John Kettler

Ales Dvorak, Doubt it, for he posted recently. OTOH (insert dark speculations here, but only for dramatic effect). Regards, John Kettler

Great thread! Have read, ref GPW and later, that the Russian preference was for having the flexibility many smaller sized units conferred, rather than fewer full strength ones. Regards, John Kettler

kevinkin, Most interesting and appreciated. The curse? Inow want to go through that pile of pics at NARA! Am doubly curious because I have Zamulin's Demolishing The Myth, but have yet to read it. Maybe the article will goad me to do so. I was one of millions of westerners who uncritically bought the Prokhorovka story via Caidin's The Tigers Are Burning, and though a far better book, Jukes's Kursk reinforced the idea of the death ride of the panzers. Oh, was I surprised by what the article said, but I also wonder how many dead (but not burned or blew up) Russian tanks were removed, by when, for repair and return to battle. Depending on how timely those recon pics were after the battle could alter the perceived Russian losses. They did have ARVs, one type a turretless T-34 with the turret ring plated cover and a cupola smack in the center. There's a pic of one hauling another tank off the battlefield under close by artillery fire, so the possibility exist that the Russians may have been able to remove dead own tanks. Of course, that would make the Panzers even more deadly than the new study shows. Regards, John Kettler

Golden tresses by the meter! https://www.odditycentral.com/news/real-life-rapunzel-hasnt-had-a-haircut-in-28-years.html Regards, John Kettler

akd, If you read the two docs carefully, you'll see there is a clear and precise distinction between AP shell and shot, listed explicitly as APCR, Also of interest is the prohibition of firing in excess of 1000 maters. This smacks of inaccuracy at long range, a known problem with at least some APCR/HVAP/PZGr40 type projectiles. Since these projectiles were tremendously expensive in a strategic material (tungsten carbide used for machine tools) and difficult to manufacture (as the US learned the hard way with HVAP, generating months in delivery delay), the prohibition against engaging anything but the big cats with them makes eminent sense. The ZIS-2 was a potent gun, but it took twice as much effort to manufacture, consumed more strategic material, required special tooling and had far shorter service life than the in development ZIS-3 or the T-34/76s gun. The problem lay in rapid chamber erosion caused by extremely high chamber pressure. The defects are all detailed in the comparisons the Russians did themselves. AquiaSmartWargames, TankArchives is run by a real grog, historian Peter Samsonov, and his stock in trade is poring through declassified internal Red Army and defense manufacturer docs, some as high as TOP SECRET and reporting on his findings, frquently presenting all or part of the source documents, pics, etc., directly. Having read through dozens, the communications are pragmatic, brutally blunt, German level meticulous, solution oriented, and sometimes scary. Stalin's rebuke to the head of the Chelyabinsk T-34 tank factory who's way behind on deliveries is one such. Samsonov feels the Red Army has gotten short shrift in terms of its military technical capabilities, weapon performance and engineering innovations. The results have been revelatory and transcend even the justifiably renowned Russian Battlefield site, whose creator was instrumental in getting Russian weaponry right for CMx1's monumental CMBB. Moreover, the site owner of TankArchives has just published a well reviewed book Osprey size (but nearly double the page count) book on T-34 development. I consider his site to be one of the most valuable, in terms of information, on the internet. Grog gold, and there's nothing else like it when it comes to Red Army AFVs,ATGs and ARTY in the GPW. Here's a review of his first ever book. Believe he's also worked with Artem Drabkin of IRemember.ru fame. Regards, John Kettler

Just finished reding Geoffrey Regan's wonderful, info packed, highly rated The Brassey's Book of Military Blunders. It also happens to be the last of a string of siren calls (including unexpectedly encountering a model of the first used in Stalingrad, Alkett-built sIG33b assault gun--below one is trophy at Kubinka), calling me back to my long unfinished Island of Fire by Jason Marks. Speaking of the sIG33b, the vaunted for their efficiency stepped in it when sending an Army representative back to Alkett to sort out various technical problems. At a time when Stalingrad was well and truly surrounded and the drive was on to fly out qualified combat officers, the one who got sent had ZERO combat experience at all, let alone with this specialist and scarce AFV. Regards, John Kettler

Those of you with an interest in the Sino-Japanese War (or unusual military units) will find these of interest. Did you know the Japanese had a squadron wearing the deathshead insignia? Part of the unit was mounted. http://www.chinaww2.com/2014/04/10/japans-skull-squadron-i/ http://www.chinaww2.com/2014/04/13/japans-skull-squadron-ii/ Regards, John Kettler

Was doing some digging for a CoC colleague ref Japanese cavalry in Manchuria and found this most useful to CM future endeavors in the East. It has this truly remarkable pic, and another which will show exactly what the blithe expression "crossing the Grand Kinghan Mountains" really looked like. You might say it helps bring to life what HSU Dmitry Loza had to say of the experience. The pic in the article is of relatively level ground, but some of the slopes were so steep T-34s had to tow the highly respected Sherman tanks! BT-7s (yes, BT-7s in garrison long before the GPW and kept there to hold Japan's Kwangtung Army at bay even when Russia was in dire peril) simply died on those punishing steep slopes. Loza reported not one made it. https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/2020/01/07/the-soviet-invasion-of-manchuria-led-to-japans-greatest-defeat/ Regards, John Kettler

