Air Defense Artillery (ADA) has been used in multiple battles, from World War I to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Although, different names have been used to label Air Defense Artillery, they have always served the same purpose, to destroy enemy air threats. During World War II, Air Defense Artillery was known as Anti-Aircraft Artillery. This title continued, even through the battle of the Kasserine Pass. The day of 19 February 1943 began a wretched and depressing battle for America and its allies. Located in Tunisia, the Kasserine Pass is about a two mile wide gap in the Atlas Mountains, where some of the U.S II Corps and British military held off and defeated the Axis offensive. Experience was lacking for the Anti-Aircraft Artillery …show more content…
The positions that were held by the Americans were enviable, the line between the two Axis forces; von Arnim’s army in the north and Rommel’s in the south-central, were stretched thin and weak. The center of the Allied Forces with a significant strike would be able to pierce the defenses on the coastlines and separate them all the way to Sfax. The joint forces manned the line from the northern parts of the country to the south, with the British military undoubtedly the most prepared of the joint forces. The American military marched along with the joint forces all the way through the country of Algeria to gain control and hold strategic battle positions on the eastern part of Tunisia Dorsal Mountains. The American Army had never before engaged in any major encounters with the Germans, who would later be nicknamed “the first team”. The lack of experience will prevail once Von Angrnim’s army in the north attacks the center of the Allied Forces. A line that was enforced by the French and the American Forces failed to come to the aid of the French. The Joint Forces were not impressed by the lack of actions and effort the American Forces had shown, which created doubts within the British and French forces about their Allies of the New World. The lack of training on the maneuver and tactical side of the operations, not only left the American Forces …show more content…
Army. Unfortunately fratricide was a reoccurring issue during this battle as well. Due to the lack of training and knowledge of aircraft identification, American AAA gunners and infantryman shot down several friendly planes in the heat of this battle, including several easily identifiable P-38 fighter planes. Those mistakes could have easily been avoided had the soldiers of that time been instructed of proper identification of both friendly and enemy targets. The primary focus of the battle of Kasserine was that of a technical aspect, and in no form tactical. Aside from poor aircraft identification, there was also minimal training in combining air support with maneuvering ground troops on the battle field. This supreme poverty of training in turn led to yet more fratricide and loss of friendly life. A positive lesson learned was that the most effective means of Air Defense during the battle was the use of mounting two and four .50-caliber M2 machine guns on half-tracks. One aspect that proved to be ineffective was the 37mm guns, which failed to stop or destroy the German tanks. Aware of this fact, the U.S. Army began the development of armor piercing shells and anti-tank guns. The U.S. Army was mindful of the shortcomings during the battle of Kasserine Pass and only weeks after refined and revamped its tactics and strategies in air support, amour fighting, and artillery. Due to weapon
The prelude to the Battle of the Bulge began on a winter day in mid-December of 1944. Three powerful German divisions, were the last German offensives in the west at that time during World War II. They began after the Normandy invasion in June 1944. Allied had forces swept rapidly through France but became stalled along the German border earlier that year in September. On December 16, 1944 taking advantage of the weather, which kept the Allied aircraft on the ground, the Germans launched a counteroffensive through the semi-mountainous and heavily-forested Ardennes region in Germany, and advanced 31 miles into Belgium and northern Luxembourg near the Meuse River. Their goal was to trap four allied armies, divide the Americans and the British to force negotiated peace along the western front, and retake the vital seaport of Antwerp in Belgium. Thinking the Ardennes was the least likely spot for a German offensive, American staff commander chose to keep the thin line, so that manpower might concentrate on offensives north and south of the Ardennes known as the "bulge" in the Allied lines. These American lines were thinly held by three divisions in the Allied Army and part of a forth division, while fifth division was making a local attack and the sixth division was in reserve. Division sectors were more than double the width of normal defensive fronts, therefore there were more men scattered along a larger area. The German advance was halted near the Meuse River in late December. Even though the German Offensive achieved total surprise, nowhere did the American troops give ground without a fight. Within three days, the determined American stand and the arrival of powerful reinforcements insured that the ambitious German goal was far beyond reach. In snow and sub-freezing temperatures the Germans fell short of their interim objective- to reach the rambling Meuse River on the edge of the Ardennes. But they managed to avoid being cut off by an Allied Pincer movement.
