6th Infantry Division 7th Infantry Division . By dawn of the third day of the ground campaign, the 2nd Armored Division (Forward) had a hand in the destruction of four Iraqi tank and mechanized brigades and two divisions. The division's 3rd brigade, based in Germany, deployed to Saudi Arabia in the fall of 1990 and acted as the third maneuver brigade of the 1st Infantry Division from Fort Riley, KS. Do you have 41ST INFANTRY BATTALION, 2ND ARMORED DIVISION Reunion information you'd like to share Relive & share the memories of your service time with your brothers & sisters in arms today. Division relief workers processed over 22,000 Iraqi refugees between 15 April and 10 May. MG Willis Crittenberger, commander of the 2AD, and his staff, Fort Benning, 1942. Ribera, Sicily, Jul 1943. July 1940 – November 1940. The Germans were headed south on orders to block any further American advance to Avranches. G1, MENG # TS-040 1/35 ISRAEL MAIN BATTLE TANK MAGACH 6B GAL BATASH, MENG # TS-042 1/35 GERMAN MAIN TANK BATTLE TANK LEOPARD 2 A7+, MENG # TS-043 1/35 U.S. The unit returned to Fort Hood, Texas in April 1991 and continued the inactivation that was interrupted when Iraq invaded Kuwait. As a result of this varied and demanding job, command of the 2nd Armored Division (Forward) was considered a plum assignment for armor branch brigadier generals, on par with perhaps only the Berlin Brigade for high visibility and potential for advancement to higher rank. C Company, 2–66th first contested for the trophy in 1983. An M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle of the 2nd Battalion, 41st Infantry, 2nd Armored Division, advances during a company team attack exercise at the Antelope Mound training area. The 2nd Armored Division (Forward), formerly the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Armored Division, is derived from the 41st Armored Infantry Regiment, which was constituted on 15 May 1917, and organized on 20 June 1917, at Fort Snelling, Minnesota. 2nd Armored Division M5 Stuart and M10 Wolverine of the 702nd Tank Destroyer Battalion cover approaches into Tesey Sur Vire, France, 1944. The brigade initially deployed to Germany with the M60 Patton tank and the M113 armored personnel carrier. From left to right: Major General Floyd Parks, U. S. Commanding General, Berlin Area; General George S. Patton, Jr., Commanding General, U. S. 3rd Army; Colonel William H. Kyle, aide to Secretary of War Stimson; John J. McCloy, Assistant Secretary of War; Harvey H. Bundy; and Secretary of War, Henry L. Stimson stand in a half track as they review the 2nd Armored Division, in Berlin, Germany during the Potsdam Conference, 20 Jul 1945. 2AD M48s conduct a live fire exercise during one of the final phases of Operation Big Lift at Baumholder, Germany, 8 Nov 1963. At the age of 47, Gaffey was one of the youngest division commanders in the U.S. Army at the time. Regt. It consisted of the 81st Infantry Brigade (161st and 162nd Infantry Regiments) and the 82nd Infantry Brigade (163rd and 164th Infantry Regiments). The 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division was reflagged as the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. 67th ARM RGT crew refueling a M2A1, 1941. 2nd Armored Division (Forward) was based at a new military facility near the village of Garlstedt just north of the city of Bremen. Redesignated 1 January 1942 as 41st Armored Infantry Regiment. was instrumental in founding California Historical Group. T2 Recovery vehicle 'Go Get It' in a landing craft at Bizerte, Tunisia waiting for the invasion of Sicily. The 2nd Armored was organized as a "heavy" armored division, having two armored regiments of four medium tank and two light tank battalions of three companies each. Lemgo, Germany, Apr 1945. In addition to command of the heavy brigade, he also functioned as the Commander, III Corps (Forward), headquartered in Maastricht, Netherlands, and as commander of all US Army forces in Northern Germany, including the military communities of Garlstedt and Bremerhaven. 