the pershing cable (nov 1990)

8/17/2019 The Pershing Cable (Nov 1990)

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Vol. 30, No. 2 56th Field Artillery Command

Infantry unit activates2nd Bn. 4th Inf uneases the colorsof 1st Bn. 4th Inf.

by Anthony J .C. HoschStaff Writer

1-irn Bamlion. 4th Infantry Regiment activatedNo ·embe r I 6 to pa,·e the ,. ,ay for the transition of

nd Bn . 4th Inf.The JCti,·ation was held at the combat maneu,·er

tuinin~ center in Hohenfels.The a remo ny began with the formation of troops,

the p resentation of the Colors and the playing of theGenman and American national anthem .After the ployin~ of both anthems. 1st Bn., 4th

lnf.'s colors C t held by Col. Karl Ferris,commander of the Hohenfcls Training Area , and un •~ased bv ~laj. Mi~hael Christie, operations officer for1st Bn., 4th Inf. and by CS:\1 John Moncrief, 2ndBn., 4th Inf.

As the ceremon y dre\\ · to • close, Brig. Gen. Ri·chard Da,·is, commander, 7th Army Training Com·mand, said the high standards achieved with the 56thField Artiller, • Command is what is nced,·d 10 conti·nue the proud lineage of the 4th Inf. Reg. as the United Sutes Arm~· Europe's opposing forces.

- -ctivation Cefemonyl Col. Kall Ferri , Hohenfels Train·Ing Area Commander, unfurls the colors at the 1st Bn .4th Inf. Regiment's ac:1ivation ceremony. The ceremonywas held Nov. 16 at the Hohenfets training area .

Warriors become OPFOR a t Hohenfelsby Anthony J.C. Ho sch

Suff WriterThey have been described as battlers, knight.s,

combatants, and fighten; but we know them a sthe "Warriors •Second Battalion, 4th Infantry Regim•n t, "Warri

ors,• ha ·c been sel•cted for a n•w mission .Bec.ause of their unique table of organization and

equipm•nt, 2·4 will move to the comba, maneuvermining center (CMTC ) in Hohcnf•ls to become theUnited State Army Europe's (USAREUR) opposingforces.

This is quite a change from ,heir Pershing II mis·sion, which was to prevent any aggression from theperimeter by conducting patrols, setting up mechani•cal ambushes, and being used as an early warningsystem for Pershing.

In their new mission, they will be fighting as a So-viet motorized rifle battalion or regiment against thebest-trained armor and mechanized battalions or bri•gadcs in the world, according to Lt. Col. CliftonRipperger, battalion commander.

"I'm looking forward 10 the transition and themove because of the new training," said Pfc. Brian

Amb1111hl

Spec. JamesCampbell, BCo., 2nd Bn .4th Inf . trains inthe Strausstraining ereanear Neu•Ulmon opposingforces t.ciics .Sae s1ory onpage 6.

Moore, C Co., 2nd Bn., 4th Inf.The move is made possible with the activation of

1st Bn., 4th Inf. Regiment, November 16 by flag and

name 10 keep the 4th Regiment alive, commentedRipperger. This would allow 2nd Bn., 4th Inf. 10 relocate and become 1st Bn., 4th Inf., he continued .

"Second Bn., 4th Inf. Regiment will not retro·grade . t will literally pock its vehicles, its people, :andit.s families and move in it.s ent.irety to Hohenfcls,"said Ripperger.

When the soldiers and their equipment arrive inHohenfels, they will join the 1st Bn., 4th Inf.

The move and mission ch an~e will " be challengingand exciting because it s going 10 be somethingdifferent," said Spec. Chris Schneider, C Co., 2ndBn., 4th Inf.

The reacti on from most of the soldiers with 2·4concerning the move were much the same. They arevery excited about the training that they will receiveand proud to have been selected to test other unit.s inthe art of infantry tactics.

The activation of 1 4 in November marked the be ·ginning of the transitional stage for 2-4.

See Infantry, page 6.

insidethe able• Survey results, see page 3.• Cook competition, see page 6

• Football champs , see page 7 .

November 1990

Update FYIStuttgart High estab-

lishes acceleration policyBecause of rroop reductions in Europe, some

Stuttgart American High School students may beforced to leave school before the end of the firstsemester or the end of the school year.

The Department of D•fense Dep endencs Schoolhas established student enrollment cut-off dates tocam credit for the semester. The offic ja l cut-offdates ue Dec. 13 for the first s•mester and May 16for the second semester .

Studenu whose sponsor cannot remain in coun·try until the acceleration date may be given an ear·lier acceleration date if the sponsor must leave because of tht troop reductions.

