WWII Engineer Amphibian Troops

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FOREWORD

This is the seventh guide in a series published as an aid totraining engineer amphibian units.

It is a basic manual fo r officers and enlisted men in EngineerShore Battalions and other engineer amphibian units operating on thefar shore. It contains the details of the duties they must performon the far shore-- obstacle removal, road building, unloading ofsupplies and equipment, th e installation of supply dumps, andnumerous others of the important functions of shore engineers. Ithas been compiled from data gathered through the experience ofengineer amphibian units in the field.

Unit commanders are invited to criticize and to suggest addi-tions, deletions, changes in emphasis, or other changes, for incor-poration in later editions.

Above all, this guide is intended to stress the vital importanceof beach organization during a shore-to-shore operation.

DANIEL NOCEBrigadier General, U. S. A.Commanding.

Engineer Amphibian Command,Camp Edwards, Massachusetts,May, 1943.


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CONTENTS

CHAPTER

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Paragraphs PageForewordIntroductionMission and Employment of Engineer

Shore Troops In GeneralOrganization fo r Far Shore ActivityHeadquarters Platoon, Shore Company,

And AttachmentsPioneer PlatoonUtility PlatoonThe Amphibian Truck (DUKW)TrainingAPPENDIX I Beach and HydrographicMarkings

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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7 1-2

CHAPTER 1INTRODUCTION

ParagraphBackground 1Necessity for Shore Engineers 2

1. BACKGROUND.--The present conflict differs strategically inone great particular from World War I. In the last war the UnitedStates had available to her ample harbor facilities to land men andmateriel. Our troops disembarked at French channel ports and pro-ceeded by rail or truck to th e front lines. In sharp contrast, inthis war we will have to fight for our ports. In order to gain thoseports we will have to land on the enemy's beaches and capture beach-heads-- areas large enough to enable our infantry, artillery, tanks,and other combat units to land, form for attack, and move inland.Those beachheads will have to be held and developed as openings andsupply bases through which men and materiel can be poured into enemyterri tory. One of our first objectives will be to capture a port orports to which these base facilities will be shifted as early aspossible.

2. NECESSITY FOR SHORE ENGINEERS.--The responsibility for holdingand developing the beach area belongs to engineer shore troops. Itis a job which requires a soldier to be both a builder and a fighter.To hold th e beach, engineer shore troops are prepared to fight. Theywork with their rifles slung, or within easy reach, and frequentlysuspend their work long enough to repel an attack. They are equippedto defend th e beach from attacks by land or air with .30 and .50caliber machine guns and 37-mm antitank guns. They are responsiblefor the removal of obstacles on the beach and must, therefore, beskilled in th e use of demolitions. They must first of all be goodengineer soldiers.

The job of developing the beach is one for builders. Beachroads must be developed and improved to permit rapid unloading andmovement across the beach. Dumps must be established, command postsset up. Everything possible must be done to permit as many men andas much materiel as possible to move rapidly across the beach andinland. Until more highly developed port facilities are captured,the work of engineer shore troops on the beach must continue.

The importance of the mission of engineer shore troops cannotbe overemphasized. If there is one lesson that modern war teaches,it is that the battlefield is at the forward end of the supply line.The particular supply problem for which engineer shore troops are

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2 THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREresponsible is tremendous. An Engineer Special Brigade is normallyattached to a reinforced infantry division. In order that thatdivision may carry out its mission at least 1500 tons of suppliesand equipment must pass across the division beach daily-- 15,000 tonsover a period of 10 days. These figures may well increase dependingon the nature of the operation. They are too low rather than toohigh. These supplies must be moved rapidly. Battle experience onthe beaches of North Africa and Sicily proved that victory is depen-dent upon a continuous flow of all types of supplies and equipmentacross the beaches to the assault troops ahead. Unnecessary con-gestion at a critical stage of the attack means disaster. There isno place where the lives of men depend more upon the coordinatedactivities of their fellow soldiers than in the movement of men andsupplies across a hostile beach. When the time comes, it will notmatter how well the tactical commander has planned, nor how skill-fully th e Boat Companies have brought their waves in to the rightbeach at the right minute-- if the beach organization breaks down,the battle is lost.


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3-6 THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHORE

CHAPTER 2MISSION AND EMPLOYMENT OF ENGINEER SHORE TROOPS IN GENERAL

ParagraphBeach Organization 3Resupply 4Evacuation of Wounded, Prisoners, and Salvage 5Relationship Between Shore Engineers and Ground Forces 6Composition of a Battalion landing Team 7

3. BEACH ORGANIZATION.--When the boat units have performed theirmission of transporting the combat units over water to the hostilefar shore, the mission of engineer amphibian troops is only partiallycompleted. True, th e engineer boatman is a vital part of the engi-neer amphibian team, bu t an equally important member of that team isthe shore engineer. Far shore areas, we have seen, must be organizedin order to facilitate the movement inland of combat troops, theirequipment, and supplies. Shore organization, or"beach organization"as it is more commonly called, is the work of the shore engineer.

This work includes marking the beach and th e landing area;establishing communication; reconnoitering for roads and dump sitesfor all types of supplies; removal of obstacles and decontaminationof gassed areas; building roads and performing other general shoreengineer duties; establishing beach defenses with shore engineerweapons; keeping th e beach clear; controll ing beach traffic andstragglers; otherwise enforcing beach discipline.

4. RESUPPLY.--Assisting in th e huge task of resupplying th ecombat troops is another important function of shore engineers.This involves the continuous unloading of supplies and the moving ofthem to dumps accessible to the combat units. Normally, this workwil l continue until adequate port facilities have been seized anddeveloped. However, shore engineers may be called upon to preparefacilities and to perform all or a part of port operating functions.(See Tentative Training Guide No. 4).

5. EVACUATION OF WOUNDED, PRISONERS, AND SALVAGE.--Simultaneouslywith organizing the beach and the handling of resupply, shore engi-neers must assist engineer medical and boat units in the evacuationof wounded from the far shore. Further evacuation functions includeth e receipt and guarding of prisoners of war unti l they can be pro-cessed and removed to the near shore. Salvable equipment must like-wise be received, segregated, and dispatched to the near shore.

6. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SHORE ENGINEERS AND GROUND FORCES.--The


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7basic engineer shore unit is the Engineer Shore Company, three ofwhich, together with a Headquarters Company, comprise an EngineerShore Battalion. There is one such battalion in each Engineer Boatand Shore Regiment, three in the Engineer Special Brigade. Eachbattalion is capable of providing th e necessary fa r shore servicesfo r a regimental combat team, and all three are capable of providingfar shore services for a reinforced infantry division.

Shore engineer units are either attached to or in support ofcombat troops. (See Tentative Training Guides Nos. 1 and 4). Byreferr ing to th e troops supported as"combat" troops, it is notimplied that shore engineers are not "fighting" troops. In th ebroadest sense-- that they must fight, and fight hard, and work withtheir rifles at their sides-- they are definitely "combat troops."

7. COMPOSITION OF A BATTALION LANDING TEAM.--In a typical shore-to-shore operation, an Engineer Shore Company functions as a part ofa battalion landing team. To understand the duties required of theShore Company, the shore engineer must know something of the organ-ization of the battalion landing team. The more he knows regardingth e composition of the organization he is serving, th e approximatenumber and type of its troops, vehicles, and equipment, the better hewill be able to fulfill his responsibility to that organization.

The following shows the organization of a typical battalionlanding team:

1 Infantry Battalion1 Battery Field Artillery (105-mm howitzers)1 Platoon Combat Engineers (from Divisional Combat Engr. Bn.)1 Platoon Antitank Company (from Inf. Regt. Antitank Co.)1 Cannon Platoon (105-mm howitzers) (from Inf. Regt. Hq . Co.)1 Shore Fire Control Party (Navy liaison officer and fire

control personnel from Field Artillery Bn.)1 Detachment Antiaircraft Automatic Weapons1 Engineer Boat Company1 Engineer Shore Company

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CHAPTER 3ORGANIZATION FOR FAR SHORE ACTIVITY

The Engineer Shore CompanyHeadquarters Company, Engineer Shore BattalionOthers With Whom Shore Engineers Will Have to WorkBoat Control SectionAttached Medical PersonnelAssignment of Personnel to BoatsAssignment of Shore Engineers to Waves

Paragraph89

1011121314

8. THE ENGINEER SHORE COMPANY.--Of primary importance to theshore engineer is a thorough knowledge and understanding of the or-ganization of the Engineer Shore Company. It is composed of a Head-quarters Platoon for command, control, communication, administra-tive, and defense functions; a Pioneer Platoon fo r general shoreengineer functions; and a U tility Platoon for general longshoremanfunctions.

