17th Airborne Division (United States)

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The sleeve badge of the 17th US Airborne Division

The 17th Airborne Division ( German  17th US Airborne Division ) was an airborne division and a major unit of the US Army during the Second World War .

history

A memorial to the 17th Airborne Division in the National Infantry Museum

Positioning and training

The 17th US Airborne Division (nickname: "Thunder from Heaven") was founded on April 15, 1943 at Camp Mackall (North Carolina) under the command of Maj. Gen. William Miley activated. The division badge was a gold claw on a black background. This should symbolize the perception / seizing of good ( “golden” ) opportunities - represented by the golden claw - by means of a surprise - represented by the black background.

The division at that time consisted of the 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) as well as the 193rd and 194th Glider Infantry Regiment (GIR) and several support units. After intensive training in the USA, the division was transferred to England in August 1944 and stationed at Camp Chisledon, in the county of Wiltshire. There she was assigned to reinforce the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment - which had participated as part of the 82nd Airborne Division on the Normandy landings . The division was part of the XVIII Airborne Corps of the 1st Allied Airborne Army . During Operation Market Garden , the division was still in training and consequently remained in England as a strategic reserve unit.

Defense against the German Ardennes offensive

In response to the German Ardennes offensive , parts of the division were moved to France on night flights between December 23 and 25, 1944 and stationed at Camp Mourmelon . After it was subordinated to the VIII Corps of the 3rd US Army General Patton , the 17th US Airborne Division moved from December 27 to 31 defense positions on the Maas River between Givet and Verdun . On January 1, 1945 she was moved to Neufchâteau in Belgium and on to Morhet , where she replaced the 28th Infantry Division . On January 3, the division took part in an Allied counter-offensive west of Bastogne, capturing several small Belgian towns. The town of Flamierge , captured on January 7th, had to be abandoned after German counterattacks and could only be retaken five days later - after the German units were forced to withdraw. On January 18, the 17th US Airborne Division took over the positions of the 11th Armored Division in the Houffalize area and in the following days pushed the German troops back to their starting positions before the start of the Ardennes offensive. The division took Steinbach and Limerle on January 22nd and Wattermal and Espeler on January 26th , before being replaced by the 87th Infantry Division .

The 17th US Airborne Division was then placed under the III Corps , under whose command they advanced to Luxembourg. The division captured the places Eschweiler and Clervaux and cleared the western bank of the Our from German troops. Smaller units crossed the river to test the German defensive positions of the Siegfried Line and to build a small bridgehead near Dasburg . On February 10th, the 6th Armored Division took over the positions of the 17th US Airborne Division.

Rhine crossing and end of war

In the following years, the 17th US Airborne Division - now again under the command of the XVIII Airborne Corps - was re-equipped and prepared for its airborne mission ( Operation Varsity ) as part of Operation Plunder - the crossing of the Rhine. To this end, the division was reorganized at the beginning of March, which then consisted of the - now permanently assigned - 507th and 513rd Parachute Regiment and the 194th Airborne Regiment. The 193rd Airborne Regiment was disbanded, whose members reinforced the 194th Airborne Regiment.

In the evening hours of March 23rd, the ground troops of the British 2nd Army and the 9th US Army began to cross the Rhine. At around 10 a.m. on the morning of the following day, the 17th US Airborne Division and the British 6th Airborne Division landed between Wesel and Hamminkeln on the eastern side of the Lower Rhine. The aim of Operation Varsity was to expand the bridgehead on the eastern bank of the Rhine as quickly as possible in order to ensure a quick advance of the Allied troops into the German Reich . The 17th US Airborne Division was given the task of securing the high ground east of the Diersfordter Forest and the bridges over the Issel. A few hours after the attack began, their units had secured all their targets, some with heavy losses. On the afternoon of the same day, the 17th US Airborne Division joined forces with the advancing units of the British 15th (Scottish) Division and the British 1st Command Brigade.

