Category Archives: US Army

Old Crow Flies Onward

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The last American “Triple Ace,” Brig. Gen Clarence Emil “Bud” Anderson passed away yesterday at the ripe old age of 102.

Born in Oakland in 1922, he enlisted as an aviation cadet with the USAAF right after Pearl Harbor and earned both his butter bar and lead wings by September 1942.

After cutting teeth on the P-39, he joined the 363rd FS, in England flying early model P-51Bs in January 1944 and bagged his first (of six) Messerschmitt Fb 109s on 3 March and, upgraded to a bubble canopy P-51D, by the end of the war would add a He 111 bomber and five Fw 190s to his scorecard, ending the war with 16.25 aerial victories spanning 116 sorties.

Both of Bud Anderson’s Mustangs were dubbed “Old Crow” after the rock gut whisky, the later, P-51D-10-NA Mustang, AAF Ser. No. 44-14450 B6-S, seen here.

Post-war, Anderson continued on active service with the USAF as a test pilot, squadron, and wing commander, ultimately logging over 7,000 hours in over 100 types and retired in 1972 as a full bird colonel, later upgraded to a star in 2022.

He earned two Legion of Merits, five Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Bronze Star, 16 Air Medals, the French Legion of Honor, and the French Croix de Guerre, among other decorations.

He passed in his sleep at his home in Auburn, California last Friday.

Via the CAF

Private William Henry Christman

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Some 160 years ago this week, all that was mortal of Private William Henry Christman, late of Pocono Lake, Pennsylvania and a recent enlistee with the 67th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment, was buried in what was then part of Arlington House, the seized former state of Col. Robert Edward Lee (USMA 1829)– a regular who had resigned his commission and had cast his lot with the Confederacy, and wife, Mary Anna Randolph Custis.

Christman, a 20-year-old farmer, enlisted in March 1864 but just two months later succumbed to rubella in a Washington, D.C. hospital on 11 May 1864, being buried in Arlington two days later, soon joined by service members who were wounded in the Wilderness and never made it back to their unit.

Today, Pvt. Christman is in Section 27, Grave 19 at Arlington National Cemetery, and the estate, purchased for $26,000 in back taxes by the federal government on 11 January 1864, is the final home of some 400,000 men and women who have been laid to rest in the cemetery’s rolling hills.

Arlington held a commemoration of Pvt. Christman’s burial, as well as the fallen from The Wilderness, this week.

Tiger Stripe Redux

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Spotted in the PI recently, 1st Group guys are channeling a very 1969 Southeast Asia vibe with Tiger Stripe pattern cammies to include boonie hats and full-color patches. I think it is a great look for a peacetime training deployment, especially because Apocalypse Now was filmed in the Philippines and the obvious Vietnam-era tie-in to the pattern in that region.

A U.S. Army Green Beret from 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) overlooks movement on an objective alongside a service member with the Philippine National Police Special Action Force the, during Balikatan 24 in Rizal, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2024. BK 24 is an annual exercise between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and U.S. military designed to strengthen bilateral interoperability, capabilities, trust, and cooperation built over decades of shared experiences. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Asa Bingham)

U.S. Army Green Berets from 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) meet with service members from the Armed Forces of the Philippines Special Operations Command with 5th Scout Ranger Company, 5th Scout Ranger Battalion, 1st Scout Ranger Regiment-1st Light Reaction Company, 1st Light Reaction Battalion, Light Reaction Regiment, and the Philippine National Police Special Action Force to discuss training in Rizal, Palawan, Philippines, during Balikatan 24, April 27, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Asa Bingham) (Portions of this image have been blurred for security reasons.)

A U.S. Army Green Beret from 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) conducts an after-action review with service members from the Armed Forces of the Philippines Special Operations Command during Balikatan 24 in Rizal, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2024. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Asa Bingham) (Portions of this image have been blurred for security reasons.)

A U.S. Army Green Beret from 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) practices military movement techniques alongside service members from the Armed Forces of the Philippines Special Operations Command 5th Scout Ranger Company, 5th Scout Ranger Battalion, 1st Scout Ranger Regiment during Balikatan 24 in Rizal, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2024.  (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Asa Bingham) (Portions of this image have been blurred for security reasons.)

