Hellcat News (Garnet Valley, Pa.), Vol. 69, No. 6, Ed. 1, February 2016 Page: 8 of 24
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Page 8
HELLCAT NEWS
Febuary 2016
to Stalag 5A and 11B during the cold winter months of 1944
and 1945.
Just put in a call to our C-66 buddy Bob Hoeweler [C]
who has had a hip replacement. It seems that Bob is still
recuperating in the hospital. He seemed to still be in good
spirits and said that for 92 years old, he is doing pretty good.
We all wish Bob a speedy recovery and back to his card
games. Hang in there Bob!
The beginning of February 1945 (exactly 70 years ago)
found the 66th Armored Infantry Battalion and the 43rd Tank
Battalion, both part of Combat Command ‘A’ of the 12th
Armored Division, at the towns of Mittelhausbergen and
Oberschaeffolsheim respectively, slightly northwest and west
of Strasbourg. There they were reorganizing and receiving
intensive small unit training for their newly acquired
replacements. They were getting ready for the Colmar Pocket
Operation.
The book C-66 by Weston Lewis Emery [C] noted, “An
operation in the European campaign that gets little recognition
is that of the Colmar Pocket. It was a classic example not only
of the proper utilization of the armor infantry team, but also
of combined French and American units under the command
of the French First Army. The territory being fought over was
politically important to both France and Germany.
“The Colmar Pocket covered an area of approximately
850 square miles, 80% of the area of Rhode Island. Instead
of having a relatively simple 70-mile front along the Rhine
River, the border between France and Germany, the forces of
the 6th Army Group were faced with a winding, flooded and
mountainous battle line of more than 100 miles. So much did
Germany want to keep Alsace that Heinrich Himmler himself,
the deputy Fuhrer of Germany, had been directing operation
of the Colmar Pocket, which had been a point of contention
since September 1944.
“The entire operation had moved along with hardly a hitch
as the mission of Combat Command ‘A’ was successfully
accomplished. This was due for the most part to the perfect
teamwork displayed between the infantrymen and the tankers.
The juncture with French forces at Rouffach cut the Colmar
Pocket in two, thereby immeasurably aiding in its reduction,
in addition, thousands of enemy soldiers were trapped in the
mountains to the West, unable to get on the other side of the
Rhine River to oppose the allied troops who were soon to
cross it and sweep through Germany.
“With the closing of the Colmar Pocket a thorn that had
been in the side of the 6th Army Group [made up of the
American Seventh Army and the French First Army] since
mid-November was eliminated. It was now possible for
the French to take over a large sector along the Rhine, and
additional troops now were available to the Seventh Army for
the resumption of the offense and the ultimate destruction of
the German military machine.”
We have included some of our recollections in previous
columns but being short of material for the column we repeat
some of them this month.
“The highly accelerated ASTP program was offered at 227
land-grant universities around the country. Students were
expected to complete a four-year program in 18 months with a
bachelor’s degree and a commission. A minimum of 25 class-
time hours per quarter were required to meet the compressed
schedule. Intensive courses were offered in engineering,
science, medicine, dentistry, personnel psychology, and 34
different foreign languages.
“While in academic training the soldiers were on active
duty, in uniform, under military discipline, and received
regular army pay. Recruits marched to class in groups, ate in
mess halls located in the barracks, and trained in the fields
around a campus. The soldiers’ week featured 59 hours of
‘supervised activity,’ including at least 24 of classroom and
lab work, 24 of required study, six of physical instruction, and
five of military instruction. At its height in December 1943,
about 140,000 men were enrolled in the program.
“By November 1943 the Army recognized that its ASTP
replacement training centers were not producing nearly
enough new soldiers for the Army Ground Forces, particularly
in light of the impending invasion of France. In January 1944,
Col. Beukema reported to aU. S. Congressional investigating
committee that ASTP was more demanding than either West
Point or the Naval Academy.
“So it was seventy years ago this month that the Secretary of
War announced that the ASTP program would be terminated.
That program was originally established to fill a need for
engineering type officers in the Army. One of the basic
requirements to enter the program was an Army IQ of 110
or higher, which was the level demanded for commissioning
as an officer in the Army. An additional requirement was
screening by a classification board to determine if the soldier
was considered potential officer material on the premise that if
the training was completed satisfactorily a commission would
follow.
“All enlisted men assigned to ASTP training units were on
active duty and were part of military units. Uniforms were
worn at all times on and off duty, and each man was assigned
to a training company. Non-commissioned officers were
designated [without increase in pay] and a ‘student’ never
felt he was not in the Army. Men marched in step from the
barracks to the mess hall and back and forth from class to class.
Instructors were the civilian staff of the college or university.
A marching band was organized and played for retreat and
dress parades. Inspections were frequent and military training
continued throughout the program.”
So upon disbandment of that program, 1300 former ASTP
men were welcomed into the 12th Armored Division. Each
company of the 66th received approximately 45 soldiers from
that program. The Army Specialized Training Program was
unique. It was originated to meet the needs of the academic
community, from which most male students had gone into the
military service, and the military establishment, in which a
need for officers was projected. Such a program has not been
replicated anywhere.
They blended in well with all the original soldiers and soon
became an important part of the 12th Armored Division and
the 66th Armored Infantry Battalion. How many of our 66th
members who were ASTP are stiff around? Maybe some of
them will show up at the next reunion. We sure look forward
to seeing some of them. “It’s Great to be a Hellcat.”
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Twelfth Armored Division Association (U.S.). Hellcat News (Garnet Valley, Pa.), Vol. 69, No. 6, Ed. 1, February 2016, newspaper, February 2016; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth861562/m1/8/?rotate=90: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The 12th Armored Division Memorial Museum.