Saxon Drive 78

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saxon Drive 78 maneuver chart

Saxon Drive 78 (German "Sachsenschwung" ) was an American , German , and Dutch FTX autumn maneuver in the autumn of 1978 in Lower Saxony .

Division of troops

The BLUE exercise force was composed as follows:

GREEN was structured as follows:

  • Staff, 4th NL Division / 4th Divisie, Harderwijk
    • 42nd NL Infantry Brigade, Assen
    • Parts of NL-Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion 103/103 Verkenningsbataljon
    • NL field artillery group 102
    • NL field artillery group 103 (in phase II at BLAU)

REFORGER troops for GREEN:

  • 4th US Infantry Division (Mech.), Fort Carson, Colorado
    • 1st Brigade moved from the USA to Europe as REFORGER reinforcement

Both parties were supported by corps supply troops.

Management and referee service provided parts of the corps troops, the 111th NL counterintelligence detachment, parts of the Bundeswehr's Psychological Defense Battalion 2 (PSV Battalion 2, Clausthal-Zellerfeld ) and Army Aviation Command 1 (HFlgKdo 1).

scope

The preliminary exercise was “ Inter Action 77 ”. Saxon Drive 78 under the direction of the I. NL Corps took place from September 18 to 29, 1978 in the area of Bremen , Diepholz , Minden , Hanover , Wolfsburg and Lüneburg . 35,000 soldiers (44,000 Dutch, 7,500 US and 1,500 Bundeswehr soldiers), 7,000 wheeled vehicles and 2,300 tracked vehicles took part in the military exercise .

procedure

The agglomeration was the area between the Weser and Bergen-Hohne / Munster . The combat exercise took place between September 18 and 28, 1978 with the march back on September 29, 1978.

Starting point GREEN: On September 18, 178, the 2nd Army GREEN took the area along the Elbe-Ilmenau- Elbe side canal with the aim of forcing water crossings between Bremerhaven and Minden and forming a bridgehead west of the Weser. Initial situation BLUE: It could be assumed that GRÜNLAND was able to start an attack without any lengthy preparation time. Therefore, on September 18, 1978, BLAU had to take up defensive positions west of the Weser. They were given the task of defending the crossings of the Weser, Aller and Leine and of monitoring the neutral sector with spy units. The line Ilmenau-Elbe-Seitenkanal was to be held.

Saxon Drive 78 was divided as follows:

  • Practice phase I: September 19-23, 1978. GREEN attacked in the direction of Verden . BLUE delayed and led forces.
  • Exercise phase II: September 23-25, 1978. Interruption of exercise with regrouping of troops.
  • Exercise phase III: September 25-28, 1978. BLAU counterattacked towards Lüneburg. In doing so, GREEN was completely pushed back.

For the first time a ribbon bridge was built over the Weser and an M60 AVLB bridge over the Ilmenau near Jastorf . Air force support was provided as part of the allied NATO exercise " Cold Fire 78". In addition, 128 helicopters were used.

For two days, combat troops moved to Bergen-Hohne to hold combat shooting there. As a maneuver balance, three people were killed and 10 seriously injured in accidents. Official guests of the exercise were Crown Princess Beatrix and Prince Claus from the Dutch royal family . In Braudel , where 1,500 soldiers were lying with 250 vehicles, the US Army organized an “ open day ”. The weather during Saxon Drive 78 was mostly dry, with precipitation only in Phase III of the exercise.

See also

Web links

media

Notes and individual references

  1. ↑ Field Training Exercise, free-running exercise for the full force
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Saxon Drive 78 on M136
  3. ↑ Clear the road. After an article on the “psychological defense” of the Bundeswehr, the public prosecutor's office brought charges against the editor-in-chief of the communist “UZ”. The mirror. September 25, 1978
  4. ↑ Inter Action 77 on September 22nd to October 1st, 1977 on M136
  5. ↑ Improved Ribbon Bridge based on pioneering technology
  6. ↑ Ribbon Bridge System as a folding swimming bridge