For reference, check out this below shot of an ERDL-clad SGT Curtis E. Hester firing his M-16 rifle, while Tiger-striped SGT Billy H. Faulks calls for air support, Co D, 151st (Ranger) Inf., Vietnam, 1969.

For those curious about Tiger Stripe and its effectiveness, check the below.

Big Mark, Back and Better Than Ever

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The circa 1918 Mark VIII Heavy “Liberty” Tank was a rarity.

At some 37 tons, they were massive, designed to carry a pair of 57mm QF 6 pounders and up to five M1917 Browning water-cooled 30.06 machine guns, all clad in 16mm of steel armor plate, this hulking land battleship was powered by a modified V-12 Liberty aero engine (hence its moniker) that could make it crawl at a blistering 5 mph across broken terrain on its tracks.

Only 125 were produced of a planned 1,500 before the Great War ended, with 100 of those made in America at the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois from kits supplied by the British. Sent to armor training camps at Camp Meade, Maryland, and Camp Colt, Pennsylvania, they served through the 1920s in a series of test units and, placed in storage in 1932, were scrapped in 1940 to recycle their steel for more useful purposes.

U.S. Army M1917 Tank on a Mark VIII Liberty Tank No. 67981 at Camp Meade, 1921

Just two remain in the U.S.: a hull at the U.S. Army Armor & Cavalry Collection at Fort Benning (now Fort Moore) and a second, which has spent most of its life at Aberdeen Proving Ground before it was shifted to Benning in 2014. That last example, which has undergone a much-needed three-year preservation cycle after being exposed to the elements its entire life, has finally returned “home” and was installed as a macro exhibit at the RIA museum late last month.

Dubbed simply, “Mark” it is now on (covered) display at the corner of Rodman and Gillespie Avenue, overlooking the Museum.

Happy Mother’s Day from Kwajalein

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Here we see a group of hardy USAAF men clustered in front of B-24J-1-CO Liberator Come Closer (S/N 42-72973) of the 38th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 30th Bomb Group, 7th Air Force, sending Mother’s Day wishes, likely in 1944, where it was stationed from March to August of that year.

For an, um, closer look at the Sad Sack nose art of Come Closer III check out this image of an ordnance crew prepping a bomb load on Kwajalein on 9 April 1944.

The USAAF Nose Art Project details about Come Closer:

Assigned to the crew of John A Runge, this Liberator flew numerous missions to the Japanese bases at Truk and later several missions softening up Iwo Jima prior to the Marines’ amphibious landing.

As noted by a page on Fold3, which lists Come Closer as completing 100 missions successfully:

The new “J” Models first appeared on the line at San Diego in August 1943. They would be equipped with a nose turret as well as other improvements on the D Models which are discontinued—Of the 51 aircraft in this 1st block of J Models, 35 of them were assigned to the newly forming 30th Bombardment Group, the 27th, 38th and 392nd Bomb Squadrons. Another 14 were sent to replace losses in the 11th B.G. which had already been deployed in Central & South Pacific areas. Those squadrons were the 26th, 42nd, 98th and 431st.

According to Joe Baugher, Come Closer III survived the war, is currently owned by Paul Peters, and is under restoration to fly in Chino, California.

Latest ARSOF Special Warfare Issue

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The latest (60-age pdf) spring 2024 edition of Special Warfare is available for download.

This issue of The Official Professional Journal of U.S. Army Special Operations Forces is entitled “How ARSOF Fights, An Irregular Approach to the Competition Continuum.”

One particularly interesting article by Maj. Brandon Schwartz, SF’s Underwater Operations commander, covers ARSOF’s MAROPs maritime operations.

Keep in mind that each company within a Special Forces Group mans, trains, equips, and deploys a 12-man SFUWO (Special Forces Underwater Operations) ODA, a mission skillset they have maintained since the 1950s– long before the SEALs were around.

With seven SFGs, each with four battalions, each with three companies, that gives you a rough TOE for 84 SFUWO ODAs, or a little over 1,000 combat divers, which is a serious force. One that few outside of Key West know about.

Devil’s Brigade Loadout

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How about this great photo spread from 80 years ago.

