Not having had personal experience of either BAR's or grenade launchers, having only seen pictures of them, why does the BAR guy get an assistant, but the grenadier doesn't? Is it something to so with the weight of - ????? Or ???
Just from the pictures, it looks like the grenadier is the guy who could most benefit from an assistant.
If the weapons in the squad's inventory were transformed into characters from 'The Brady Bunch', the M1903 Springfield would be Marcia, the BAR would be Cindy, and the grenade-launcher would be Jan. (Can you tell I was a middle child?) All kidding aside, I suspect that the neglect suffered by interwar grenade launchers owes much to transformation of AEF platoons (which had been optimized for trench warfare) into interwar platoons (which were imagined as general-purpose units.)
You also go thru ammunition for a BAR faster than rifle grenades. Since that ammunition is largely loaded in (rather bulky) 20 round magazines, it requires an assistant, with his own special M1918 Assistant Auto Rifleman’s belt, to carry them around.
(1) Fires distribution within the section is two squads firing and one squad advancing in rotation. All fires are focused on the objective, less the grenadiers who will not fire until they are in range.
(2) Give the following orders: 1st Section (the one at N) is to halt and dig in while maintaining fire on enemy forces at M. 2nd Section, at P, is to move east and then north, squads on line and echelon right (to the east) to determine the location of the machine gun fire and attack to destroy it. Platoon elements will then continue the attack against enemy forces at M, with 1st Section supporting by fire and 2nd Section attacking to defeat the enemy and occupy M. If it is not possible to to destroy the machine gun or if 2nd Section encounters more than a squad of enemy forces that n addition to the machine gun, 2nd Section will assist 1st Section in laying smoke to break contact and reassemble at P. I would also inform the Company Commander of all of the above and request a mortar observer and at least one machine gun team to support our attack and that they meet the Platoon Sergeant at N. I would go forward with 2nd Section and tell my Platoon Sergeant to watch for additional enemy forces and to extract 1st Section if it appears they will be decisively engaged or captured.
(3) As above, except that 2nd Section will move west and then north to attack and will move echelon left (west).
Not having had personal experience of either BAR's or grenade launchers, having only seen pictures of them, why does the BAR guy get an assistant, but the grenadier doesn't? Is it something to so with the weight of - ????? Or ???
Just from the pictures, it looks like the grenadier is the guy who could most benefit from an assistant.
Halp?
If the weapons in the squad's inventory were transformed into characters from 'The Brady Bunch', the M1903 Springfield would be Marcia, the BAR would be Cindy, and the grenade-launcher would be Jan. (Can you tell I was a middle child?) All kidding aside, I suspect that the neglect suffered by interwar grenade launchers owes much to transformation of AEF platoons (which had been optimized for trench warfare) into interwar platoons (which were imagined as general-purpose units.)
This makes sense.
But where's Alice?????
She’s the Platoon Sergeant.
LOL! So true.
You also go thru ammunition for a BAR faster than rifle grenades. Since that ammunition is largely loaded in (rather bulky) 20 round magazines, it requires an assistant, with his own special M1918 Assistant Auto Rifleman’s belt, to carry them around.
Thanks - this helps.
(1) Fires distribution within the section is two squads firing and one squad advancing in rotation. All fires are focused on the objective, less the grenadiers who will not fire until they are in range.
(2) Give the following orders: 1st Section (the one at N) is to halt and dig in while maintaining fire on enemy forces at M. 2nd Section, at P, is to move east and then north, squads on line and echelon right (to the east) to determine the location of the machine gun fire and attack to destroy it. Platoon elements will then continue the attack against enemy forces at M, with 1st Section supporting by fire and 2nd Section attacking to defeat the enemy and occupy M. If it is not possible to to destroy the machine gun or if 2nd Section encounters more than a squad of enemy forces that n addition to the machine gun, 2nd Section will assist 1st Section in laying smoke to break contact and reassemble at P. I would also inform the Company Commander of all of the above and request a mortar observer and at least one machine gun team to support our attack and that they meet the Platoon Sergeant at N. I would go forward with 2nd Section and tell my Platoon Sergeant to watch for additional enemy forces and to extract 1st Section if it appears they will be decisively engaged or captured.
(3) As above, except that 2nd Section will move west and then north to attack and will move echelon left (west).