJ-Day when British carrier aircraft shot down Japanese Zero fighters. The US Navy had absolutely no issue with the Royal Navy carrying its share of the load once it was in a position to do so. The Royal Navy should be proud of its participation in the PTO and the US Navy should be proud that it was able to establish control of the area until the Royal Navy was in a position to help out.</div><div><br /></div><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9FjwzPkagFU" width="640"></iframe></center><br />
<span class="updated">2021</span>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-86600041558567642662021-02-06T17:52:00.001-07:002021-02-06T17:52:24.898-07:00Superweapons of the Reich Coloring Pages<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>Wonder Weapons of the Third Reich</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YxY1lpPGjls/YB8288IJmUI/AAAAAAACkCs/TSVqlEmR3sMnsG4X5DARkDwtCneD5dyPACLcBGAsYHQ/s826/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="V-2 wonder weapons worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="826" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YxY1lpPGjls/YB8288IJmUI/AAAAAAACkCs/TSVqlEmR3sMnsG4X5DARkDwtCneD5dyPACLcBGAsYHQ/w496-h640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_23.jpg" title="V-2 wonder weapons worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="496" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A V-2 vengeance weapon in flight.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">This page is devoted to <b itemprop="name">coloring pages of German superweapons of World War II</b>. While insufficient to win the war for Germany, the superweapons were extremely important in maintaining morale within the Third Reich even as growing Allied military superiority became an inescapable fact.</div></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">It is common for people now to conclude that the superweapons were a waste of time and money. However, that ignores the fact that they gave the German government a beacon of hope that kept soldiers fighting and civilians producing weapons of war. That may have been counterproductive for the German state in the long run, but in the short run, it served as very effective propaganda that worked right up until the end of the war.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bBMtQa-4iuE/YB8318OAUGI/AAAAAAACkC0/BzSgMs-uqxUtZIYeOmE9melWb__75pXOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="RAF Gloster Meteor worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bBMtQa-4iuE/YB8318OAUGI/AAAAAAACkC0/BzSgMs-uqxUtZIYeOmE9melWb__75pXOQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_25.jpg" title="RAF Gloster Meteor worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The RAF Gloster Meteor jet, an advanced Allied plane that flew and was used defensively against Luftwaffe V-1 flying missiles.</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Make no mistake, the Allies had cutting-edge weapons of their own such as the atomic bomb that helped them to win the war. They also had jet planes in various stages of development and so forth. With their country being overrun, though, the Germans were desperate and flung as many of these advanced weapons into service as they could while the Allies had the luxury of relying on their conventional weapons that, after all, were winning the war for them.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Let's look at some of these "wonder weapons" (<i>Wunderwaffe</i>) in no particular order.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WzdT1HmJCaA/YB81JUrdHWI/AAAAAAACkCk/OrV8yy5EsPwocwz2BoGM4UgdhEllxU9igCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 Drache wonder weapons worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="640" height="448" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WzdT1HmJCaA/YB81JUrdHWI/AAAAAAACkCk/OrV8yy5EsPwocwz2BoGM4UgdhEllxU9igCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h448/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_21.jpg" title="Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 Drache wonder weapons worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 Drache.</td></tr></tbody></table>Both Germany and the United States developed helicopters during World War II. The Luftwaffe, however, was far ahead of the United States and actually had flying helicopters even before the war began. One of these was the Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 Drache, which had two counter-rotating rotors on booms. The helicopters were perfectly flyable and many were built, but the Luftwaffe never really figured out how to use them effectively aside from performing mundane errands such as moving heavy equipment including cannons.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5BYXQOKSDFE/YB8yQTPXqGI/AAAAAAACkCc/J_rgq0DL114MQieI_fNwfLGJXNbEvBtGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector_19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of Arado AR-234 German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="640" height="414" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5BYXQOKSDFE/YB8yQTPXqGI/AAAAAAACkCc/J_rgq0DL114MQieI_fNwfLGJXNbEvBtGgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h414/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector_19.