When the division advanced eastwards under the command of the XIII Corps of General Simpson's 9th Army, it captured Haltern on March 29 and Münster on April 2 . Subsequently, the 17th US Airborne Division took part in the fighting in the Ruhr area , where they replaced the 79th Infantry Division .

On April 6, she was assigned to the XVI Corps . On the same day, she crossed the Rhine-Herne Canal and built a bridgehead for the attack on Essen , which fell four days later. In subsequent attacks, the industrial cities of Mülheim an der Ruhr and Duisburg were also captured. From April 12, the division also took on occupation tasks in the German Reich . With the capitulation of the Ruhr basin , the fighting in Europe ended for the 17th US Airborne Division.

The division came under the command of the XXII Corps on April 27 , under which it continued to perform occupation duties until it was relocated to France on June 25, 1945. In September of the same year, the 17th U.S. Airborne Division was relocated to the United States , where it was disbanded at Camp Myles Standish (Massachusetts) on September 16, 1945.

Figures for the 17th U.S. Airborne Division

In the course of its 45-day combat missions in the Ardennes, the Rhineland and the Ruhr area, the 17th US Airborne Division suffered a total of 2,166 losses. Of these, 564 had fallen, 129 were missing and 1,473 were wounded so badly that they were no longer fit for action. The number of less wounded is much higher. In addition, 854 members of the division were killed outside of combat operations - mostly due to accidents or illness - or were no longer operational. These losses correspond to almost a quarter of the division's total strength.

During this time, the 17th U.S. Airborne Division took 17,344 prisoners of war.

For special bravery, the members of the division were awarded a total of 4 " Distinguished Service Cross ", 177 " Silver Star " and 695 " Bronze Star ".

organization

units commander
507th Paratrooper Regiment Col. Edson D. Raff
( 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment )
513rd Paratrooper Regiment Col. James W. Coutts, Lt. Col. Ward Ryan (from May 9, 1945)
( 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment )
193rd Airborne Regiment Col. Maurice G. Stubbs
( 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment )
194th Airborne Regiment Col. James R. Pierce
( 194th Glider Infantry Regiment )
139th Airborne Engineer Battalion Lt. Col. Stanley TB Johnson
( 139th Airborne Engineer Battalion )
155th Airborne Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion
( 155th Airborne Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion )
Divisional artillery
680th Airborne Field Artillery Battalion Lt. Col. Paul F. Oswald
( 680th Glider Field Artillery Battalion )
681st Airborne Field Artillery Battalion Lt. Col. Joseph W. Keating
( 681st Glider Field Artillery Battalion )
464th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion Lt. Col. Edward S. Branigan
( 464th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion )
466th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion Lt. Col. Ken Booth
( 466th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion )
More units
224th Medical Company
( 224th Medical Company )
17. Parachute repair company
( 17th Parachute Maintenance Company )
717. Airborne Supply Company
( 717th Airborne Ordnance Company )
411. Airborne Supply Company
( 411th Airborne Quartermaster Company )
517th Airborne Communications Company
( 517th Airborne Signal Company )
Headquarters company
( Headquarters Company )
Military police train
( Military Police Platoon )
Reconnaissance platoon
( Reconnaissance Platoon )
Divisional Music Corps ( Band )

Leadership and staff

Division commander Maj. Gen. William M. Miley
Deputy Division Commander Brig. Gen. John L. Whitelaw
Commander of the divisional artillery Brig. Gen. Joseph V. Phelps
chief of staff Col. Willard K. Liebel
Staff Officer G 1 (Personnel) Lt. Col. Lewis R. Good
Staff Officer G 2 (Intelligence) Lt. Col. Lyle N. McAlister
Staff officer G 3 (Operations and Plans) Lt. Col. Edwin J. Messinger
Staff Officer G 4 (Logistics) Lt. Col. Charles W. Koester
Staff Officer G 5 (Civil Affairs) Lt. Col. Richard A. Norton
Adjutant General Lt. Col. Gabe W. Lewis, Jr.

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