(Rostker) Air Defense Artillery played an immensely significant role in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm with units from 11th Brigade Air Defense Artillery and the 32d Air Defense Command rapidly deploying into theater. There was no doubt of the effectiveness of the air defense units in Desert Storm and Desert Shield. The air defense units displayed sound defensive tactics and preparation for the campaigns. They demonstrated excellent capabilities providing coalition and ground forces the much-needed assistance to succeed during the war. No matter how much people have criticized Air Defense Artillery following Desert Shield and Desert Storm, the units played a critical role in the Army’s strategy to win the Gulf War.
A big reason behind Canadian victory at Vimy is due to the preparations made beforehand. To understand the demand for such intense preparations made by the Canadians, it is necessary to understand why this Battle was so significant. “The taking of Vimy Ridge was very important offensively as it was a key position of the German line in Northern France, but it was even more important for the Germans to not lose Vimy Ridge”(Stephens). If the Allies are successful in capturing the ridge, German position on the battlefield would significantly weaken. Should the Allies take the Ridge from the Germans, they would have a clear view of German positions throughout the Douai Plain. For the Germans, winning this Battle was extremely important as the Ridge defended the Hindenburg line as well as the western front. The battle was important to win because Vimy Ridge was an important strategic point that gave a perfect opp...
In this paper, I will provide a Battle Analysis and outline the events leading up to and surrounding the Battle of 73 Eastings (refers to a north-south grid line). In addition, I will describe how the United States Army’s (USA) 2nd Armored Calvary Regiment (ACR) defeated forces from the Iraqi Republican Guard (IRG) using speed, technology and superior combat power. Although some consider the Battle of 73 Eastings extremely successful, some consider it a failure due to the large amount of Iraqi forces that retreated towards Bagdad. Lastly, I will analyze how each side used their intelligence assets and what they could have used to change the outcome.
The Battle of Antietam was filled will weaponry that was state of the art at its time. Smooth barrel and rifling barrel cannons where employed on both sides which helped to contribute to the high death toll; terrain was also instrumental at key locations on the battlefield. Such key locations were the cornfield North of Sharpsburg, Dunker church, Sunken Road, and Burnside bridge all of which contributed to bot...
However in light of Hitler’s disclosure plans, most of Hitler’s Generals, especially General Von Runstedt who was one of the foremost generals assigned to the attack, did not believe that his goals were attainable and the general feeling was that the plan would eventually lead to the immediate submission of the German armies on the Western Front. Nevertheless, a meeting took place on September 16, 1944 with Hitler’s Generals and close associates. During this meeting, General Jodl presented to Hitler, and his staff, the current positions of American troops, and where their advancement would be in the Ardennes forest. The Ardennes sector was chosen due to the reduced number of American troops (60,000) in the immediate vicinity of the attack, and as was stated above previously, the Ardennes, despite the success the Germans had already enjoyed in 1940, was thought to be impassable. During the detailed planning phase with Hitler, Hitler made it clear that his goal was to destroy the British and Canadian Armies first, or at least, drive a wedge between the Americans in the South and the British in the North. The plan for Watch on the Rhine was presented on October 22, 1944 and was released to only a few associates. This plan would definitively add additional relief on the German Saar Basin and hopefully would, as mentioned drive a wedge between the Allied armies all the way to Antwerp if the goal could be attained. Hitler calculated and planned out that the Americans, and Allied troops, would come to the rescue by redirecting their men to confront Hitler’s aggressive plan from Normandy. The German Army would reshuffle its forces for the formulation of a US counter-offensive. All of the Germans major units were removed from defending other fronts and placed into their perspective positions for the implementation of
Field, Frank. British and French Operations of the First World War. Cambridge (England); New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
As the Hessians retreated the Americans pressed forward. The Hessians attempted to form up into proper columns. The Americans however, had their artillery in place very quickly and aimed down King and Queen Streets (Wood, 1990, p. 69); the two main streets of Trenton. With their artillery in place, the Hessians were never able to form up