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arado AR-234 bomber.</td></tr></tbody></table>Jet engines were the key to advanced aircraft during the 1940s. The Germans developed many planes with jet engines during World War II. One of these was the Arado AR-234 bomber. These flew and saw service during World War II. In their most famous mission, they helped to destroy the "Bridge at Remagen" that the Allies captured in March 1945. Appearing too late in the war to make any difference, the AR-234 was extremely effective and could have become much more famous if the war had lasted longer. The Arado bomber was the first purpose-built medium bomber in history and the Allies had nothing like it.<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3YBChlDtkV4/YB8gSOjb5_I/AAAAAAACkBI/7KlCyhvakZ09rLvMIV8VGZQHl-q3UUufgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="640" height="492" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3YBChlDtkV4/YB8gSOjb5_I/AAAAAAACkBI/7KlCyhvakZ09rLvMIV8VGZQHl-q3UUufgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h492/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ME 163 Komet rocket plane.</td></tr></tbody></table>German aircraft designers were as good as any in the world. The German Luftwaffe had many advanced planes that saw combat. One of them was the Messerschmidt ME-163 Komet rocket plane. It was faster than any Allied plane and was credited with shooting down some bombers in the last year of World War II.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UhPkDTjfBgU/YB8i5QSp89I/AAAAAAACkBU/QWuKa7EWvxIlCihBVU6gzMkYPvLyEw5nACLcBGAsYHQ/s800/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_7.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UhPkDTjfBgU/YB8i5QSp89I/AAAAAAACkBU/QWuKa7EWvxIlCihBVU6gzMkYPvLyEw5nACLcBGAsYHQ/w512-h640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_7.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="512" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">V-2 Rocket.</td></tr></tbody></table>German rocket experts such as Wernher von Braun eventually helped to land the first men on the Moon. The Germans were very advanced with rocket designs and did not hesitate to use them for military purposes during World War II. They built and fired over 3,100 of their most advanced rockets, the V-2 vengeance weapon, against London and other targets. The V-2 was a deadly weapon that killed thousands of people. There was no defense against the V-2 other than defeating Germany.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r9kY_8eMJm0/YB8ka_A7fEI/AAAAAAACkBg/l4aiDBc8FfQhLm5aaZcDYU55xdo5HSC3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_9.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="467" data-original-width="640" height="468" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r9kY_8eMJm0/YB8ka_A7fEI/AAAAAAACkBg/l4aiDBc8FfQhLm5aaZcDYU55xdo5HSC3ACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h468/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_9.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Horten Ho-229.</td></tr></tbody></table>The Horten brothers were glider experts who decided to try their hand at designing an advanced Luftwaffe fighter. The Luftwaffe had advanced jet engines and also plane designs that the Allies had never seen before, so the two brothers used those and developed one of the most amazing jet planes of World War II. One of these was the Horten Ho-229, a jet-powered flying wing that flew several times in 1945. The Horten Ho-229 was a revolutionary concept that closely resembles the B-2 bomber that remains in service with the United States Air Force today. Like the B-2, it had stealth characteristics and other advanced features that were not matched for decades.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xtTZjT5oM-c/YB8mXfBH65I/AAAAAAACkBs/9sz8zA3THCkeUQ8nlSCR6WSljgSYfk1UgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_11.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="640" height="370" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xtTZjT5oM-c/YB8mXfBH65I/AAAAAAACkBs/9sz8zA3THCkeUQ8nlSCR6WSljgSYfk1UgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h370/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_11.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">U-2540 "Wilhelm Bauer."</td></tr></tbody></table>U-boats were a menace to Allied shipping until the very end of World War II. The German Navy (<i>Kriegsmarine</i>) developed advanced submarines that saw action late in World War II. The Type XXI submarine was huge and operated off of batteries while underwater. It only had to surface to run its diesel engines to recharge its batteries, then could go underwater again for lengthy periods of time.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br /></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">These submarines foreshadowed modern electric automobiles that also run off of batteries and only need to be recharged when the batteries run down. The most amazing thing about the Type XXI submarines was that, unlike all other submarines of World War II, they actually sailed faster underwater than on the surface due to their electric motors. U-2540, shown in the image, was one of the last Type XXI submarines built and was used by the post-war German Navy for decades after being refloated in the late 1950s. It literally was decades ahead of its time and remains on display at the Maritime Museum in Bremerhaven, Germany.