Fig. 1.--The Organization of th e Engineer Shore Company.9. HEADQUARTERS COMPANY, ENGINEER SHORE BATTALION.--In the per-

formance of the shore engineer mission, the engineers of the ShoreCompanies will have the valuable assistance of other shore engineersfrom their own Battalion's Headquarters Company, with whom they must


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7work in close harmony and cooperation. From the Communication Pla-toon of the Shore Battalion Headquarters Company, communication per-sonnel will be attached to the Shore Companies to assist them incarrying out their communication functions; likewise from the CombatPlatoon of the Headquarters Company .50 caliber machine gun squadswill be attached fo r antiaircraft protection of the Shore Company'sbeach and 37 -mm gun squads fo r protection of the beach area againsttanks, armored vehicles, and, if necessary, against attacks by smallboat patrols from the sea. In addition to these 2 platoons, eachShore Battalion Headquarters Company has a Company Headquarters foradministrative functions within the company, and a Headquarters Pla-toon which furnishes the enlisted personnel who work in BattalionHeadquarters. The organization of the Headquarters Company is shownin the following chart.

Fig. 2.--Organization of lHq. & Hq. Co., Shore Bn.10. OTHERS WITH WHOM SHORE ENGINEERS WILL HAVE TO WORK.--Working

in the same beach area with shore engineers, but performing differ-ent duties, will be a group of engineer boatmen known as the Boat

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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREControl Section, and a group of medical men from the Boat and ShoreRegimental Medical Detachment. These groups will play a most impor-tant part in the success of the shore engineer's work. Consequentlyhe should learn what their duties are and what he must do to assistthem.

11. BOAT CONTROL SECTION.--The work of the Engineer Shore Com-pany is closely related to that of the Boat Control Section. TheBoat Control Section is the descriptive name given the Boat Mainte-nance and Salvage Section of the Engineer Boat Company while it isfunctioning on the fa r shore. Organically this section is part ofthe Boat Company, and on the near shore prior to embarkation it per-forms second echelon maintenance on the boats of the Boat Company.On the fa r shore, however, it works with the shore units.

Generally speaking, the task of the Boat Maintenance andSalvage Section on the fa r shore is to control boats and boat traf-fic at the beach; hence the name Boat Control Section. While as-signed to this duty this section is attached to the Shore Company,and the Boat Control officer, commander of the section, takes hisorders directly from the Shore Company commander.

It cannot be emphasized too strongly that the shore engi-neers and the Boat Control Section must work shoulder to shoulder.Many will be the times that the shore engineers will have to suspendthe performance of some job to aid the Boat Control Section in theexecution of a more vital one; many will be the times when the BoatControl Section will pitch in to assist the shore engineers.

For a detailed discussion of the work of the Boat ControlSection see pars. 27-33.

12. ATTACHED MEDICAL PERSONNEL.--The attached medical personnel,1 medical officer and 9 medical enlisted men, will establish an aidstation in the Shore Company area and will assist not only the in-jured among shore engineers, but also those of the combat troopsinjured on and near the beach area. The shore engineers will fre-quently be required to assist these "medics"in the handling of theinjured. (For detailed duties of this section see par. 44 andTentative Training Guide No . 4).

13. ASSIGNMENT OF PERSONNEL TO BOATS. -- Of foremost importance tothe shore engineer is the matter of boat assignment. He frequentlyhas this question in mind: "If I am to work on the far shore, howand when do I arrive there?" To say that the shore engineer istransported in waves of boats operated by the Boat Company is only apartial answer to th e how part of the question. In what boats ofwhat waves and at about what stage of the operation is quite another

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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7 13and much more complicated matter. Every shore engineer who isreally interested in his job should have read enough of TentativeTraining Guide No. 2, A Manual for Boat Crews, to understand thatthe Engineer Boat Company lands a battalion landing team on the farshore in "waves", and that a "wave" is a number of boats hitting agiven beach at approximately the same time. He should understandfurther that it takes 60 boats to land a battalion landing team andthat a battalion landing team is generally landed in 7 waves of notless than 6, nor more than 10, boats. He should know also thatH-hour is the time the first wave of boats "hits" the fa r shore andthat it is generally about H plus 90, or about 90 minutes after thefirst wave hits the beach, that the last wave of boats arrives atthe far shore. The shore engineer should remember, of course, thathis company is a vital part of the battalion landing team, and thatsomewhere in that 7 waves of boats (with a few minor exceptions)there will be a "boat space" for him and fo r each member of hiscompany.

Boat assignment, or the assignment of personnel and equip-ment to boats, is the responsibility of the battalion landing teamcommander. He prepares th e Boat Assignment Table showing whatpersonnel and equipment is carried in each boat of each wave, andthe time when that wave is to arrive on the fa r shore. This tablenot only assigns combat troops and their equipment to boats, butalso provides for the assignment of the shore engineers and theirequipment. The assignment of personnel and equipment to craft mustnecessarily depend upon the tactical situation, and no one can saypositively that a certain section or platoon of shore engineers willbe assigned to a given wave any more than one can say that certainelements of the combat troops will be transported in a given wave.This much, however, is known: that the shore engineer has manytasks to perform which are vital to the success of the operation;that these tasks must be performed on the far shore; that there isan approximate time at which these tasks must be performed; that theshore engineer must be present on the far shore in time to performthem; and that this time will depend upon the assignment to waves ofother elements of the battalion landing team.

It therefore becomes necessary to determine about what stageof the operation the various combat elements of the battalion land-ing team will arrive on the far shqre in order to approximate thetime at which elements of the Engineer Shore Company should arrive.To do this we presume a normal situation in which the enemy has inits favor a fairly well defended shore line, and we have in ourfavor either the element of surprise or air and naval superiority,or both. In that case the battalion landing team commander wouldprobably assign th e combat elements of his command to waves asfollows:


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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHORE

Name of WaveAssault Wave

Support Wave

Wave III Fire Power WaveReserve & CommandWaveAntitank Wave

Field ArtilleryWaveWave VII Ammunition and

Supply Wave

Numbe rWave I

Wave II

14. ASSIGNMENT OF SHORE ENGINEERS TO WAVES.--If the ShoreCompany is to perform its mission of facilitating the landing, th emovement inland, and the resupply of the combat elements of thebattalion landing team listed above, when then must elements of theShore Company be transported to the fa r shore? In general terms theanswer is this.: it is essential that command, reconnaissance, andcommunication details be landed early in the operation; that defenseunits be landed early enough to protect the beach area from infil-trating personnel or vehicles and from attack from the air; thatobstacle removal and gas decontamination personnel land prior toroad building elements; that road building units land prior to vehi-cles and artillery; that longshoremen with their transportation andother equipment be landed before the landing of resupply; and thatremaining shore personnel be landed as soon as their use is essen-tial. Therefore, one suggested method of assignment of shore per-sonnel and principal items of equipment to waves and to boats is asgiven in Figure 3 below:

Fig. 3.--Assignment to Waves and Boats. >

12

Principal Combat Elementsin Wave

Assault Elements of 2Assault Rifle CompaniesSupport Elements of 2Assault CompaniesHeavy Weapons CompanyInfantry Bn. C. 0. and Bn. Hq .and Reserve Rifle CompanyAT Platoon, Bn. Hq . Co., andAT Platoon, Regt'l AT Co.Field Artillery Battery(105-mm howitzer)Essential transportation andammunition fo r elements al-ready landed.

Wave IV

Wave V

Wave VI

13-14


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7WAVE I ASSAULTH

BDAT 14 LCVPENGINEER BOAT COEMPMYBoat Control Section

WAVEI - SUPPORTH plus 5(none)

WAVE III - FIRE POWERH plus 15

BOAT 15 LCOPNGINEER BOAT COCPMNYBoat Control Section

BOAT34 LCVPENGINEER HOREOOMPANYHq. Platoon 1Captain, C. O. 11st Sergeant 1T/5, Reconnaissance 1T/5, Clerk 1Beach Marking Team(Utility Platoon) 3Message Center Men 3.30 Caliber Machine Gun Crews 6SHOREEN.HQ. COMPANYCommunication PlatoonEnlisted Men 2ENGINEER BOATCOMPANYBoat Control SectionBoat Control Officer 1Boat Control EM 13

Total 32

BOAT44 LCM(3)ENGINEERSHORECOMPANYPioneer PlatoonFirst Lieutenant 1Bulldozer Operator 1Decontanination EquipmentOperator 1Demolition Man 1Laborers 2SHOREBN. HQ. CDMPANYCombat Platoon(.50 Caliber Machine Gun)Sergeant 1Corporal 1Privates 3Medical DetachmentOfficers 1Aid Men 4

Total 16Tractor, with Angledozer, Road BuildingMaterials, and Equipment

BOAT53 LQC(3)ENGINEER SHORECOMPANYPioneer Platoon1 Pioneer Section 12% Pioneer Section 6Bulldozer Operator 1Total 19

Tractor, with Angledozer, Road BuildingMaterials, and Equipment.