Requests for •arly acceleration must be accom·panied by orders that indicate the sronsor 's earlyreassignment. Students must meet al req ..irementsfor acceleration which include having a •c• orbener in every course in which the stu dent wishesto accelerate.

Sponsors of stud•nt.s requesting accelerat ionneed to send a copy of the orders and a written re·quest for acceleration to the registrar as early aspossible.

After the request is approved the stud•nt willreceive a form to give to the teachers. The Studentis responsible for acquiring and completing the ne·ccssary work according 10 the teacher 's instruc·tions.

Furniture sa leThe defense reutili zation and marketing region·Europe (DRMR-E) plan was approv•d by the

Commander in Chief, United States Army, Eu·rope, Crosbie E. Saint. This policy is designed 10reduce excess household furniture now accumulat·ing due to unit inactivations and base closures.

Sales to occupants will be scheduled on a onetime, cash-only ba&is by the military community'sc•ntralized furnishings management office(CFM O ). These sales will be jointly run by thedefense reutilization and marketing office(DRMO) and CFMO repmeomives.

The DRMO will continue to hold additionalfurniture sales for all identification card holders atMILCOM CFMO, and also directly at DRMOstorage y ards.

For more information, contact your local hous·ing furniture office. The telephone number inSchwabisch Gmiind is '4 27- S7 11, Goppingen'stelephone number is 4 lS-34 96 and the numberin Neu Ulm is '4 27-68 4} .

Mr. Good-WTenehl Pfc .John Grtlfis, DBtry., 1st Bn.,9th FA, tightensa bolt on therailing of aCUCV bed du·ring the battal ·ion s retrogradeae ivities. Seestory on pages4 and 5 .-


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RetrogadeSoldiers prepare vehiclesfor turn -in to 9th ASG

by Richard J. ClemensonStaff Writ er

Thre e month s ago l st Bn., 9th FA'smotor pool looked like a used car lot .Three hundred twenty - two vehicles,many of which have been pus hing, pu lling and grinding in the 56th FA CMDfor nearly 30 years, lined the pavementaching for r epair.

Today, after recruiting the services ofinfantrymen, Pers hing crewmc mbe rs,truck drivers and mechanics throug hou tthe battalion , 321 of those vehicles areon line, freshly pa int ed and prepped for

their fina l exit from Pershing.And number 322 waits in the wings.l .ike a ma jority of the vehicles - rust ,dents, scrapes and a variety of other vehicle ailmen ts decorate it. And like all1he other vehicles, the welde rs, grinders ,sandblasters, mechan ics and painters ofthe batta lion's retrograd e team willpatch them up.

The first step on the vehicle 's road torecovery is the maintenance bay of 55thSpt. Bn.

According to Maj. Mike Couch, battalion executive officer, the mechanicso 55th "wi ll chec k the vehicle tw ice before it 's tu rned over to Mr. K ing andthe 29th ASG (Area Support Group).The first time is to work off any deadline gigs and the second time is to checkfo r any mi stakes they m ight h ave missed."

From there th e truck will move one

bay over to the "body and fendershop," a.s it is affectionately called bythe eight-member team that worksthere .

It's not actually a body and fendershop but rather an all pu rp ose repairbay where the vehicles are patched upand in some cases overhauled .

"We make 'em look pretty," Sgt. Timothy Makinson, noncommissioned officer in charge of the shop called outfrom under a rusted -out 2-1/2 tontru ck.

"Sometime s that's nea rly impossible.Deuce and a balfs (2-1/2 ton truck) :trcthe worst though . They h ave some seriuos holes that have to be welded andsometimes fabricated (reconstruc ted),"said Makinson.

Look at these boogers. They'll takehalf a day to patch up," Makinsonscreamed as he point .s 10 an area of fistsized holes in the fender of a 2-1/2 tontruck.

"Just one more," muttered Pfc . Kenneth Snyder .

Accord ing to Makinson the processof welding the ho les together and grinding the rust off its undercarriag e andbody usuaUy takes a day and from therethe vehicle is sent across the motor poo lto "The Paint Crew" .

Like the "body and fender shop","Th e C rew• has been together since thevehicles started rolling through last AuguSt. And like their cou nt erparts down

th e way they have come from differentjobs around th.e Com mand and haveseen it's once rag-tag outfit turn into agreat team.

"We've got all kinds here,• bellowedSgt. Ernest Woods, day paint crewchief ."We've got infantry, fifteen echoes(Pershing crcwmember s and truck drivers. Mys elf, I 'm bana lion ammo," headded.

"W e're in a groove right now . Westarted w ith trailers and worked o urway up to the trucks. We can get atruck in and out of here in one daynow.