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aEsMPjxsTaY/YB8fDYML3TI/AAAAAAACkA8/7mw6XR3U9RYk2Qd3ohh2Pc8iUscP6FipACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="453" data-original-width="640" height="452" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aEsMPjxsTaY/YB8fDYML3TI/AAAAAAACkA8/7mw6XR3U9RYk2Qd3ohh2Pc8iUscP6FipACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h452/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Schwerer Gustav artillery piece.</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">Let's talk about really, really big guns. The image above shows German leader Adolf Hitler inspecting a massive artillery piece known as the Schwerer Gustav cannon. The German Army developed many huge cannons that were useful for destroying enemy bunkers. It moved on rail tracks and fired 7-ton shells from its 31.5-inch (80 cm) barrel to a distance of 29 miles (47 km). the Schwerer Gustav helped to win the battle of Sevastopol for the Germans and also was used against Leningrad.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iCBGo8RLgpg/YB8oUMG7gLI/AAAAAAACkB4/xbSrsFykF1UKcTiTUl121WSaaueiuIz-wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_13.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="640" height="410" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iCBGo8RLgpg/YB8oUMG7gLI/AAAAAAACkB4/xbSrsFykF1UKcTiTUl121WSaaueiuIz-wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h410/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_13.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ME-262.</td></tr></tbody></table>One of the most famous planes in history is the ME-262 Swallow. The Luftwaffe was the first air force to get a jet fighter into combat. this was the Messerschmidt ME-262, which had two jet engines and could outfly any other plane of World War II. The ME-262 entered service in 1944 and was a deadly threat to Allied bombers. Being faster than any Allied plane, the ME-262 could approach bombers from any direction and evade escorting fighters. While the Allies also developed jet engines and produced flyable jet aircraft that served in a defensive role, they were unable to get any jet aircraft into combat before World War II ended.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-msd5Jm-EIm0/YB8ptiqCWxI/AAAAAAACkCE/fu1FHrbzccolFENPEtTFvaVSw_bSPikJACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_15.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-msd5Jm-EIm0/YB8ptiqCWxI/AAAAAAACkCE/fu1FHrbzccolFENPEtTFvaVSw_bSPikJACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_15.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panzer VIII Maus tank.</td></tr></tbody></table>If you want to talk about big tanks, the German Army had the biggest. The Germans built very big tanks as World War II continued, including the Tiger tank and the King Tiger tank. The biggest tank that they completed was the superheavy Panzer VIII Maus tank. This behemoth designed by Ferdinand Porsche weighed 188 tons, over three times that of any tank then (or now). It mounted a 128 mm (5 in) main gun that was able to destroy any other tank of its time. The Maus came along too late to see service during World War II, but two were completed and one may have fired a few shells at the enemy before being destroyed to avoid capture.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3W_fghy0t3g/YB8rwf57GZI/AAAAAAACkCQ/zooj41e81z87qMP7GnTmyOvSG0LmULaGACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_17.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="302" data-original-width="640" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3W_fghy0t3g/YB8rwf57GZI/AAAAAAACkCQ/zooj41e81z87qMP7GnTmyOvSG0LmULaGACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h302/German_superweapons_coloring_holiday.filminspector.com_17.jpg" title="Coloring pages of German superweapons holiday.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">V-1 flying bomb.</td></tr></tbody></table>Some wonder weapons were very effective. While overshadowed by its flashier companion the V-2 rocket, the V-1 flying bomb was actually deadlier. They killed over 6,000 people in Great Britain, primarily within London, about three times as many as the V-2. The V-1 was slower than the V-2 and fast Allied fighters could match their speed and "tip" them off course, but they also were much cheaper and quicker to build and thus, in a strategic sense, more useful. In fact, the Allies were so fearful of the V-1 that they tailored their military strategy after the D-Day landings around occupying their launching sites. The V-1 is the direct ancestor of modern cruise missiles that remain in use today.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><br />