WAVEV - RESERVE NDCOMMANDH plus 40

BOAT 37 LCVPBEGIE ER SHORE COMPANYHq. PlatoonReconnaissance Officer

2nd in CommandWeapons OfficerT/5, ReconnassianceClerkReconnassance Team. (Utility Platoon)Messace Center 'en.30 Caliber Machine Gin CrewsSHORE EW. HQ. COMPANY

Conmmnication PlatoonEnlisted MenENGINEER BOAT COWPANYBoat Control Section EM

Total

BOAT 45 LCVPENGINEER IKORE OMPANYPioneer Platoon

Demolition ForemanDecontamination EquipmentOperatorDemolition MenLaborerSHORE EN. HO. CEMPAMNCombat Platoon(.50 Caliber Machine Gun)CorporalPrivatesMedical DetachmentAid Men

Total

WAVE - ANTITANKH plus 50

WAVEVI - FIELD ARTILLERYH plus 70

HDAT 61 LCM(3)SHORE COMPANYUtility PlatoonPlatoon LeaderEnlisted MenIUKW Operator1JKW EnginemanSHORE EN. HQ. COMPANYCombat Platoon1-37-mm Crew

Total1 - 2i Ton Amphibian Truck1 - 37-m AT (un in Truck

BOAT 74 LCO(3)ENGINEER SHORE COMPANYUtility PlatoonEnlisted Men

WAVE II - AMU ITION ANDSUPPLYH plus 90EOAT 2 LC(3)

ENGINEER SHORECQIPANYUtility PlatoonEnlisted MenBOAT75 LOC(3)

EGINER SHORECOMPANYUtility PlatoonEnlisted Men 1

BIAT 51 LC(3)ENGINEERHORECOMPANYPioneer PlatoonPlatoon SergeantPioneer Section% Pioneer SectionBulldozer OperatorTotal

Tractor, with Angledozer,Materials, and Equipment.

BIAT 66 LCM(3)ENGINEERHORECOMPANYUtility PlatoonEnlisted MenU1KWperator1UKW nginenmanSHOREN. HQ. OUPANYCombat Platoon1 37-am CrewTotal

1- 2 Ton Anphibian Truck1- 37-m AT Gn in Truck

BOAT 71 LQI(3)ENGINEER SDEE COMPANYUtility PlatoonEnlisted Men

13

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1126120

Road Building


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15 THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHORE

CHAPTER 4HEADQUARTERS PLATOON, SHORE COMPANY, AND ATTACHMENTS

ParagraphGeneral 15The Shore Company Commander 16Second-In-Command, Shore Company 17First Sergeant, Shore Company 18The Situation Map 19Record of Units Landing 20Beach Marking Teams 21Communication and Message Center Section 22Communication Platoon, Shore Battalion Headquarters Company 23Weapons Section,.Headquarters Platoon 24Attached Weapons from Shore Battalion Headquarters Company 25Employment of Boat Company Weapons on the Far Shore 26Boat Control Section Organization 27Duties of Boat Control Section 28The Boat Control Officer 29Range Marking Personnel 30Section Headquarters 31Maintenance Squad and Salvage Boat Squad 32Three Beach Squads 33Rear Echelon of.Headquarters Platoon . 34

Headquarters Platoon0-4 EM-42

Forward Weapons RearEchelon Section Echelon0-2 EM-15 0-1 EM-13 0-1 EM-14

Operations CommunicationSection & Message Center

0-2 EM-8 EM-7Fig. 4.--Organization of HeadquartersPlatoon.

15. GENERAL.--Subject to changing tactical situations, the For-ward Echelon and Weapons Section of the Shore Company, with attachedmen from the Utility Platoon, together with certain attached communi-


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7 1i 6cation personnel from Shore Battalion Headquarters Company and theattached BOAT CONTROL SECTION, will land early in the operation,normally in the third wave. To avoid "putting all the eggs in onebasket" and to insure that the occupants of one boat will be able to"carry on" in the event of the loss of any other boat, these groupsare generally divided between two boats of the third wave in generalaccordance with Fig. 3.

By the time these groups reach the far shore at about H plus15, the infantry assault troops and supporting combat engineers wholanded in the first two waves should have been able, with supportfrom the air and perhaps also from naval vessels at sea, to have madepaths through obstacles and to have pushed the enemy back from thelanding area a sufficient distance to permit shore elements landingat this time to proceed with their beach organization activities.The most immediate of these activities have to do with beach marking,reconnaissance, and communication.

16. THE SHORE COMPANY COMMANDER.--The Shore Company commanderlands with the Operations Section of the Forward Echelon, and hisinitial duties are closely connected with the duties of that section.While the company commander is responsible for all the activities ofhis company, for everything his company does or does not do, thereare certain duties which he must personally perform. These are knownas his primary duties, which are as follows and are performed inabout the following order:

a. Establishes contact with infantry assault companies. Imme-diately upon landing, the company commander establishes contact withthe infantry assault companies ashore (usually two) and ascertainsthe extent of their progress. This is a routine but most importantfunction, since the activity of the Shore Company depends to a largeextent upon the measure of success met with by the infantry. Heestablishes his contact by sending two runners (messengers) from theMessage Center Section with instructions to locate the infantrycompanies and bring back information regarding their situation aswell as the enemy situation. This information is important not onlyto the Shore Company commander but also to other commanders (particu-larly the battalion landing team commander) arriving on the far shorelater in the operation.

b. Selects sites for beach limit markings. The company com-mander personally selects the sites for the beach limit markings anddirects their setting up by the beach marking teams. (For discussionof "beach markers" and beach marking see par. 21).

c. Selects unloading points for vehicles. In conjunction withthe boat control officer, the company commander selects the unloading


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16 THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREpoints fo r wheeled vehicles and directs the marking of these pointsby the beach marking teams (see par. 21). An unloading point forvehicles is nothing more than the beginning of a beach road, and theterms "vehicle unloading point marker" and "beach roadway marker 'areinterchangeable. The company commander confers with the boat controlofficer in the selection of these points because of the latter'stechnical knowledge regarding th e advisabili ty of beaching boatscarrying vehicles at a particular point on the beach. In addition toselecting points where boats can be properly beached, the companycommander is concerned with th e selection of points which can belengthened into beach exit roads, which can in turn be tied in withlateral roads to form an adequate supply road-net.

Actually the selection of beach roadways is the combinedresponsibility of th e Shore Company commander, the reconnaissanceofficer, and the boat control officer. Normally, unloading pointsfor vehicles and a beach roadway system are tentatively selected inadvance after these officers have made a study of maps, aerialphotographs, reports of scouts, and other intelligence. When theyarrive on the fa r shore, therefore, they are concerned chiefly withchecking and verifying their previous selections by actual groundreconnaissance, making such changes as appear necessary.

The combined responsibility of the three officers mentionedabove in the selection of beach roadways may be briefly stated thus:after reconnoitering the sites tentatively selected, the companycommander and the boat control officer collaborate on the selectionof unloading points fo r vehicles; the company commander determinesthe general location of the beach roadways to tie into the existingroad-het (if any) and the projected layout of dumps; the reconnais-sance officer, following the general plan of the company commander,selects and directs the marking of the precise routes the roadwaysare to follow.

d. Locates Shore Company Command Fost. The Shore Companycommander reconnoiters for and selects the site for the Shore Companycommand post and message center. The Shore Company command post isgenerally a more permanent installation than command posts of othertype organizations. It is not only the center of all activity withinthe Shore Company area, but it is also an "information point" forcommanders already ashore and for those arriving at later stages ofthe operation. The battalion landing team commander, fo r example,arriving on the fa r shore in the fourth or fifth wave, would knowvery little of the situation ashore. He could acquaint himself withthe situation at the command post of the Shore Company.

The site selected for the command post should be in the firstsuitable cover off the beach proper, should be near the center of the


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7 16beach, and afford, if possible, an excellent view of the entire beachThe site selected should cover sufficient area to accommodateapproximately 16 men, who will be scattered in "working groups" inthe command post and message center so that bursting bomb or shellfragments will cause as few casualties as possible. In locating thecommand post, advantage must be taken of all natural cover and con-cealment, and artificial camouflage must be added if necessary. Thefollowing schematic diagram shows the approximate location of person-nel within the command post.

2 1" 7 .14}

. . ....., .

S . ,.. ..:...... ::: ::: *.,.: .:.'..-.y:-.

o- 2ND- IN- COMMAND, SHORE COMPANY ... '.. i. . -0- IST SGT.- T/5, CLERK (SITUATION MAP)- PVT , RECORDS UNITS

--MESSAGE CENTER CHIEFME-ESSAGE CENTER CLERK

0-MESSAGE CENTER CLERK

SMESSAGE CENTER MESSENGERS

- RADIO OPERATOR(- SWITCHBOARD OPERATOR '

- ALTERNATE SWITCHBOARD OPERATOR(- LINEMAN

ATTACHED FROM COMMUNICATION PLATOON, SHORE BATTALIONHEADQUARTERS COMPANY.Fig. 5.--An Excellent Command Post Site.


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The Shore Company command post shown in Fig. 5 is locatedabout 75 yards from the water's edge. Sixteen men were on duty hereat the time the photograph was taken. Very close observation revealsonly 2 or 3 of them. The short distance to the landing area and thenatural camouflage make this an excellent site for the command post.

