Incorrectly, you may have thought all we had to be concerned with were the Krauts but some of our own were far out!!
"In re "AWOL in Italy" by Recon:-
I don't know if the younger posters here can truly appreciate what Recon has given all of us and I include the BTDTs like myself. Not only have I been engrossed in his stories but I then find myself recalling things that I haven't thought of for ages.
In my earlier postings,I had mentioned that my unit was pulled back to provide security for the 17th AB Div. when they were going to parcipate in Operation Varsity and jump into the town Wesel,Germany in March of 1945. Our strict orders were that "Nobody is to go in and Nobody is to get out" and that is what we accomplished to the satisfaction of Maj. Gen.Wm. "Bud" Miley the 17th CG and the Intel hierachy overseeing things.
The only glitch in our operation was so bizarre that it was almost out of a far-fetched novel. We had sucessfully shielded the 17th AB guys from the people in the nearest town that they had no idea that they were there. These people were getting back to a normal life because the war had passed through their area and they basically ignored us GIs --if and when we went into town which wasn't often.
One evening about 10 o'clock we heard the sound of small arms and grenades but we took it to be the Paras so we continued our normal patrol in the area until we met one of the local Gendarmes who was so excited he could hardly speak. I managed to slow him down and found out that some how "Krauts" were attacking the town and in particular their town hall where a celebration dance was going on. My Plt.was assembled and we approached the town to find that in fact there was a vehicle firing into the Town Hall and tossing grenades just about everywhere like confetti
In the darkness, it was difficult to see that it was an American half-track with four GIs in it.As we were closing in,they decided to enter the Town Hall through the front door naturally without bothering to open it and continued firing the .50 cal. wildly. The panic was incredible as the town's people tried to get out of the building. Before the building was totalled these four idiots dismounted and were sitting at a table drinking Calvados so they were secured easily. Three were rated as T3's and the other guy was a T4 so at some time they did have brain power.
It turned out that they were AWOLs from a vehicle maintainance unit and after a few days of living on practically nothing but Calvados they decided to have some "fun". Leavenworth was to be their next duty station was the word that we got. The AMG people came in to try to smooth the feathers of the town's people and make restitution for the damages which were extensive.
I know 172A was in Normandy and if he ever tasted the homemade Calvados which was made from beets it is a first cousin to White Lightening Moonshine he could tell you how potent this was.We had a guy go temporarily blind from drinking it and when a Medic showed us that it burned with the same type flame as medicinal alcohol everybody switched to wine.
Sgtleo 