Keith Posted May 2, 2002 Share Posted May 2, 2002 This medium size operation is best suited for PBEM and has been play tested for PBEM. Title: Bouncing The Rhine Date: April 6, 1945 Location: Hitdorf, Germany Weather: Night; Variable Weather Length: 4 Battles Recommended Side to Play: PBEM or Americans vs AI Operation Type: Assault Author: Keith Schur kschur@erols.com Version 2.0 On April 1st, 1945 the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment took up positions along the West Bank of the Rhine River. The opponents this time were battered Wehrmacht forces who had been trapped in the Ruhr pocket with their backs to the East Bank of the Rhine River. The airborne troops sent patrols each night from the West Bank in boats to reconnoiter the opposite shore where, almost without exception, the enemy was contacted and brisk firefights developed. With usual paratrooper aggressiveness Col. Tucker, the commander of the 504th PIR, ordered Company "A" to cross the Rhine on April 6th to seize and occupy the mile long village of Hitdorf, a small enemy held harbor on the Rhine between Köln and Düsseldorf. The colonel wished to establish a base for further patrolling on the East Bank of the Rhine. Loading into assault boats in platoon waves, "A" Company crossed the Rhine at 0230 hours. Upon reaching the east bank, the enemy was immediately contacted. Under heavy fire the American platoons managed to knock out several machine gun nest and the Hitdorf garrison was eliminated by 0830 hours. A perimeter defense was established and after defeating a company sized German counter attack, the situation appeared to be well in hand. However, this peace was short lived. The Germans assembled and directed a considerable portion of the 62nd Volksgrenadier Division and remnants of the 11th Panzer Division to the mission of annihilating the formidable thrust. In mid-afternoon on April 7th the entire area was subjected to a withering and devastating artillery barrage for two hours after which counter-attacking forces in overwhelming strength with tank support assaulted the defending troopers from every direction and penetrated to the heart of the town. The troopers of Company "A" doggedly stood their ground and at point blank range inflicted terrible casualties on the masses of the enemy. Unfortunately, the third platoon of "A" Company was wiped out. During the hours of darkness on April 7th the two remaining platoons of "A" Company fought their way back step by step to their boats. A horseshoe defense was established at the beachhead, the open end of which faced the water. Regiment meanwhile ordered two platoons of "I" Company to cross the river at 0130 hours in order to clear the beachhead and withdraw back across the river with the survivors of "A" company. Simultaneously, the Germans counterattacked, this time with a platoon of tanks and 200 infantry. The paratroopers quickly piled into their boats and staged a "mini-Dunkirk". Eighty prisoners were taken and evacuated. Conservative estimates indicate that 150 of the enemy were killed and 250 wounded. For this action Company "A" received a Presidential Unit Citation. Get it at the scenario depot: http://www.dragonlair.net/combatmission/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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