17. SECOND-IN-COMMAND, SHORE COMPANY.--The second-in-command(reconnaissance officer), a first lieutenant, functions as a memberof the Operations Section of the Forward Echelon. He lands in th esame wave, but in a different boat from the company commander. Hefamiliarizes himself thoroughly with the duties and policies of thecompany commander so he can carry out those duties and policiesduring the temporary absence of the company commander or in the eventthe company commander becomes a casualty. On the far shore he per-forms the following duties:

a. Lays ou t beach roadways. With the assistance of the beachmarking teams, he selects and has the beach marking teams mark theexact trace of beach roadways in the general locations previouslyselected by the company commander as described in par. 16c above.The beach marking teams are not responsible fo r building the roads;they are responsible only fo r selecting the road sites, marking themwith appropriate markers, and "laying them off" with stakes or trac-ing tape to indicate to the road building teams arriving in a laterwave the places where the roads are to be constructed.

b. Makes reconnaissance for dump sites. Dump sites must beselected fo r all types of supplies to be landed on a particularbeach. Separate dump sites must be selected fo r infantry ammunition,artillery ammunition, fuel, water, rations, medical supplies, andmiscellaneous supplies and equipment. In selecting these dumps itmust be remembered that they are supply points fo r the combat troopsand must be located so that they are accessible to the supplyvehicles of the combat troops. They must also be easily accessibleto the shore engineers who must move the supplies from the boats tothe dumps. Generally, dumps will be established in the first avail-able and suitable cover off the beach. There will, however, be timeswhen the tactical situation demands that dumps be established as muchas a mile or more inland. The Shore Company can accomplish this pro-vided its organic transportation is sufficiently augmented and isbrought to th e far shore early enough in the operation. Whetherdumps are established 200 yards inland or 2 miles inland, certainpoints regarding their selection, in addition to those mentionedabove, must be remembered: first, that every advantage must be takenof natural cover and concealment; second, that sites fo r dumps mustbe of sufficient area to enable the separation of.supplies into smallstacks within dumps, in order to prevent destruction of large quanti-ties of supplies by any one falling shell or bomb; third, that ammu-

THE.ORGANIZATION O:F THE FAR SHORE6-17


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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHORE19. THE SITUATION MAP.--A clerk, (T/5), a member of the Opera-t ions Section, keeps the Shore Company situation map, since th e

Tables of Organization provide no draftsman. The importance of anaccurate, up-to-the-minute situation map cannot be overemphasized.The situation map should be a reasonably accurate sketch of the beacharea, showing such important terrain features as the shore line, th ebeach proper, the dune line, wooded areas, streams, hills, etc. Itshould show all Shore Company'installations, and should be certain toinclude the following:

a. Limits of the beach, to include the location of beach limitmarkings.b. Location of roads, to include all roads within the Shore

Company area: beach exit roads, lateral roads, and turnarounds.Roads, of course, must be "sketched in" and beach roadway markingsshown.

c. Location of the Shore Company and Boat Control Section com-mand posts.

d. Location of dumps fo r all types of supplies.e. Location of Shore Company and attached defensive weapons in-

cluding .30 caliber machine guns of the Shore Company and the .50caliber machine guns and 37-mm guns from Headquarters Company of theShore Battalion and any weapons procured from disabled boats.

f. Location of mined and gas contaminated areas.g. Location of any combat units within the beach area, if prac-

ticable, and, fo r units that have moved beyond the beach area, th edirection in which they moved, the approximate distance they hadadvanced inland at the time of the last report, and the time that thelast report was received.

The information regarding the approximate location of combattroops is of foremost interest to tactical commanders arriving on theshore, while information regarding Shore Company installations is ofinterest not only to the tactical commanders but also to commandersof engineer amphibian units coming ashore in that area.

Training should be held at frequent intervals within th ecompany to give instruction and practice in th e keeping of th esituation map, and at least 2 enlisted men in addition to the T/5,clerk, should be trained unt i l thoroughly qualified to do so . Thisinstruction should include sketching, fam iliar izat ion with allactivities of the Shore Company, and a thorough familiarization withconventional signs and military symbols embodied in FM 21-30.

It will be necessary for the clerk keeping the situation mapto accompany the reconnaissance officer while he is reconnoiteringfo r th e various installations. The remainder of the time he willgenerally be at the command post.

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Fig. 6.--A Completed Shore Company Situation Map, Including AllInstal lat ionsGenerally Represented.


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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHORE20. RECORD OF UNITS LANDING.--A private first class records units

landed in the beach area. To facilitate this activity, he shouldbe furnished a copy of the Boat Assignment Table. This will enablehim to "check off" boat numbers as boats arrive at the beach. Thetime of the arrival of each wave (or of each boat where boats arriveseparately) should be indicated. An accurate record of units landingcan be of immeasurable value to commanders of combat units, whofrequently will send runners back to the Shore Company command postto learn whether a particular boat in a particular wave has arrivedwith a particular squad or section of troops. A hurried check by therecorder will reveal this information.

Copies of the Boat Assignment Table must not be allowed tofall into the hands of the enemy. Security measures dictate that therecorder be instructed to destroy the Boat Assignment Table in theevent of the likelihood of his capture.

21. BEACH MARKING TEAMS.--One of the most significant changes inthe latest approved Tables of Organization fo r the Shore Company isthe elimination of beach marking teams as such from the OperationsSection. However, the tasks formerly performed by such teams muststill be performed. Reliable reports of recent landing operationsreaffirm the necessity for accurate beach marking. Two such teams of4 men each must be provided from personnel within the company. Inthe Operations Section are 2 reconnaissance men, T/5's, who willprovide the nucleus for such teams (1 for each team). The remainderof the teams, 6 men (3 for each team), must be provided by theUtility Platoon. The 6 men from the Utility Platoon should becarefully chosen and thoroughly instructed in their duties as beachmarkers. When they have completed their beach marking duties, andafter the remainder of the U tility Platoon has arrived on the farshore, these men will report to the commander of the Utility Platoonand, fo r the remainder of the operation, will function as members ofthat platoon.

The beach marking teams land with the Operations Sectionearly in the operation and perform the following duties in about thefollowing order:

a. Set up appropriate beach limit markers. (See Appendix I,Beach and Hydrographic Markings, for all beach marking symbols).Beaches are designated by colors, BEACH RED, BEACH BLUE, BEACH GREEN,BEACH RED-2, etc.

By day th e limits of the beach are marked by appropriatelycolored fluorescent cloth panels. Fluorescent cloth has the qualityof reflecting much l ight and is visible at much greater distancesthan ordinary cloth. It is quite expensive, and as current regula-

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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7 21tions forbid its use fo r training purposes, it is used only in actualoperations. For training purposes, painted markers made of salvagedcanvas are used. The beach marking teams should securely tie th emarkers to th e poles, make sure that at least 3 guy ropes are pro-vided fo r each pole, and check that sufficient stakes are providedfor guys. The complete marker should be assembled and rolled neatlyprior to embarking from the near shore. Every possibility that guysmay become tangled should be eliminated. Remember that the markerwill very likely have to be erected under enemy fire,that it attractsattention, and that a minute saved in erecting it may save a life.

Beach limit markers should be erected at well selected pointson th e assigned limits of the beach. Care must be taken to insurethat they are easily visible from the sea and that they are reason-ably near the water's edge but are not sufficiently near to permitthe rising tide to wash them away. In erecting markers, it is notnecessary to drive th e poles far into th e ground. They need beplaced in the ground only approximately 1 foot, and the sand of manybeaches is soft enough to permit this without driving. If a shallowhole is dug for each pole with a shovel and th e guys are properlysecured to stakes, there will be no difficulty with markers fallingor blowing down.

Fig. 7.--Rolled Beach Marker With Tools Necessary fo r Erection.The marker in the following sketch has been properly erected.

Note the holes in marker. Frequently this is done to eliminate windresistance. When holes are cut, however, they must be carefullyhemmed to prevent unraveling.


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Fig. 8.--Completed Beach Marker.By night the l im its of the beach are marked by coloredl ights. Lights used must not be too bright and must be hooded so

that they can be seen only from seaward-- not from the air or fromthe land. Lights may be erected on the same poles used for clothmarkers merely by driving nails into the poles in the proper pattern.When used in pairs, they must be placed far enough apart to preventdiffusion.

Fig. 9.--Beach Light Showing Colored Lens, Hood, and Shield.


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7

Lights similar to th e one in th e above figure with inter-changeable "screw-on" colored lenses and removable hood are satis-factory fo r beach marking. Ordinary flashlight batteries furnishth e power. This same light may be converted to flashing type by th einsertion of a smal l thermostat control element between th e bulb an dth e battery.

b. Unloading point markers. Beach marking teams must set upunloading point markers for vehicles and for all types of supplies.Standard beach marking symbols provide markers for beach roadways,ammunition, fuel, rations, water, medical supplies, and miscellaneoussupplies and equipment. Normally, th e only markings which must beset up during the beach organizat ion phase are the beach roadwaymarkers. Other markings generally will be set up when boats begin toarrive on th e far shore carrying resupply. The rules for th e erec-tion of beach limit markers apply generally to unloading pointmarkers.

c. Beach roadway markers must be se t up by th e beach markingteams approximately 10 feet to the right of the beach roadway or pro-posed beach roadway as seen from seaward. Roadway markers mustalways be on th e same side of the road, so that boats carryingwheeled vehicles will know on which side of th e road marker to land,the beach roadway itself being difficult to see. Designat ing theright side of the road as seen from seaward as th e site fo r themarker is necessitated by th e fact that most of th e training ofengineer amphibian units requiring th e use of tank lighters is withthe Bureau Type LCM(3), which has th e pilot house aft on th e star-board side of the boat , thus enabling th e coxswain to gauge hisdistance from a road marker better if it is on his right than if itwere on his left. On th e Higgins type LCM(3) th e pilot house is alsoaft but it is amidships, and it makes little difference from a stand-poin t of vision whether th e marker is on th e right or left of theroad. It is repeated, for emphasis, BEACH ROADWAY MARKERS MUST BEPLACED TO THE RIGHT OF BEACH ROADS-- AS SEEN FROM SEAWARD.

d. Marking of other Shore Company installations. In additionto installations already marked, th e beach marking teams must markall other Shore Company installations including th e command post an dthe supply dumps, and directional signs should be placed leadingthereto. These signs (both installation markers and directionalsigns) should be constructed of wood or canvas held by wooden stakes,and must be large enough to be visible from th e beach but smallenough to be unnoticeable from th e air. Certain tactical situations,particularly those which present much danger from infiltratingpatrols and snipers, will forbid th e use of any signs.