Did you know the OSS had library spooks? I sure didn't. This is an excerpt from a fascinating book about a high level OSS operation to obtain books from Nazi Germany through a variety of means, some overt, others covert, as well as securing valuable books from a Europe in chaos after the war. Call them, The Library Men, if you will. Quite the story! https://crimereads.com/librarian-spy/?fbclid=IwAR3cMfdjSm5hoyM2ZS6J7YIUVpK9E2vAePFwGw_aSV2VV03WWJPY5P9w49s Regards, John Kettler

UXO and the resulting EOD is an interest of mine, and this is a first. Digging in an inner courtyard in Brno, Czech Republic unearthed a weapon cache of a sort I've never seen. Regards, John Kettler

""Dad Boot" was nominated for a stack of Oscars and is my gold standard for a study of men ar war. Didn't know it, but there was a sequel, in the form of a television series ofthe same name! "Lion of the Desert", especially for "Lawrence of Arabia" fans, is nothing short of spectacular, and I just about lost it when all that Italian hardware was being unloaded, never mind the fantastic battle scenes. Maybe the subject matter was too obscure and the protagonist, no relatable dashing, shrewd Englishman, but a burnt leather looking tribal chief (stunningly portrayed by the great Anthony Quinn in a deeply understated, human, moving and powerful performance),; perhaps the sheer horror of what is happening was too much, causing this tremendous film to do poorly. But one audience totally got it, so much so the Italian government, whose genocidal campaign in Libya was the war depicted, banned the film outright. Never got theater release there and was only allowed on cable many years later (2008). Regards, John Kettler

Here's an incident worthy of the OP here. Unfortunately, it's also tragic. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7993551/Dumpster-diver-30-dies-getting-trapped-trash-container.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ico=taboola_feed Regards, John Kettler

You say you're a German aircraft grog, right? Let's see, shall we? Regards, John Kettler

chocice, You're most welcome. Regards, John Kettler

Came across a guy named Justin Pyke on Twitter. He's a military historian specializing in the CBI and PTO. @CBI_PTO_HistoryMA in History. Studies intel, sea power, air power, & the Asia-Pacific War. Researching US intelligence assessments of Japanese air and sea power, 1919-1941. Needless to say, I Followed him and passed the word to two brothers and a famous military thriller writer and wargame designer. Regards, John Kettler

Aragorn2002, You're most welcome. Regards, John Kettler

The small arms manuals include the Boys ATR, the 2-Inch Mortar and the Three-Inch Mortar. Everyone in the 3-Inch Mortar Section has a rifle and 50 rounds. It's led by a serbeant and also has a corporal, with the remained being privates. Regards, John Kettler

Technically, quite a few of these British/CW small arms manauls aren't from WW II per se, but what's here verges on incredible, with dozens and dozens of manuals, pamphlets and other docs pertinent to shooting instruction, including the Vickers MMG and the PIAT. The above info treasure horde is feely downloadable. https://vickersmg.blog/manual/small-arms-training-manuals/ We're supposed to get LVTs in CMBN Vehicle Pack 2, so here is the Army's FM 17-34 AMPHIBIOUS TANK AND TRACTOR BATTALIONS. Published in 1950, it incorporates everything learned the hard way and has a such a high level of detail you could plan an amphibious assault using it. https://archive.org/details/FM17-341950/mode/2up Regards, John Kettler

When this comes out, the Navy's going to need more aircraft carriers! The original "Top Gun" had a huge impact on naval aviation and the Navy in general, and I expect this will cause interest to explode. Cinematography has made an Oscar-sized leap in this film, and the actors have experienced ACM (Air Combat Maneuvering) AKA dogfighting with the best the Navy has--while sometimes pulling 7-8 Gs! All the trailers and some wonderful stuff from behind the scenes. Dying to see this! Regards, John Kettler

ERwin, You're welcome. He and his outfit were heavily involved in "Fury". Millions were spent transporting many AFVs from his collection to another part of England. Restored Me-109 G6, flying under power of the DB 605A engine. Regards, John Kettler

Don't know whether any of you saw "Combat Dealers" on Discovery TV, but here's a sampling of the fun (and my near bottomless envy I don't get to play with these wonderful toys). Business head Bruce Crompton travels the world finding, repairing and selling historic weapons, including a Panther tank and 88s. Here, he creates a mini war movie as a marketing tool, with a real WW II tanker on the set as his military advisor. https://youtu.be/0jEo8v1LjQ4?list=PLSdOd4Ju-5yuFUM6iCVrk0Udk47N9uuuv Regards, John Kettler

Erwin, Amazon Prime has it. But a quick search found it on YT! Regards, John Kettler

There's WW I trench art, but then there's this stunner! Regards, John Kettler

Stunning large format original color pic of the bow of a Siebel Ferry. Like being there! Detailed info on Siebel Ferry and related operations, losses, etc. http://www.ww2.dk/articles/flot.htm?fbclid=IwAR2wQnv3txdQ_4h980lo6ffDZj5kqyd708tCjyGVdJ-XDildpv_aj4w-MQI Regards, John Kettler

If you saw the Danish movie 9 APRIL, you'll probably find this wonderful article quite the engrossing read. It's the story of the attack on Denmark and has lots of detailed info on the garrisons, armament, uniform illos, pics, etc. Grog goodness on a topic most of us know little about. http://www.chakoten.dk/The Danish Army on April 9th, 1940_complete.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1-4U5QnkYwxES-7nt_ZaQiC70VgCiovg9WRte19gz99s-uf2VTQwsKa1A Regards, John Kettler