<span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-35768786257218105232021-01-28T17:11:00.010-07:002021-03-18T09:23:07.750-06:00USS Enterprise, the "Galloping Ghost" of WWII<div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><h1>The Galloping Ghost!</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SJrDb_iF-MA/YBNUh9Alj-I/AAAAAAACj7c/hK1AG34e6P0YqNoXMm0A_FPXPC0brg5GwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="415" data-original-width="640" height="416" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SJrDb_iF-MA/YBNUh9Alj-I/AAAAAAACj7c/hK1AG34e6P0YqNoXMm0A_FPXPC0brg5GwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h416/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_5.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The USS Enterprise in 1939.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The “Big E" USS Enterprise (CV-6) fleet carrier of World War II fame was the 7th US Navy boat/ship named the Enterprise. The first was a sloop captured by none other than Benedict Arnold on Lake Champlain during the Revolutionary War. Other USS Enterprises were US Navy men of war, including a wooden ship involved in the Barbary Wars. Other Enterprises were Privateers, simple patrol craft. All of these predecessors ultimately led to the "Big E."</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aPB_6ggS--I/YBNVpDMIplI/AAAAAAACj7k/3ezaKBxRTvwQn3hy6rsHxybaR5CxuE5JACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="640" height="508" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aPB_6ggS--I/YBNVpDMIplI/AAAAAAACj7k/3ezaKBxRTvwQn3hy6rsHxybaR5CxuE5JACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h508/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_6.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Enterprise dodges bombs during the Battle of Santa Cruz, 26 October 1942.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The Enterprise was a Yorktown-class aircraft carrier that formed the mainstay of US Naval operations in the Pacific right from the start of the US involvement in World War 2. A little-known fact is that Enterprise sent 18 Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bombers of her Air Group over Pearl Harbor during the 7 December 1941 attack from a position about 215 nautical miles (398 km) west of Oahu. While not in a position to intercept the Japanese carrier force to the north of Oahu (whose whereabouts, in any event, were unknown), Enterprise still did her part in the battle. Seven of her planes were shot down with eight airmen killed and two wounded. The tale of the "missing US carriers," thus, is a pure myth. The US carriers were almost back at Pearl Harbor after delivering planes to Wake Island and were nearby during the attack, always ready for action. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1vsRV7XCA1A/YBNLCWG34xI/AAAAAAACj6c/BJciu032KS8A0PXwqtUs7cFOVI87WpKWgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="640" height="506" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1vsRV7XCA1A/YBNLCWG34xI/AAAAAAACj6c/BJciu032KS8A0PXwqtUs7cFOVI87WpKWgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h506/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_4.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Enterprise barely escapes destruction at the Battle of Santa Cruz, 26 October 1942.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>USS Enterprise was credited with the first US Navy sinking of a full-sized Japanese ship during the war. This was the submarine I-70, sunk by Enterprise planes on 10 December 1941. Enterprise had an advantage over the Japanese because it carried the early RCA CXAM-1 radar and could spot the enemy electronically while the Japanese by and large relied on air patrols and lookouts. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a_62sK9RKM8/YBNWh9KCe4I/AAAAAAACj7w/WxTRbcUiYUwtO_ajXPiYSKbO9Zyq1icdgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_12.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="511" data-original-width="640" height="512" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a_62sK9RKM8/YBNWh9KCe4I/AAAAAAACj7w/WxTRbcUiYUwtO_ajXPiYSKbO9Zyq1icdgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h512/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_12.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Battle damage to Enterprise during the Battle of Santa Cruz.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>In April 1942, Enterprise embarked on her most famous operation. Admiral William "Bull" Halsey commanded Task Force 16 from aboard the Enterprise and led it on the daring Doolittle Raid of 18 April 1942. While USS Hornet actually launched the 16 B-25 bombers that carried out the raid, Enterprise's planes provided crucial air cover and sank two nosy Japanese patrol boats that could have exposed the operation before it even began. Enterprise and Hornet then escaped unscathed in one of the most pivotal and successful naval operations of the war. The raid demolished 112 buildings and damaged 53 more, killing 87 men, women, and children. There were 151 civilians seriously injured, one being a woman shot through the face and thigh while gathering shellfish near Nagoya. Another 311 Japanese suffered minor injuries.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kXnoZEXCkBg/YBNJ6WWKiII/AAAAAAACj6U/PHnAZtQlJAon3JZDdZgM9pOMy5kdeLOvgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="640" height="324" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kXnoZEXCkBg/YBNJ6WWKiII/AAAAAAACj6U/PHnAZtQlJAon3JZDdZgM9pOMy5kdeLOvgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h324/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A photo taken from the battleship Washington shows an explosion on Enterprise from a bomb-laden kamikaze. The ship's forward elevator was blown approximately 400 feet (120 m) into the air from the force of the explosion six decks below (U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command Official U.S. Navy photo <a href="https://www.history.navy.mil/our-collections/photography/numerical-list-of-images/nhhc-series/nh-series/80-G-323000/80-G-323565.html" target="_blank">80-G-323565</a>).