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Fig. 10a.--Examples of InstallationMarkers and Directional SignsMade of Wood. Dimensions are suggested only.

Fig. 10b.--Examples of Markers and Directional Signs MadeThese are collapsible.

of Canvas.

e. Marking of mined and gassed areas. Under the direction ofthe reconnaissance officer, the beach marking teams must mark minedand gassed areas. In addition, members of those teams may be re-quired to guard such areas until they can be cleared. The necessityfor marking and guarding of these danger zones was discussed in par.17c. The method of marking them is shown in Fig. 11.

Fig. 11.--Properly Marked Mined Area.Fig. 11.--Properly Marked Mined Area.

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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 722. COMMUNICATION AND MESSAGE CENTER SECTION.--There are certain

organizations with which the Shore Company must maintain constantcontact and communication. *The Shore Company is supporting combatunits and contact with supported units is essential; it is a part ofthe Shore Battalion and takes its orders from the Shore Battalioncommander-- contact with Shore Battalion Headquarters is essential;it is working side by side with at least one and possibly two ShoreCompanies-- contact with adjacent Shore Companies is essential. Thejob of establishing and maintaining contact is the responsibility ofthe Communication and Message Center Section. The personnel in th eShore Company's Message Center Section is, however, inadequate forcarrying ou t these communication functions. Furthermore, the ShoreCompany is allotted no communication equipment. There wil l beattached, therefore, from the Communication Platoon of the ShoreBattalion Headquarters Company additional personnel plus the neces-sary signal equipment to enable the Message Center Section to performits communication functions. Attached personnel will generally con-sist of 2 radio operators, 2 switchboard operators, and 1 lineman,who bring with them a radio (SCR-284), a switchboard (BD-71), 2 tele-phones (EE-8-A), wire, and other necessary signal equipment.

The Shore Company Message Center Section, thus augmented,performs the following communication functions:

a. Establishing and maintaining contact by wire, radio, orrunner with adjacent Shore Companies-- contact from left to right.It is necessary that some type of communication be established be-tween adjacent Shore Companies. Much valuable and often vitalinformation can be exchanged between such companies concerningactivity of th e enemy, activity of friendly troops, movement ofsupplies, boat movements, and other matters. Contact will be es-tablished initially by radio or runner. Later when th e situationhas developed sufficiently, and if distance is not too great, a wirewil l be laid between the companies. In the establishment of com-munication either by wire or runner, it is the responsibility of th ecompany on the left to establish the contact with the company on th eright.

Contact with adjacent Shore Companies is not limited to com-munication between companies of the same battalion, but must also bemaintained with companies outside the battalion, if they occupy anadjacent beach. Initially such contact may be by runner or visualsignaling, later.by wire and even by radio, the latter requiringperhaps only a change of frequencies.

b. Establishing and maintaining contact with th e battalionlanding team command post. In order adequately to perform far shoreservices fo r the battalion landing team, it is obviously necessary

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ly ~~~.-- VLYI----------- -- ---- ----- -- ~that constant communication be maintained between th e Shore Companyand th e battalion landing team command post. The battalion landingteam commander with his headquarters normally arrives on th e farshore in th e fourth wave. As h is headquarters moves inland acrossthe beach, it leaves a wire behind. The shore engineer lineman "tieson" to that wire, at taches it to th e Shore Company switchboard, andcontact is established with the supported commander. The respon-sibility fo r establishing and maintaining this contact lies techni-cally with the battalion landing team headquar ters . If for anyreason, however, contact is not established and maintained by thatheadquar ters , th e Shore Company must take th e initiative to insurethat some satisfactory means of communication is established andmaintained, either by wire, radio, or messenger.

c. Establishing and maintaining contact with th e Shore BattalionHeadquarters by radio and wire. When th e Shore Battalion commanderis afloat and before he arrives on th e far shore, contact is main-tained between him and th e companies of his battalion by radio.After he arr ives on th e far shore, contact is established by wire aswell. (See par. 23a).

d. M aintaining, if necessary, contact already established withth e 2 infantry assault companies. It will be remembered that on e ofthe first duties of th e company commander is to send runners toestablish contact with th e infantry assault companies ashore in thatarea. It will be necessary to maintain this contact at least untilcommunication is established with th e battalion landing team com-mander.e. Visual Signaling. A ll communication and message centerpersonnel within the Shore Battalion should in addition to their

other duties be trained and prepared to function as visual signalmen.A ll these men should be expert in th e use of semaphore, and certaindesignated men should be expert s ignal lamp operators. Either ofthese means of visual signaling can be used for intercommunicationbetween Shore Companies occupying adjoining beaches, between elementsof th e Shore Company an d elements of the Boat Company afloat, andmight conceivably be used for communication between various elementsand groups of th e Shore Company scattered throughout th e beach area.

f. Personnel. The fol lowing personnel will comprise th e ShoreCompany Communication an d Message Center Section after it has beenaugmented by personnel attached from th e Shore Battal ion HeadquartersCompany:

FROM SHORE CO. ATTACHED FROM SHORE BN. HQ. CO.1 - Communication chief 2 - Radio operators2 - Message center clerks 2 - Switchboard operators4 - Message center messengers 1 - Lineman

30

22 THE nRCANTZATTON OF THE FAR SHORE


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23. COMMUNICATION PLATOON, SHORE BATTALION HEADQUARTERS COMPANY(Fig. 12).--Those members of th e Communication Platoon of ShoreBattalion Headquarters Company not attached to Shore Companies willland with the Shore Battalion commander soon after the first 7 wavescarrying th e battalion landing team have landed. They install,maintain, and operate signal communication agencies for the ShoreBattalion Headquarters. Their duties include the following:

a. Establishing and maintaining radio and wire communicationbetween Shore Battal ion Headquarters and all companies of thebattal ion. When the Shore Battalion Headquarters is afloat, itmaintains contact with the 3'Shore Companies by radio. When itarrives on the far shore, contact by radio is continued, and, ifpracticable, wire communication is established between BattalionHeadquarters and such companies as are ashore. The Shore Battalioncommand post may be set up in close proximity to the command postof one of the companies, in which case communication with thatcompany will present a very minor problem, contact being maintainedin some cases by runner. It will be those companies located atgreater distances, or which are separated from Battalion Headquartersby difficult terrain, which will present the major communicationdifficulties. In some cases contact by runner or wire may be impos-sible, and only radio communication will be feasible.

When the Battalion Headquarters comes ashore, all communi-cation between the companies of the battalion probably will be takenover by the battalion echelon.

b. Communicating by radio with the near shore elements of theboat and shore regimental command post. The Communication Platoonhas as a part of its equipment 2 SCR-177B radios. These are powerfulcombination voice and code sets with a maximum range of 30 miles byvoice and 100 miles by code. With one of these sets, contact can bemaintained with the near shore elements of the boat and shore regi-mental command post.

c. Communicating by wire with the regimental combat team commandpost. Generally, regimental combat team headquarters and ShoreBattalion Headquarters arrive on the far shore at about the sametime. The Shore Battalion commander sets up his command post some-where in the beach area, while the regimental combat team commandermoves inland. As regimental headquarters moves inland it leaves awire behind which Shore Battalion communication personnel attach totheir switchboard, thus establishing contact with the supportedregimental combat team.

d. Communicating with the forward echelon of the boat and shoreregimental command post while afloat and after arrival on the far

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23-24 TH E ORGANIZATION OF TH E FAR SHOREshore. The Shore Battalion commander takes his orders from th eregimental commander and must maintain constant communication withhim. Radio will be used while he is afloat. Normally, upon arrivalon the far shore, the regimental far shore command post will belocated adjacent to th e Shore Battalion command post. In this casecontact by wire and messenger is easily established. The regimentruns a wire into the shore battalion switchboard and maintains com-munication with the infantry regimental combat team and with th eshore elements through the Shore Battalion communication set-up.

For a better understanding of the communication functions ofthe Shore Battalion see Tentative Training Guide No. 5.