This defensive line consisted of concrete gun emplacements, anti-tank obstacles, mines, barbed-wires, wooden-stakes, and booby-traps. To counteract these defensives the Allies developed new technology like the Armored Ramp-Carrier, which could be used as bridges to avoid obstacles and scale walls, and the Sherman-Crab tank, which set off landmines to make safer routes for the infantry. These new land vehicles aided in breaking the Atlantic Wall, so that target points could be captured quickly before German reinforcements could arrive. But not all the technology was effective like the Duplex-Drive tank, many of which sank before reaching the Normandy shore. Without these new land vehicles, troops would have been pinned down and the casualty rates would have been much higher. However it could be that due to the amount of deception campaigns prior to the invasion that the German forces would have been widely spread out and might have taken time to regroup and convene to Normandy beach which would have given the Allied troops enough time to break through the defenses even if they did not have the new technology. It could be argued that the Allies would have never been able to break the defenses without the new technology since troops would have been overwhelmed by the defenses and traps if not destroy fast enough using
... many French commanders not even knowing where their own subordinate units were located.11 The French placed their defense in old, outdated tactics of static warfare. Gone were the days of two sides slugging it out against prepared reinforced defense structures. Closely integrating concentrated armor, infantry, and closely supported by aviation assets all combined to crush France in a matter of only six weeks. France was simply not prepared for this new age of warfare.
The idea the Germans would not have a go at anything through the tight way. The American Army was kept long and thin whit a strengthened left and right flank to ensure any assaults that would come straight up the center. "Thinking the Ardennes was the most improbable spot for a German hostile, American Staff Commanders kept the line meager, so that the labor may focus on offensives north and south of the Ardennes. The American line was daintily held by three divisions and a piece of a fourth, while the fifth was making a nearby assault and a 6th was for possible later use. Division segments were more than twofold the width of typical, cautious fronts."( John Kline)The Germans needed do of the opposite the Americans needed to do. As expressed over the Allied troops were "resting" and improving; they comprised of General Simpson's ninth Army and General Hodges first US Army in the north and General Patton's third Army toward the south. The Ardennes was held by General Middleton who had the eighth US Army Corps, 106th and 26th Infantry Divisions and fourth and ninth Armored
During World War II, the Allies strategically planned an invasion in North Africa in efforts to push back Vichy French which was controlled by the Germans. At the time, the United States was not active in the war for a year. In the early 1940’s, President Roosevelt decided it was necessary for the United States to concentrate on becoming involved in Europe. The goal of Operation Torch was to relieve the pressures of the German forces from Russia. The Allies knew it was difficult to clear out the Axis forces in order to make a successful pathway into southern Europe. The British and the United States coordinated the operation to land in Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. The landings required the strategic involvement of the naval fleet, the
The Vietnam War both demonstrated the excellence of air defenders, and helped America learn lessons in order to evolve into an era with even better air defense than ever thought possible. The American military did not shoot down a single aircraft with air defense weapons during the Vietnam War. There were many operations which air defenders made a difference in Vietnam. Several of these operations occurred on Route 9. The events on Route 9 proved very difficult and brutal, however Sergeant Stout and other air defenders demonstrated the excellence still expected of air defenders today. The success of the North Vietnamese forced the United States (U.S.) to become better equipped as well. During operation
As a result of these two conditions, many more casualties were sustained. Add to that the lack of medical knowledge of disease and infection and the numbers truly began to grow. This paper provides an overview of the types of weaponry that was used during this time. Artillery generally falls into three basic categories: guns, howitzers and mortars. The main difference between them is the trajectory of the round fire.
Many Air Defense units today have a long history that runs deep with accolades and awards. One of these units is 3-4-ADAR. Third Battalion (Bn.) Fourth Air Defense Artillery Regiment (3-4 ADAR) is the most decorated Air Defense unit in the world. The Air Defense Branch is a relatively young branch by comparison. The ADA Branch originates from the Field Artillery Branch. AD did not become a branch of its own until technology advances made it necessary for a change. As plains started becoming a part of combat, the more need there was for AD. Our branch became its own, as air superiority became the deciding factor in winning wars.