Forcemen of the “Devil’s Brigade,” the U.S.-Canadian First Special Service Force— Sergeant Charles Shepard (6-2), Lieutenant Henry H. Rayner (5-2 &1-2), Private First Class James A. Jones (5-2 & 6-2)– preparing to go on an evening patrol in the Anzio beachhead, Italy, ca. 20-27 April 1944. Note the boot-blacked faces and hands and M1 Thompsons with lots of mags, always useful in breaking contact on a night patrol.

Photo by Lieut. C.E. Nye / Canada. Dept. of National Defence / Library and Archives Canada / PA-183862 (Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3378968)

Most of these men were also captured in the below image from the same photographer, including a very rare M1941 Johnson Light Machine Gun (LMG). Also note the propensity of rubber helmet bands, sans camo netting, and the use of what is often termed hand-painted “OSS camouflage” on the shells.

(L-R): Pvt Dan Lemaire (5-2 & 6-2), Pfc Richard Stealey (6-2), Sgt Charles Shepard (6-2), Lt H.H. Raynor (5-2 & 1-2), Pfc James A. Jones (5-2 & 6-2), Forcemen of 5-2, First Special Service Force, preparing to go on an evening patrol in the Anzio beachhead, Operation Shingle, (Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3378967)

A third image from this group, showing a platoon brief before setting off, has had the Devil’s Brigade arrowhead patches scrubbed by a censor.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3396066)

More LAC FSSF images are here.

You know SFAB, Yes?

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The Army University Press recently released a 45-minute deep dive into the recently formed Security Force Assistance Brigades (SFAB), essentially taking over the boring non-shooting military advisor role that SF has fallen into since the 1960s, thus allowing SF to do more, um, SF-type stuff.

Since being stood up in 2017, Security Force Assistance Brigades (SFABs) have provided the U.S. Army with unique capabilities and immense flexibility. In this interview-driven film, we examine the SFAB mission, hear what life is like as an advisor, and explore the challenges SFABs will face in the future. The film features Major General Donn H. Hill, the Commanding General at Security Force Assistance Command (SFAC), as well as Lieutenant General (Ret.) Michael Lundy and other leaders from SFAC and the SFABs. Among other topics, these leaders discuss how SFABs strengthen our allies and partner forces while supporting U.S. security objectives.

ODA Then and Now

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The structure of the 12-man Special Forces Operational Detachment – Alpha has remained the same almost since its inception– and echoed the old 15-man OSS Detachments of 1944.

Contrast the look of the early Vietnam-era  “A-Team” in 1965, in the below period recruiting poster, to what it looks like now in a modern recreation.

The 12-man ODA from 1963-1970 had a commander (O-3), an XO (Lieutenant), an Operations Sergeant (E-8), a Heavy Weapons Leader (E-7), an Intelligence Sergeant (E-7), a Light Weapons Leader (E-7), a Medical Specialist (E-7), and Radio Operator Supervisor (E-7), an Assistant Medical Specialist (E-6) and Demolitions Sergeant (E-6), and a Chief Radio Operator (E-5) and Combat Demolition Specialist (E-5).

Today you have a detachment commander (18A), detachment warrant/XO (180A), Ops SGT (18Z), Intel SGT (18F), two Weapons SGTs (18B), two Engineer/Demo SGTs (18C), two Medical SGTs (18G), and two Commo SGTs (18E).

More here.

RCAT, is that you?

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Via the Cape Cod National Seashore although, as the wreckage seems totally absent of marine growth, I am taking it with a grain of sand:

Last week, a man-made object washed up on Marconi Beach. It appeared to have been in the ocean for some time, and staff worked together to get it off the beach before it was swept away by the incoming storm.

Photo: NPS/Hohman

Park historian Bill Burke examined the object and determined that it was in fact the fuselage of an RCAT (Remote Control Aerial Target).

Photo: NPS Archives

RCATs were drone planes used for target practice for anti-aircraft training off Marconi at a former United States military training camp (Camp Wellfleet) during the 1940s and 50s.

Aircraft equipped with an RCAT would take off from a now-defunct runway located in the woods of Wellfleet. The RCAT would then be rocket-launched off the aircraft at 0 to 60 mph within the first 30 feet, and then controlled remotely from the bluff.

Photo: NPS Archives

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