COMMUNICATION PLATOON(SHORE BN. HQ. CO.)0-1 EM-53

Platoon Headquarters Radio Section Wire Section0-1 EM-11 EM-22 EM-20Personnel: Personnel: Personnel:1 - 1st Lieutenant 1 - S/Sgt., Chief Radio Operator 1 - S/Sgt., Chief Lineman1 - T/Sgt., Comm. Chief 1 - T/3, Radio Operator, High Speed 1 - T/4, Switchboard Operator1 - S/Sgt., Message Center Chief 1 - T/4, Radio Operator, High Speed 2 - T/5, Field Linemen1 - T/5, Code Clerk 5 - T/4, Radio Operators, Low Speed 2 - T/5, Switchboard Operators1 - T/5, Message Center Clerk 1 - T/5, Radio Operator, High Speed 5 - Pvts., Switchboard Operators1 Pvt., Truckdriver2 - Pvts., Code Clerks 5 - T/5, Radio Operators, Low Speed 1 - Pvt., BT rive2 - Pvts., Message Center Clerks 6 - Pvts., Radio Operators, Low Speed - , Lineen3 - Pvts., Messengers 2 - Pvts., Basics

Equipment: Equipment:1 - Frequency Meter Set, SCR-211 1 - 1-Ton Trailer, Cargo1 - Radio Receiver, BC-312 I - 2k-Ton Truck, 6 x 6, Cargo4 - Radio Sts SCR 84 3 - Switchboards, BD-712 - Radio Sets, SCR-177B - Switchboard, BD-7220 - Telephones, EE-8-A

Fig. 12.--Organization of Communication Platoon,HeadquartersCompany.24. WEAPONS SECTION, HEADQUARTERS PLATOON (Fig. 13).--The Weapons

Section of Headquarters Platoon, Shore Company, consists of four .30caliber air-cooled machine guns and the necessary crews. A secondl ieutenant commands the section assisted by a sergeant. The WeaponsSection may be divided into 2 sections of 2 guns each. There is 1corporal, light machine gunner, fo r each section of 2 guns, and 2privates, gunners, for each gun.

There are 2 truckdrivers in this section, 1 for each of thefollowing vehicles: one 1%-ton cargo truck and one %-ton truck.These trucks with their drivers probably will not be brought to thefar shore with the advance elements of the Weapons Section, but willremain on the near shore until boat space is available for them. Inthe meantime, the guns will be "man-handled'.

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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7Other important items of the equipment of this section are

4 antitank rocket launchers, 1 fo r each machine gun crew.

WEAPONS SECTION0-1 EM-13

Personnel:1--2nd Lieutenant1--Weapons Sgt.2--Cpls., LMG Gunners8--Pvts., LMG Gunners2--Pvts., Truck Drivers

Equipment:4--MG Guns, cal. .304--Launchers, Rocket1--Truck, 4 ton, 4x4l--Truck, 1% ton, 6x6

Fig. 13.--Organization of th e Weapons Section.The M1919A4 .30 caliber machine gun is mounted on the ground

tripod mount M2. The gun and mount together weigh only about 43pounds and can readily be "man-handled". It is a direct fire weapondesigned to deliver automatic .fire at close and mid-ranges againstpersonnel and unarmored vehicles. It is primarily designed as anoffensive weapon, but its properties of high mobility and low reliefadapt it to the execution of missions of defense of the front andflanks of the beach area against infiltrating personnel or flankingmaneuvers. These four .3 0's and their crews will be landed early inthe operation, normally in the third wave. One section of 2 gunsshould land in each of 2 boats, and upon landing should move forwardimmediately toward the respective beach flanks, emplacing theirweapons in the nearest cover. Later as the situation develops andthe combat troops move further inland, these guns will be moved topositions further off the beach, but still within the Shore Companyarea, and still providing protection against infiltration and flank-ing movements. During the resupply phase of the operation, theseweapons may be placed along the supply roads leading from the dumpsinland to provide protection for the dumps. They are also used toprovide protection for the 37-mm antitank guns. In placing theseweapons every advantage must be taken of natural cover and conceal-ment and fields of fire.

One rocket launcher should be kept with each gun to be firedby members of the gun crew. They are excellent direct fire weapons

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f co

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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7 24-25against mechanized vehicles and furnish antimechanized defense forthe crew served machine gun.

Via

a

Fig. 15.--A Properly Emplaced and Camouflaged .30 Caliber L.M.G.25. ATTACHED WEAPONS FROM SHORE BATTALION HEADQUARTERS COMPANY

(Fig. 16).--The Combat Platoon of the Shore Battalion HeadquartersCompany has six 37-mm antitank guns and six .50 caliber antiaircraftmachine guns plus the necessary crews. There are sufficient guns toallow the attachment of two 37's and two .5 0 's to each of the 3 ShoreCompanies. The battalion commander may, however, divide them in anymanner suitable to his plans.

COMBAT PLATOON(HQ. COMPANY, SHORE BN., E.B.8S. REGT.)0-2 EM-66

Platoon Headquarters0- 2 EM-2

Personnel:1 - 1st Lieutenant1 - 2nd Lieutenant1 - S/Sgt. Platoon Sgt.1 - T/5 Armorer

Fig. 16.--Organization of the Combat Platoon.

35

Antitank SectionEM-35

Personnel:3 - Sgts., Section Leaders6 - Cpls., Antitank Gunners12 - Pvts., Ammunition Carriers6 - Pvts., Antitank Gunners6 - Pvts., Truck Drivers2 - Pvts., Basics

Equipment:6 - Gun, 37 mm, M3A16 - Trucl, 1% ton, 6 X 6 Cargo, w/winch

Machine Gun SectionEM-29

Personnel:3 - Sgts., Section Leaders6 - Cpls., Heavy Machine Gunners12 - Pvts., Ammunition Carriers6 - Pvts., Heavy Machine Gunners2 - Pvts., Basics

Equipment:6 - Guns, Machine, Cal. .50 Heavy6 - Launchers, Rocket, AT, M1


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25 THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREa. Attached Antiaircraft Weapons. The attached .50 calibermachine guns are mounted on th e M3 antiaircraft mount, the gun and

mount weighing approximately 500 pounds. Due to the urgent necessityfor protection of the beach area against low flying planes, theseguns should be brought to th e far shore in the fourth wave, or assoon thereafter as boat space is available. They should be placedin such a way as to permit "all around" fields of fire laterally, andclear fields of fire overhead. These requirements preclude the useof overhead concealment such as trees or camouflage nets which cannotbe quickly removed. Under normal circumstances guns should not beemplaced singly; normally, at least 2 guns should be emplaced toprovide adequate protection for a single point objective. During theearly stages of the operation 2 guns will generally be assigned themission of protecting those points on the beach where unavoidablecongestion will occur in unloading the boats. However, the scarcityof guns may demand that they be separated and operated singly indifferent parts of the beach area.

During later stages of the operation, battalion landing teambeaches may be consolidated into regimental combat team beaches andthe use of all the antiaircraft machine guns of the Combat Platoonwill be coordinated, in which case guns will be moved inland todefend dumps, road junctions, and motor parks.

As in the Weapons Section of the Shore Company, there isallotted to the Machine Gun Section of the Combat Platoon 1 M1 anti-tank rocket launcher per gun. One launcher will remain with the crewof each gun, and will be used as a weapon of opportunity, primarilyas an antimechanized weapon for defense of the machine gun and crew.

b. Attached Antitank Weapons. The attached 37-mm antitank gunsare single shot weapons weighing 912 pounds, and fire a projectile ofapproximately 2 pounds. The primary function of this gun is defenseagainst moving vehicular targets. In an operation where the sit-uation is expected to develop so rapidly that the combat units willmove forward and leave the beach area undefended save for thatprotection provided by the shore units themselves, it is necessarythat some protection against tanks and other armored vehicles befurnished the Shore Company during the early stages of the operation.It is, therefore, necessary for the Shore Company to bring to the farshore, in not later than the sixth or seventh wave, its 2 attached37-mm guns. These guns may be operated singly and should be set upto cover possible avenues of approach fo r armored vehicles. Incovering an avenue of approach, th e gun should be placed to firewhere the movement of the target is restricted laterally by defilessuch as ditches, banks, flanking swamps, woods or like obstructions.Obstacles, including road blocks, covered by fire must be used to thefullest extent practicable. In the absence of approaches which have


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been channelized by natural or man-made obstructions, positions onground where wide fields of fire are afforded should be selected.When effective concealment in firing position is impracticable, th egun squad will occupy a cover position while one of th e membersobserves; and on the orders of the squad leader, the squad will movethe gun into firing position. Alternate and supplementary positionsmust be selected and prepared in advance. (For details of employmentof weapons see Tentative Training Guide No. 4).

Fig. 17.--Properly Camouflaged Antitank Gun.Six 1%-ton cargo trucks are provided as weapons carriers for

the six 37-mm AT guns in the Combat Platoon. The scarcity of boatspace during the early stages of the landing, however, will probablypreclude the weapons carriers being brought to the fa r shore with theguns. For discussion of th e use of the 2%-ton amphibian truck asauxiliary weapons carrier for this gun, see Chapter 7.