</td></tr></tbody></table><div>One operation alone, however, does not tell the full story. The Enterprise was crowned with glory during World War 2, accumulating 20 Battlestars overall (the most ever for a US Navy ship). Among other exploits, she and her planes were credited with shooting down 911 enemy planes, sinking 71 ships, and damaging 192 other ships.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ji-we_-8FMM/YBNJaJ190CI/AAAAAAACj6M/zfh7YHQzWEMSndsSNlNoJnYqtGtVFTYHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="477" data-original-width="640" height="476" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ji-we_-8FMM/YBNJaJ190CI/AAAAAAACj6M/zfh7YHQzWEMSndsSNlNoJnYqtGtVFTYHQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h476/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enterprise's massive elevator was destroyed by a Kamakazi.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>All of the glory came at a heavy cost. The Big E accumulated its share of war damage and at times barely escaped being sunk. Enterprise was heavily damaged by bombs twice in the Solomon Islands and in the battle of Santa Cruz. She was struck twice by Kamakazis, with one explosion blowing her 15-ton elevator hundreds of feet into the air.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s6UrA-VqGW0/YBNNlKKWZjI/AAAAAAACj7A/UGzz-PXG19kFtfC6ytyY5NXmUvgY8oLYwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s6UrA-VqGW0/YBNNlKKWZjI/AAAAAAACj7A/UGzz-PXG19kFtfC6ytyY5NXmUvgY8oLYwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_8.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A wall of flame rises over USS Enterprise during the Battle of Santa Cruz, 26 October 1942.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Throughout the war, Enterprise was reported as having been sunk by the Japanese three times. She came so close to destruction without falling over the edge and came and went without detection that Admiral Bull Halsey nicknamed her “The Galloping Ghost” of the Oahu coast. While heavy cruiser USS Houston (CA-30) acquired the same nickname during its activities off the Java coast, Enterprise was the most renowned ship to use that nickname.<br />In 1943 the Big E returned to the States for a complete overhaul after the Essex class carriers began to arrive. The Enterprise later returned to the Pacific and was involved in the Okinawa campaign and attacks on the main Islands of Japan.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WfReSZnuzuU/YBNPZzxTaGI/AAAAAAACj7U/BvGrLjuL0_UnSisZlzSqGISwGr2YCTBdwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_11.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="640" height="512" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WfReSZnuzuU/YBNPZzxTaGI/AAAAAAACj7U/BvGrLjuL0_UnSisZlzSqGISwGr2YCTBdwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h512/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_11.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="white-space: pre;"></span>TBD-1 of VT-6 on the flight deck of USS Enterprise during the Doolittle Raid operation, 11 April 11 1942.</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>The End - and A Proud Heritage.</h2>The USS Enterprise CV6 was one of only three original fleet carriers to survive the war. She was partially repaired for her late-war damage after entering the New York Naval Shipyard on 18 January 1946. Thereafter, was deactivated and decommissioned on 17 February 1947. After being mothballed until 1958, Enterprise was sold for $563k to the Lipsett Corporation of New York City for scrapping at Kearny, New Jersey. Instructions were that it was to be "scrapped only," so there was no possibility of revival.<div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-briWeCVaaws/YBNI8r9OVKI/AAAAAAACj6E/gP1Had3ZdKkxqncenfR2IDrkyu2eK4t-gCLcBGAsYHQ/s900/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-briWeCVaaws/YBNI8r9OVKI/AAAAAAACj6E/gP1Had3ZdKkxqncenfR2IDrkyu2eK4t-gCLcBGAsYHQ/w456-h640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="456" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Galloping Ghost finally heading to the scrapyard in 1958.</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The "Galloping Ghost's" heritage continues long after its scrapping. The eighth Enterprise was the world's first nuclear-powered carrier and served honorably from November 1961 to 1 December 2012. The ninth Enterprise is currently under construction as of 2021.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XR_-Mx3SNRI/YBNOsiR1YkI/AAAAAAACj7I/r64osguBEpAhWf5TtpQd5y3BVi56I81oQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_10.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="516" data-original-width="640" height="516" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XR_-Mx3SNRI/YBNOsiR1YkI/AAAAAAACj7I/r64osguBEpAhWf5TtpQd5y3BVi56I81oQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h516/Enterprise_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_10.jpg" title="USS Enterprise during World War II worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<span class="updated">2021</span>
