Armored divisions

The best test of this is in the battles fought in late 1944 between US Armoured Divisions and German panzer divisions.

The 4th AD defeats elements of five armoured divisions in September 1944 around Arracourt.

The 9th and 10th AD deployed piece meal are mauled by the Pz Lehr and 2nd Panzer Dvision near Basotgne.

The 2nd Panzer Division is stranded out of fuel and defeated in detail in front of the Meuse by 2nd AD and part of 29th (British) Armoured Brigade.

 

You may have read it in post #9 of this thread.

 

You're right. How did a full strength German panzer division compare to a US division at full strength in terms of tank numbers and infantry numbers?

 

Theoretically, a US Armd Div (on the Sep43 T/Os and subsequent changes thereto) had;

Inf; 3 Armd Inf Bns, each 1001 all ranks, nudged down to 996 all ranks by Sep44 - so approx. 3000 Infantrymen, which includes the riflemen and the combat and service support personnel of each Armd Inf Bn. Each Bn also began with 3 SP 75-mm howitzer motor carriages, which were changed to howitzer armed med tks by Sep44. Also 9 towed 57-mm atk guns (3 per Rifle Coy)

Tanks; 3 Tk Bns, each 53 Med tks, 6 howitzer armed Med tks and 17 Lt tks - add 3 Lt tks for HQ of CCA, CCB and Div.

Arty; 3 Armd Arty Bns, each 18 SP 105-mm howitzers and 3 M4 Med tks (for forward observer use) - 54 SP guns and 9 OP tanks

Recn; Cav Recn Sqn (Mech), (actually a Battalion size unit) with 52 armd cars (4 with HQ and 4 Tps with 12 apiece) and 17 Lt tks (in one Coy), plus 8 75-mm armed howitzer motor carriages in the Aslt Gun Tp.

Totals - 168 medium and 77 light tanks, 9 Arty OP tanks, 18 (later 27) howitzer armed medium tanks, 54 armoured cars, 17 (later 8) 75-mm HMC, 54 105-mm HMCs, 30 towed 57-mm anti-tank guns (includes 3 with Div HQ).

The 1944 type fG (freed organisation) Panzer Div was, again on paper at least;

Inf; 4 Inf Bns (1 Armd and 3 Mot) in two Regts, 2305 all ranks for the Armd and 2258 for the Mot types - so approx. 4600 infantrymen, but again that includes service/supply/maintenance personnel. Also 6 SP 15-cm inf guns per Regt.

Tks; 1 Bn each of PzIV and PzV (76 tanks apiece), plus 8 at Regtl level (3 radio and 5 recce). The fG org allowed for Pz Coys to operate three Pls as the basic, and activate a fourth Pl from reserve/service personnel. If done across the board that would add 20 tanks per Bn.

Arty; 1 SP Bn with 12 10.5-cm and 6 15-cm howitzers, 1 towed Bn with 12 10.5-cm howitzers, and 1 towed Bn with 8 15-cm howitzers and 4 10-cm guns.

Recce; 1 halftrack Coy (duplicate of Armd Pz Gren Bn unit), 1 Light Recce Coy (in SdKfz 250 series vehicles), 1 halftrack Recce Coy (25 SdKfz 250 vehs, 16 mounting 2-cm cannons), and in HQ Coy 16 heavy 8-wheeled armd cars (13 with 2-cm and 3 with 7.5-cm guns).

Atk Bn; two SP Coys, each with either 10 or 14 SP guns and 1 Coy with 12 towed 7.5-cm atk guns

AA Bn; two Btys, each with 4 or 6 towed 8.8-cm guns and 1 Bty with 12 towed 2-cm guns (or 9 2-cm and 2 quad 2-cm guns)

Approx. totals - 81 PzIV and 79 PzV tanks, 32 armd cars, 12 light and 6 heavy SP howitzers, 12 light and 8 heavy towed howitzers, 4 towed cannons, 12 SP inf guns, 21 or 31 SP atk guns, 12 towed atk guns, 8 or 12 8.8-cm towed AA guns. There were also 2-cm light AA guns in various units besides the AA Bn and halftrack mounted 7.5-cm inf guns in the Armd Pz Gren and Recce Bns.

Gary

 

In a US propaganda film they referred the the M10 as the "Little Beauty"