26. EMPLOYMENT OF BOAT COMPANY WEAPONS ON THE FAR SHORE.--On eachof the Boat Company's 36-foot craft there are mounted two .30 calibermachine guns; on each of the 50-foot craft there are mounted two .50caliber antiaircraft machine guns. This provides each Boat Companywith a total of 68 .30 caliber machine guns and 62 .50 caliber

TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO.. 7 25-26


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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREmachine guns, a tremendous amount of fire power. Fire by theseweapons against targets on the fa r shore normally will be deliveredby boats of the first wave only. Twenty percent of both .30's and.50's are provided with ground mounts which are carried to the farshore by the Boat Company. Immediately upon reaching the fa r shorethese ground mounts are turned over to the Boat Control Section.Furthermore, guns from boats damaged beyond repair are removed andturned over to the Boat Control'Section. They are redistributed bythe Boat Control Officer fo r one of the following uses: first, asreplacements' on undamaged boats whose guns have been put out of com-mission; and, second fo r use on ground mounts to supplement fa r shoredefenses. When they are to be used for the latter purposes, both theguns and the appropriate number and kind of ground mounts are turnedover to the Shore Company commander who uses them to augment th eorganic weapons of the Weapons Section as well as the attached .50'sof the Combat Flatoon of Battalion Headquarters Company. Frequently,the crews from th e sunken or damaged boats from which those addi-t ional weapons came may be used to operate such weapons. Thoughinitially they are Boat Company weapons, these weapons are employedon the far shore by the Shore Company (in the case of a battalionlanding team beach), or by th e Shore Battalion (where battalionlanding team beaches have been consolidated to form a regimentalcombat team beach).

27. BOAT CONTROL SECTION ORGANIZATION.--Present Tables of Organ-ization allot 1 second lieutenant and 20 enlisted men to this section.This strength is inadequate for its many duties and responsibilities.Proposed changes in Tables of Organization for this section call foran increase to 1 first lieutenant and 36 enlisted men. Until suchchanges are authorized, personnel from overstrength or other dutiesmust be trained to function in this section. The discussion whichfollows is based on the proposed Table of Organization as follows:

Section Headquarters.--1 - First Lieutenant, Boat Control Officer1 - Technical Sergeant, Section Chief, Assistant to Boat

Control Officer1 - T/4, Radio Operator1 - T/5, Radio Operator2 - Privates or Privates, 1st. Cl., Truckdrivers1 - Private or Private, 1st. Cl., Clerk, General, andMessenger1 - Truck, % ton, 4 x 41 - Truck, 1% ton, 6 x 6 cargo, w/winchMaintenance Squad.--1 - Staff Sergeant, Master Mechanic1 - Sergeant, Foreman, Carpenter, Ship

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1 - T/4, Mechanic, Diesel1 - T/5, Mechanic, Diesel1 - T/4, Carpenter, Ship1 - Private or Private, 1st. Cl., Rigger

Salvage Boat Squad.--1 - Staff Sergeant, Chief Rigger and Motorboat Operator1 - T/4, Mechanic, Diesel1 - T/4, Carpenter, Ship1 - T/4, Electrician, Automotive1 - Private or Private, 1st. Cl., Toolroom Keeper and Seaman1 - T/5, Rigger and Signalman1 - Boat, Salvage3 Beach Squads, each.--1 - Sergeant, Chief Mechanic and Motorboat Operator1 - T/4, Mechanic, Diesel1 - T/5, Mechanic, Diesel1 - T/5, Rigger and Visual Signalman1 - T/5, Shipfitter and Seaman1 - T/4, Carpenter, Ship, and Demolition Man

28. DUTIES OF BOAT CONTROL SECTION.--The Boat Control Sectionwill perform the following duties on the far shore:

a. Take in tow, and where practicable, repair boats which becomedisabled between the near and far shore.

b. Furnish 2 men to land with the first wave of boats and to se tup range markers to guide later waves.

c. Assis t in th e removal of underwater obstacles and other haz-ards to navigation.d. Mark hazards to navigation which cannot be removed.

e. Control boat traffic during the approach of boats and light-ers enroute to th e beach, while at th e beach, and during departurefrom the beach.

f. Effect emergency repairs to boats and amphibian trucks.g. Replace boats' crews if necessary.h. Conduct salvage of boats and lighters and assist in th e sal-

vage of vehicles which may become damaged or stalled in the water atthe beach.

i. Assist in evacuation of wounded from the beach in accordancewith the medical plan.

j. Assist in keeping th e beach clear.29. THE BOAT CONTROL OFFICER.--The boat control officer, a first

lieutenant, is responsible to th e Shore Company commander fo r th eproper functioning of the Boat Control Section on the far shore.Prior to th e operation, these 2 officers make together a thoroughstudy of th e situation on th e far shore using all available maps,

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In addition to setting up range markers, it is the duty ofthese men to keep as accurate a record as possible of the boatslanding in the first two waves. If possible the boat number of eachboat landing should be recorded. If due to darkness or other factorsthis is not possible, then at least the total number of boats arriv-ing in each wave should be indicated. This information is turnedover to the boat control officer when he arrives on the far shore,who in turn transmits it to the Shore Company commander. It willsupplement the record of units landing kept by the Shore Companyrecorder who does not arrive on the far shore until the third wave.

7'

0'/

Fig. 18.--Range Markers With FlashlightsAttached.31. SECTION HEADQUARTERS.--The technical sergeant, second-in-

command of the Boat Control Section; the clerk; and 2 radio opera-

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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHORE

tors, all members of section headquarters, will land early in th eoperation, normally in the third wave. Their initial duty is th eestablishment of the Boat Control Section command post. The techni-cal sergeant, second-in-command, assists generally in the supervisionof command post activity, and should remain in charge of the commandpost when the boat control officer is absent. The clerk acts as amessenger on the far shore, normally remaining with the boat controlofficer when not otherwise engaged. The 2 radio operators are eachsupplied with SCR-300 radio or substitutes. (These are short rangevoice sets). They transmit instructions from th e boat controlofficer to wave leaders and boat commanders regarding proper landingplaces and other matters. Frequently conditions will no t be suitablefor the landing of a particular boat or wave, in which case (inaccordance with prior instructions and not otherwise) boats may beheld off shore by instructions transmitted through these radiooperators.

Two truckdrivers, also members of section headquarters,normally will not arrive on the far shore until later in the oper-ation. One of these drivers operates a -ton truck and when broughtto the fa r shore, he will be used by the boat control officer as amounted messenger. The other driver operates a l%-ton cargo truck,which is used exclusively in connection with maintenance work on thenear shore. He will not be brought to the far shore unless needed toreplace a casualty.

32. MAINTENANCE SQUAD AND SALVAGE BOAT SQUAD.--Among the impor-tant duties of the Boat Control Section is the effecting of emergencyrepairs to boats and salvage of boats at or near the fa r shore. Themaintenance squad and the salvage boat squad share joint respon-sibility for this work. When boats become stranded or in need ofrepair while still some distance from the shore, it is normally theresponsibility of the salvage boat squad to give assistance. On th eother hand when craft need repairs or when salvage activity isrequired at or near th e beach proper, the maintenance squad willnormally take over. Each, however, will be used to assist the otherwhen needed. The personnel of either of these squads is capable ofeffecting minor repairs to either hulls or engines. In addition totheir other duties, the maintenance squad and the salvage boat squadwill be required to effect emergency repairs to amphibian trucks, andthe maintenance squad will assist in the repair or salvage of anyvehicles damaged or stalled in the water at the beach.

The salvage boat squad does not arrive at the far shore untilafter the entire seven waves carrying the battalion landing team havelanded. Its primary function is to follow the entire fleet of theBoat Company and effect repairs to any disabled boats. The mainte-nance squad is transported to the far shore with the major portion of

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the Boat Control Section early in the operation, normally in thethird wave, and is responsible fo r all repair and salvage activityuntil the salvage boat squad arrives.

In addition to th e duties already mentioned, both of thesesections assist the beach squads in the performance of any or allboat control activity. Especially is the salvage boat squad usefulin assisting in the removal and marking of hazards to navigation.

Of the 6 men who comprise the salvage boat squad, there are 3men who in addition to their qualif icat ions as maintenance andsalvage men, are qualified as crewmen fo r the salvage boat. Thesquad leader, chief rigger, is also a qualified motorboat operator(coxswain); th e rigger is a qualified visual signalman; and th etoolroom keeper is a qualified seaman.

(For detailed discussion of salvage boat activities seeTentative Training Guides Nos. 1, 2, and 3).

33. THREE BEACH SQUADS.--Three identically consti tuted beachsquads of 6 men each, constitute the remainder of the Boat ControlSection. Like most of the members of the Boat Control Section, thesesquads land early in the operation, normally in the third wave. Forpurposes of control, the beach proper is divided into 3 sections,each section under the control of one beach squad (see Fig. 19a).Each of these sections is responsible in its section of the beachfo r the performance of the following duties:

a. Making detailed inspection of the beach and the landing area.In order to enable the beach squads to control the landing of boatsat the beach, it is necessary that they become thoroughly familiarwith their section of the beach and with its water approaches. Eachbeach squad must know in detail the nature of the beach; the type ofbottom; the depth of the water; the location of rocks, boulders,shoals, bars, sunken wrecks, and other obstacles; and the existenceand nature of cross currents. More often than not it will be neces-sary fo r certain members of beach squads to wade or swim for somedistance out into the water fo r the purpose of making this detailedinspection. For that reason, all members of the beach squads must beexcellent swimmers. When the salvage boat squad arrives on the farshore, it will assist in the detailed inspection of the water ap-proaches to the beach, especially in the matter of ascertaining depthof water at some distance from the beach.

b. Removing or marking of hazards to navigation. All hazardsto navigation, including obstacles of all kinds, both natural andartificial, must be removed by the beach squads if practicable. Manytypes of obstacles can be removed by dragging, either with the

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33 THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREassistance of a boat or with th e assistance of one of th e ShoreCompany's bulldozers. Other obstacles such as sunken wrecks, largeboulders, and concrete and heavy metal obstructions will have to beremoved through the use of demolitions, there being qualified demoli-tions men in the beach squad fo r that purpose. In this work, assis-tance from demolitions men from the Pioneer Platoon of the ShoreCompany may be required.

