Field Atillery:

The U.S. 155mm howitzer



A U.S. howitzer in action



Two soldiers carry a crate of
artillery ammunition



In the second World War, artillery was beginning to get more advanced. The day of the classic cannon-on-wagon-wheels was over; and the age of modern artillery had begun. 



A U.S. howitzer in the Pacific Theatre,
Second World War



 One common piece of artillery in WWII was the 155 millimeter howitzer. A howitzer is a multi-purpose gun; it can fire direct, shooting strait ahead at a visible target, or it can fire indirect, firing upwards into the air so the shell can come down on top of a target. 

Allied artillery giving indirect fire
in France, 1944

Direct fire was commonly used against walls or in defense; indirect fire could attack enemy-held hilltop positions. That made it a very popular weapon.



Two U.S. Artillerymen load and prepare to
fire their 155 mm howitzer



 Artillery pieces were often named according to what size of ammunition it used. The shell (bomb) fired by this particular gun had a diameter of 155mm. Hence it's name, the 155mm howitzer.

Securing the fold-out legs of a 155mm howitzer in
preparation to fire

Bombs away! A 155mm howitzer in the
Korean War

Artillery position, South Pacific Theatre, WWII

Turning Back the Empire, Pt. II: Guadalcanal

Henderson Field to Tenaru River

As we saw in our last entry, the beach landings on Guadalcanal went well, without a hitch. But it was not before long after the landing crafts reached the shore than Japanese air attacks swarmed down on the transport ships landing troops and supplies onto Guadalcanal. As a result, it became increasingly difficult for supplies to be landed. While casualties resulting from the air attacks were low, the greatest problem on the beaches was the chaos that resulted from inexperienced boat captains unloading gear, ammo, and food on the beach in an extreme hurry to get out of the area and back to safety--leaving the beaches littered in a disarray of vehicles, troops, and supplies. Needless to say, this provided a tempting target for Japanese bomber pilots.
When the 1st U.S. Marine Division landed on Guadalcanal virtually un-opposed by enemy land forces, they were dumbfounded. "Where are the Japanese?" was the question on every body's minds. Other than the air attacks, there was virtually no sign of the enemy's presence. As the Marines moved inland, however, they did meet slight pockets of resistance as we saw in the entry below. The Japanese airfield on Guadalcanal was captured without opposition only 36 hours after the landings. The airstrip was renamed "Henderson Field", after an American pilot who died in the battle of Midway the previous June. Before long several American aircraft were arriving from aircraft carriers. These were mostly Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat fighters and Dauntless Dive-bombers.

A Dauntless Dive-bomber warms up on Henderson Field before take-off. A Dauntless Dive-bomber flies over the jungle of Guadalcanal. Two American Soldiers move along a jungle trail on their way inland. Trees are felled to make the rural paths wider....
...until roads are formed, wide enough for vehicles.
In reality, the Japanese were completely caught unaware of the U.S. Invasion. When the severely understrength and outnumbered Japanese garrison on Guadalcanal came under attack, the troops guarding the coast fled inland to put up a fight elsewhere on the island. When the Japanese High Command learned that Guadalcanal was under attack, it was decided that all efforts would be taken by the Imperial Army and Navy both the push the Americans off of Guadalcanal. Things for the Americans soon got tough; as Japanese planes attacked the Marines and their supply ships from the air, Japanese ships brought fresh troops from other islands to fight on Guadalcanal. And in the early hours of August 9th, four ships from the American Navy were sunk in a night battle by a Japanese naval force with superior night-fighting skills and experience.
But the Marines were not easily removed; rather, despite attacks from fresh Japanese infantry on Henderson Field a few days after it's capture, the Americans held onto their 3x6 mile toehold they had gained on the island and stubbornly resisted all the Japanese could throw at them.
More and more Japanese troops poured into Guadalcanal's Japanese-held territory. Japanese supply and troop ships came and went so frequently on a regular schedule that the Marines dubbed the endless back-and-fourth movements of boats "The Tokyo Express".

Reports pour into the U.S. Headquarters. Communication was vital for the Americans for decision-making. A Dauntless Dive-bomber takes off from Henderson Field to bomb Japanese infantry positions facing the Marines front. On August 21st, the Japanese Army took up position on the Tenaru River, very close to Henderson Field. A fight ensued between the Marines and the Japanese, and each side contested for full control of both river banks.

Two U.S. Marines advance in high grass towards the Tenaru River.

Orders are given to send four American Tanks to the Tenaru river fight, to assist in flushing out the Japanese from the riverbanks. Japanese Soldiers rush in to the front on the Tenaru river. The battle lasted for several hours. A Japanese Marine keeps a wary eye on the enemy as he reaches into his ammo pouch for more ammunition to re-load his rifle. Fighting conditions were difficult; grass and trees higher than a man's head covered the island, and only a small patch of open ground ran along each river bank between the sandy waterline and the treeline.

A U.S. Marine breaks out into the open to let loose with his M1 Thompson Sub-Machine gun. The firing is kept up.... Anyone who steps into the open risks being shot. Here a U.S. Marine reloads his M3 Sub machine gun (nicknamed a "grease gun" because of it's appearance). The Americans won the battle, partially in thanks to the use of Tanks to help flush the Japanese out of concealed riverside positions. The fight for the Tenaru took place very near the delta, close to where the river met the open sea. Soldiers took cover behind sand bars, curves in the riverbank, and tall river grass or anything that offered the slightest bit of cover.