Despite the eight ho ur, nigh t and d ayshifts the team endures, mora le is highand g rowing higher as the end near s.

"I love tbts work. 1 even asked to extend so I could be a part of this. It'sgreat to sec this job get done and donewell,• Pfc . Rodn ey Henry said.

For H enry and the o th ers, the job isnearly done and been done well according to Couch. After "The Paint Crew"rum s the last vehicle over to 55th Spt.Bn. for one last maintenance chec k, itand the rest of the vehicl es will be turned over to 29th ASG.

According to Couch, tha,'s when thereal test w ill be.

"Mr. King and bis inspectors loo kthrough everything when they inspect.We've don e well up to this point andwe'll be put to the test when it comestime to turn them in,• he said.

Bang You're painted Spec . Je ffery Witherspoon, HIHSB. 1st Bn., 9th FA spray paints a vehicle for ret rograde.

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Sp ray painting Lying benea th a 2 ' 1:·1st Bn 9th FA reaches up to touch-updercarrlage .

Grinding away Pie. Kennith Snyde rBn., 9th FA grinds so me rust oH he bea 2W-lon 1uc k during the batta llon·s rograde activities.

Doubl e checking Sgt Timothy Makin1sl Bn . 9th FA In spects a 2' ·ton tfender alte r we lding it toget he r.


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ershing CaNovem . 199

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IPfc Rodney Henry.k s bUmper nnd ur .

Mixing it up Spec . Ke vin Steele . 1st Bn., 9th FA mixessome pa nt before it Is sprayed onto a 1st Bn.. 9th FAtruck du ng battalion ret rograde activities .

Sandblaatlngl Sand flies ev erywh ere as Spec. WIiiiam Everett . 1st Bn . 9th FA sandblasts the undercarriage of a five-ton truck.

Greasel Spec . George Langston. A Co 55th Spt. Bn.. wor1< s on tile ha rmon ic ba lancerof a CUCV.

th fights retrograde warby Julia Hearn

Staff WriterTheir odds seemed slim - they were

outnumbered by hundreds. Some oftheir weapons on hand were wrenches,screwdrivers, grease guns, blow torchesand sanding machines. Although theodds were slim and time was running

out, they ou tmaneuvered t he enemy.Soldiers of the 3rd shop, A Com

pany, 55th Support Battalion weren'tfighting a war against other so ldiers, bu tagainst vehicles and equipment. Theirmission: to repair vehicles and equipment for retrograde.

Since May we've comp leted over athousand jobs,• said CW02 LawrenceSchwendeman, automotive techn icianfor A Co., 55th Spt. Bn. The jobsincluded were automotive repair, welding, and vehicle repair.

The 3rd shop i s divided into differentsections: automotive, fuel and electric,and welding-allied trade . We havetwenty -six soldiers here. They havebeen working I~ 10 16 hours a day sinceMay, added Schwendeman.

Usually a vehicle goes to the automo ·rive section first. •After the unit's mo·tor pool presentS the problem 10 us, aQ uality Assurance Quality Control(Q AQ C) person in.spccu it to verify thedeficiency,• explained Sgt. Sheldon Pat ·ton, wheeled vehicle mechanic. It'sthen sent to product cont r ol where it'sput on a status sheet a.nd pans areordered . We place it in a holdin g )01 until we have the space, time , and the mechan ics 10 do ii.-

• After the job is finished, we take the

vehicle on a 20-mile road trip to makesure our work is qu ality work, addedPatton. The Q AQC also docs a final inspection of the vehicle.

Another key element to the process isthe welding team. Although a vehiclemay be sound mechanicdly, it may stillneed body work. We do all the weld

ing and body work,• said Pfc. MichaelCarnes, metal worker.According to Schwendeman most of

the welding has to be done because ofrust . We cut the old metal awav, andreplace it with new sheet metal. The al·tcrna1ivewould be 10 send it away to befixed, but we don't have time for that,explained .Carnes .

We've been working a 1 01 on doorchannels, fenders, a nd bed channels, •added Carn es. I've gotten a lot of ex·perience from the retrogr ade.•

The fuel and electric team have beenrepairing smaller compon ents suc h asstarters , batteries, generators and fuellines.

Although the shop is di idc,d intosections, teamwork plays an importantrole in retrograde . "I t was surprisinghow well we work together through thelong hours. I have a lot of respect forthese guys here, they are dedicated,said Pfc Shane Matzke, wheeled vehiclerepairman.

You won't find a tighter grou p , added Sgt. Gary Carter, wheeled vehiclemechanic. O ur wives and families arevery supportive by uking care of 1hini;swe don't have time for. It 's hard workbut we enjoy it , we're like a small family of our own .•

the pershing cable (nov 1990)

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