All hazards to navigation which cannot be removed must bemarked. Pennants placed on buoys or stakes are used for this purpose(see Appendix I, Beach and HydrographicMarkings). Frequently, itwill be necessary to mark a channel or a suitable water approach toth e beach, in which case the beach squads, with or without th eassistance of the salvage boat squad or some available boat, willmark such channels or approaches with red and black pennants placedon buoys or stakes.

In performing many of its activities, particularly in theremoval of underwater obstacles, the assistance of certain ShoreCompany personnel may be required. When such assistance is needed,the beach squad leader should immediately notify the boat controlofficer, who secures the necessary assistance from the Shore Companycommander.

c. Controlling boat traffic during the approach of boatsenroute to the beach, while at the beach, and during departure fromthe beach. Perhaps the most important duty of the beach squads isthe proper control of boat traffic. This includes the signaling ofboats to proper landing places and the giving of proper instructionsconcerning angle of approach, speed, beaching, lowering of ramp,unloading, and retracting. Frequently it is difficult fo r coxswainsto judge their angle of approach to the beach. Boat Control Sectionpersonnel on shore are in a better position to determine the properangle of approach and should direct coxswains accordingly. Beachsquad personnel should familiarize themselves with proper methods ofbeaching landing craft under various wind and surf conditions. (Fordetailed discussion, see Tentative Training Guide No . 2). Frequentlya coxswain may ground his boat on a bar which is close to the beach,lower the ramp, and proceed to unload personnel and equipment intodeep water inshore of the bar. This results in loss and damage ofequipment and perhaps drowning of personnel. Such action is inexcus-able and can be prevented by diligence on the part of th e beachsquads, which should make certain that boats are warned of bars andthat a boat is properly beached before it is unloaded. If there isany doubt as to whether a boat is beached in water shallow enough topermit unloading, members of the beach squad should wade out to theramp of the boat to ascertain the facts.


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Frequently, it is difficult for a coxswain operating a boatloaded with wheeled vehicles to determine the exact location of abeach roadway. A member of the beach squad should stand in thecenter of the roadway and direct the approach and beaching of craftthat are so loaded. Furthermore, it is the duty of the beach squadsto prevent the unloading on beach roadways of boats carrying trackedvehicles as such vehicles do not require road expedient to effecttheir crossing of the beach, and their tracks injure and destroy theusefulness of road matting used in the construction of such roadways.

In each beach squad, there is a visual signalman who must bethoroughly qualified in the use of semaphore for daytime signalingand blinker light for night time signaling. All members of boats'crews, particularly coxswains, should be similarly qualified. Theseare the means used by beach squads in giving landing directions tocoxswains.

:... G.S..... **-.. : :. . .:."..:,i:.. :."' ."^ : MAINTENANCE..... SQUAD: .

BEACH BEACH. BEACH .. ::i , ''*'**'.'."."-' SQUAD . SQAD . SQUAD .

SALVAGE SQUAD

Fig. 19a.--Schematic Sketch of the Deployment of the Boat ControlSection.

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Fig. 19b.--The Beach Squads at Work. This is how it actually looks.


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THE ORGANIZATION OF THE FAR SHOREREAR ECHELON

1 - 2nd Lt.2 - Staff Sgt.

1 Mess1 Supply1 - Sgt., Motor

1 - Cpl., Co. Clerk3 - T/4

2 Cooks1 Auto Mech.3 - T/5

1 Blacksmith1 Cook1 Toolroom Keeper

3 - PFC or Pvt.2 Cooks' Helpers1 Bugler - Drives truck1 - Basic

151 - Trailer, 1-ton, 2 wheel cargo1 - Truck, 2/2-ton, cargo, 6 x 6, w/winch

Shore Company Motor Pool. The Shore Company motor sergeant,auto mechanic, and blacksmith will be transported to the far shoreas soon after th e arrival of th e first seven waves as is practic-able. They will set up a motor pool in the Shore Company area forthe servicing and maintenance of Shore Company vehicles and foremergency repairs to combat vehicles. In servicing and repairingeither Shore Company or combat vehicles, motor pool personnel willhave the assistance of the vehicle operators, and, if necessary,other qualified personnel from elsewhere in the Shore Company. Themotor pool will be centrally located in th e first available andsuitable cover off the beach proper; it must be easily accessibleto vehicles being towed from the beach, and every advantage must betaken of both natural and artificial cover and concealment. All"dead" vehicles which can be towed must be repaired in the motorpool; all others, which will generally include disabled bulldozers,must be repaired in that part of the beach area where they becameincapacitated. (For location of Motor Pool, see Fig. 54).

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CHAPTER 5PIONEER PLATOON

ParagraphGeneral 35Platoon Headquarters 36Removal of Obstacles 37Three Pioneer Sections 38Construction of Beach Roadways 39

35. GENERAL.--Thus fa r we have seen how the advanced echelon ofthe Shore Company and its attachments arrived on the far shore earlyin the operation, how they reconnoitered and marked the beach,established the command post, initiated communication, and locateddefensive weapons. Among their duties were the marking of minedareas, gas contaminated areas, and other obstacles, and reconnoiter-ing for and marking sites for beach roadways.

Shore development has thus reached the stage where attentioncan be turned to the decontamination of gassed areas, the removal ofobstacles, the building of beach roadways, the construction ofbridges, piers, and wharfs, and th e performance of other generalengineer duties within the beach area.

36. PLATOON HEADQUARTERS.--In the Platoon Headquarters of thePioneer Platoon are men especially trained to perform many of thesefunctions.

PIONEER PLATOON0-1 EM-56

Platoon Headquarters 3 Sections (each)0-1 EM-17 EM-13Personnel: Personnel:1 - 1st Lieutenant 1 - Sgt., Construction Foreman1 - T/Sgt., Construction Foreman 1 - Sgt., Construction Foreman1 - S/Sgt., Demolitions Foreman 1 - pt., Construction Foreman1 - T/4, Crane Operator 1 - Pvt. ,Bridge Carpenter1 - T/5, Decontaminating Equip. Opr. 1 - Pvt.,*Construction Carpenter1 - T/5, Demolition Man 2 - Pvts., Demolition Men3 - 1/5, Bulldozer Drivers 3 - Pvts., Laborers2 - Pvts., Decontaminating Equip. Oprs 3 - Pvts., Riggers2 - Pvts., Demolition Men 1 - vt., Basic3 - Pvts., Laborers2 - Pvts., Basics *One of the 3 Bridge Carpentersand one of the 3 Construction

Equipment: Carpenters is a T/5.2 - Tractors, with Angledozer, 35 DBHP1 - Crane, Truck Mounted1 - Tractor, with Angledozer, 80 DBHP

Fig. 21.--Organization of Pioneer Platoon.


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TENTATIVE TRAINING GUIDE NO. 7Platoon Headquarters, with the exception of th e platoon

sergeant, the crane operator, and two of the bulldozer operators,will normally be brought to the fa r shore in the fourth wave. Theplatoon sergeant and the two bulldozer operators will remain on thenear shore and accompany the Pioneer Sections to the far shore in alater wave. The crane with its operator will be brought to the farshore as soon after the battalion landing team as possible.

37. REMOVAL OF OBSTACLES.--Normally, the assault waves of th ebattalion landing team will carry small groups of combat (division)engineers from the engineer platoon attached to the battalion land-ing team. In performing their mission of furthering the advance ofthe combat troops, it will be necessary for these division engineersto clear passageways through obstacles including underwater andshore obstacles, to remove or make passage through enemy mine fieldsand to.reduce minor fortifications by use of demolitions. Ifadvance reconnaissance of the landing beach reveals strong permanentfortifications, or indicates that th e beach is otherwise stronglyfortified, it will become necessary to increase the number of combatengineers brought over in the assault waves, and to include assaultteams of infantry and engineers specially trained fo r reduction offortified positions. (With the inclusion of such additional person-nel in assault waves and the increased element of uncertainty in theprogress of the attack against a strongly fortified hostile shore,the normal Boat Assignment Table may become considerably changed).To say that it is the duty of division engineers to remove allobstacles and to clear all mine fields within the beach area is justas erroneous as it is to say that these functions are exclusivelythose of the shore engineers. To require division engineers com-pletely to clear the beach of all obstacles and of all mines wouldin many cases so dissipate . their strength as to lessen their effec-t iveness later in the operation. Nevertheless to perform theirmission of facilitating the advance of the division troops, combatengineers must clear the beach of obstacles of a ll types sufficient-ly to permit infantry foot troops and infantry supporting weapons tocross the beach and advance inland. The task of completely clearingthe beach of all remaining obst

WWII Engineer Amphibian Troops

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