The battle for Guadalcanal was tough, but the Marines were doing well. Japanese losses were very high, and the Marines garrison was holding out despite the hardships. Jungle Heat: a Marine offers a drink from his canteen to a buddy during a break on a patrol through the jungle. Patrols were conducted throughout day and night to detect all enemy movement possible. Here a Marine refills his canteen. In the blistering heat of the South Pacific, water was more essential than bullets in jungle campaigns. When water was found, it didn't always have to be crystal-clear to be accepted as "drinkable"... Despite the hardships, the Marines were doing well--so far. But they braced themselves for something else that they knew was inevitable: a major, all-out attack on Henderson Field in an attempt to break the Marines line of defense and push them off Guadalcanal once and for all. Only 1,000 Japanese troops had been sent to take Tenaru, and were defeated; but thousands more were being massed for another attack somewhere else on the American lines.

More is to follow in the next upcoming post.

Counter-Guerrilla Patrol In Action During the Vietnam War.

The Vietnam War was different than any other war America has fought in the way that both sides used guerrilla warfare tactics more than conventional fighting methods. Unlike conventional warfare, where two opposing armies attack each other using infantry, artillery, tanks and planes, guerrilla warfare involves "hit and run" tactics where combat patrols penetrate deep into enemy territory to cause as much damage and havoc behind enemy lines as possible.
To counter the threat of Viet Cong (or "VC") guerrillas--civilians in arms aiding the North Vietnamese Army to expand Communism throughout all of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos--the U.S. Army sent out counter-guerrilla combat teams to seek out and destroy small but fierce bands of Viet Cong as they conducted sabotage raids deep in U.S./South Vietnamese territory.

There were many contributing factors to why guerrilla warfare was so prevalent; for instance, the geography. Vietnam is made up of jungle-covered mountains, with very little roads connecting the scattered villages throughout the countryside. The staple food crop was rice, grown in water-filled paddies, rather than dry solid farm fields like Europe or North America. Because of the extremely rough terrain, moving large armies on massive campaigns was unthinkable; instead, we would send small units to venture out from an established base camp to slowly gain ground or collect information on enemy troop movements. Because of this, Viet Cong patrols were sent out to ambush and clear the area of our patrols to keep the way open to conduct raids of their own, and the American and South Vietnamese armies sent out counter-patrols to counter these, which turned Vietnam into a constant back-and-forth battlefield of hundreds of small but fierce firefights day and night.


Let's now take a look at a U.S. Combat patrol conducting a mission.


A U.S. Combat patrol usually consisted of of 10-15 men; a 9-man squad plus one medic was the most common arrangement. Being a long-range strike force, all the soldiers were heavily armed and only carried the bare necessities or less to reduce weight and to make room for as much ammunition as possible.


The Mission: local villagers have reported a patrol of Viet Cong moving South through the jungle at around 3:30-4:00 a.m. Note that the Viet Cong wear black uniforms and the soldier in front carries a M1 Springfield leftover from World War II.


Later that morning, a U.S. patrol undertakes a final weapon's check before moving out.
Hours later, a U.S. soldier finds fresh footprints. "They can't be more than half an hour old" he says, and the squad leader is notified immediately.

Two men are sent forward to scout out the location of the Vietcong, but not to engage in combat. Before long, the scouts return with news that the VC patrol is heading their way. The squad leader immediately orders everybody to prepare to ambush the oncoming enemy.

Here we see a heavy machine gunner taking position with his M-60 machine gun.

The VC patrol is wary of U.S. or South Vietnamese movements; they are in enemy territory, and take extra precaution to spread out on their return trip in case they were detected. Silently they move through the jungle, keeping their eyes and ears open for signs of the enemy.
The squad commander takes a look for himself at the surrounding area. "We should ambush them here; if a medivac is needed, the clearing to our rear will be perfect for an airlift."
All the soldiers are ready with guns loaded, waiting for the commander's order to fire.
"Corporal, take position behind that bamboo grove. Fire on sight."
"OPEN FIRE!"
The soldiers open fire on the VC patrol with all their firepower; light and heavy machine guns, grenades, and as pictured here a U.S. Soldier fires his grenade launcher, nicked-named "Blooper" by American soldiers for the noise it made when discharging the grenade.
The M-16 automatic rifle was the most commonly used rifle by U.S. forces in the Vietnam War. It is used by the soldier pictured below.

Three hits are scored on the enemy....
...But one U.S. Soldier is wounded in the fighting.
"Man hit! We need a medic over here!"
The medic rushes over, but has only bad news: the injured soldier is in critical condition, and a medivac (medical evacuation helicopter, the ancestor of today's life-flight) is needed.



A medivac is requested by radio, and soon the sound of whirling rotors beating the air comes close. As the fight draws to a close, all the enemy soldiers having been killed, captured, or escaped, the helicopter hovers over the clearing where the medic is signaling for it to land.

The fight is over, and everybody re-loads before returning to the base camp, or "fire base" as they were called.



The patrol returns to the fire base the following night. A patrol could be out in the jungle for days or even sometimes weeks on end, depending on troop strength, supplies, and proximity to friendly bases and villages.