</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50651698518155984.post-58776282585379277922021-01-18T01:17:00.007-07:002021-01-18T15:36:57.665-07:00B-17 Sequence From "Heavy Metal" (1981)<h1>Heavy Metal Indeed</h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZtGgcpbRssg/YAVDFq8yCNI/AAAAAAACjvY/3bhbUqKMEFgTzRRwcuWLRaqYtffLlWt9wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Heavy_Metal_B-17_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="B-17 scene Heavy Metal worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="349" data-original-width="640" height="348" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZtGgcpbRssg/YAVDFq8yCNI/AAAAAAACjvY/3bhbUqKMEFgTzRRwcuWLRaqYtffLlWt9wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h348/Heavy_Metal_B-17_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_2.jpg" title="B-17 scene Heavy Metal worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A B-17 figures prominently in "Heavy Metal" (1981).</td></tr></tbody></table><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">"Heavy Metal" (1981) was a Canadian-American animated feature film directed toward an adult audience. Directed by Gerald Potterton and produced by Ivan Reitman and Leonard Mogel, it is composed of a series of loosely connected vignettes. These scenes don't have much connection to each other aside from a murky framing device involving some kind of alien force. One of the best scenes is set somewhat incongruously during World War II aboard a USAAF B-17 bomber in the South Pacific.</div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jh5J72ao_88/Xp_JMSX4aZI/AAAAAAAChD0/3wpANA_68FYYHAXxr_J4SCDskyoJGbkUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Heavy_Metal_animatedfilmreviews.filminspector.com_21.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Heavy Metal (1981) animatedfilmreviews.filminwpctor.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jh5J72ao_88/Xp_JMSX4aZI/AAAAAAAChD0/3wpANA_68FYYHAXxr_J4SCDskyoJGbkUwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Heavy_Metal_animatedfilmreviews.filminspector.com_21.gif" title="B-17 scene Heavy Metal worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption">The B-17 story is tight and surprisingly realistic despite the supernatural theme.</td></tr></tbody></table>The animators drawing the different scenes basically went where they wanted to go without much regard to an overall plot. The B-17 story, written by Dan O'Bannon of "Alien" fame, apparently was drawn by a World War II veteran who just wanted to tell a supernatural tale from that conflict based on his own experiences - and things branch off in different directions from there.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-75OhjetbPGQ/YAYNSg6DiBI/AAAAAAACjvg/TkzuhK9fAQ8W_UDu5ubnNWVvau_U_95gwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Heavy_Metal_B-17_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Heavy Metal (1981) animatedfilmreviews.filminwpctor.com" border="0" data-original-height="347" data-original-width="640" height="348" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-75OhjetbPGQ/YAYNSg6DiBI/AAAAAAACjvg/TkzuhK9fAQ8W_UDu5ubnNWVvau_U_95gwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h348/Heavy_Metal_B-17_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_3.jpg" title="Heavy Metal (1981) animatedfilmreviews.filminwpctor.com" width="640" /></a></div><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing">"Heavy Metal" thus features creativity run wild, which either comports with what you want from an animated feature film or doesn't. Any fan of animation should get a thrill out of it. I think this scene is interesting as a kind of hallucinogenic fantasy memory of World War II. And, it's just plain fun.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jJtkUGCmpaE/YAVBil24x-I/AAAAAAACjvQ/BlfeY8CpOR4UE74H1QDzsxTJvfXhCWn0QCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/Heavy_Metal_B-17_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="B-17 scene Heavy Metal worldwartwo.filminspector.com" border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jJtkUGCmpaE/YAVBil24x-I/AAAAAAACjvQ/BlfeY8CpOR4UE74H1QDzsxTJvfXhCWn0QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/Heavy_Metal_B-17_worldwartwo.filminspector.com_1.gif" title="B-17 scene Heavy Metal worldwartwo.filminspector.com" width="640" /></a></div>The musical track that accompanies this part of the scene is by Don Felder of the Eagles. Oh, and before you hunt down the movie, just be aware that the rest of it has nothing whatsoever to do with B-17s or bombers in any way, shape, or form. Anyway, this is just a break from the usual historical heavy lifting on this blog, something a little fun. I hope you enjoy this selection! If you wish to learn more about "Heavy Metal," I have <a href="https://animatedfilmreviews.filminspector.com/2020/04/heavy-metal-1981-comic-book-psychedelic.html">a page devoted to it here.</a><div itemscope="" itemtype="https://schema.org/Thing"><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AsLyG6A13f4" width="640"></iframe></center><br /><span class="updated">2021</span>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0