3 IN 1, BORDER MODEL # BT-003 1/35 PZ.KPFW.IV AUSF.F1 VORPANZER&SCHÜRZEN. Activated 15 Jul 1940 • Entered Combat 8 Nov 1942 • Days of Combat 443 • Casualties 20,659 Gelsenkirchen, Germany, 19 Mar 1945. Infantry and a half-track of the 41st Armored Infantry Regiment come down the Rue Saint Michel in the village of Lonlay l’abbaye, Normandy, 14 Aug 1944. The 82nd Armored Reconnaissance Battalion was known as the "eyes and ears" of the 2nd Armored Division. After the Gulf War the division went through a series of inactivations and reflaggings. Stanton, Shelby L. (1984). M4A1 (76) W “ELOWEE” in the foreground, followed by a M4, then two other M4A1s. The division then redeployed to Saudi Arabia, where some of its soldiers established and ran three refugee camps near Raffia, Saudi Arabia. Bocage country on the Cotentin Peninsula, Lower Normandy. MEDIUM TANK M4A3E8 SHERMAN ''EASY EIGHT'', TAMIYA # 32597 1/48 GERMAN TANK PANTHER AUSF.D, TAMIYA # 35065 (MM165) 1/35 PANZERKAMPFWAGEN V PANTHER (SD.KFZ.171) AUSF.A, TAMIYA # 35160 1/35 RUSSIAN ARMY TANK T-72 M1, TAMIYA # 35170 1/35 GERMAN PANTHER AUSF.G EARLY VERSION, TAMIYA # 35174 1/35 GERMAN PANTHER TYPE G STEEL WHEEL VERSION, TAMIYA # 35176 1/35 GERMAN PANTHER AUSF.G LATE VERSION, TAMIYA # 35211 1/35 JS3 STALIN RUSSIAN HEAVY TANK, TAMIYA # 35257 1/35 T-55A RUSSIAN MEDIUM TANK, TAMIYA # 35345 1/35 GERMAN TANK PANTHER AUSF.D, TAMIYA # 35346 1/35 U.S. A LATE, MENG # TS-037 1/35 KING TIGER (PORSCHE TURRET), MENG # TS-038 1/35 GERMAN MEDIUM TANK SD.KFZ.171 PANTHER AUSF. However, with the end of the Cold War, the U.S. military began to draw down its combat units. 251 Ausf. NARA photo # 198766, Truman's procession past the Second Armored Division in Germany. Note camouflage uniform, 2AD issued each soldier two pair in the mid-1970’s. The division participated in numerous major NATO training exercises, including "Trutzige Sachsen" (1985), "Crossed Swords" (1986) and the "Return of Forces to Germany" (REFORGER) (1980 and 1987). 2nd Armored Division M4A1 crosses the central bridge of Lonlay L'Abbaye, 15 Aug 1944. [28] The brigade destroyed 60 Iraqi tanks and 35 infantry vehicles along the IPSA pipeline. The brigade had approximately 3,500 soldiers and another approximately 2,500 family dependents and civilian employees. At the time, East Germany was known as the German Democratic Republic-- ironically (not a lot of 'democratic' anything going on over there from what I saw). The Germans suffered the loss of 50 dead, 60 wounded and 197 taken prisoner; material losses included over 260 German combat vehicles destroyed. 2AD M26 Pershings, Magdeburg, Germany, Apr 1945. M4A1 (76) recovery at Nieuwstadt, Holland, 29 Sep 1944. They were responsible for destroying the Iraqi 18th Mechanized and 9th Armored Brigades of the Republican Guard Tawakalna Mechanized Infantry Division and the Iraqi 26th Infantry Division. 251 Ausf. The 41st was constituted as 41st Infantry Regiment 15 May 1917, and organized at Ft. Snelling, Minnesota, from the personnel of the 36th Infantry Regiment. Tank companies from 2/66, and later 3/66 AR competed in the bi-annual NATO tank gunnery competition, the Canadian Army Trophy, or "CAT," as part of the NORTHAG team. 66th ARMORED PERSHING AT WIESBADEN AIR FORCE BASE, GERMANY, 25 JUN 1952. on a pontoon bridge. GEN George Marshall inspects troops and tanks of the 2AD near Berlin. 171 PANTHER AUSF. The 702nd Tank Battalion was a 2AD attachment. 9th Infantry Division . Joseph G. De Freitas was born in Madeira, Portugal in 1915 and emigrated to the United States in 1934. In 1988, 4/41 IN returned to Fort Hood, Texas and was replaced by 3/66th AR (Burt's Knights, named for Captain James M. Burt who was awarded the Medal of Honor as a company commander in the 66th Armored Regiment in the Battle of Aachen during World War II). SIGNAL CORPS photo # 19403, A CO, 66th ARM RGT M5A1 “ASTORIA”. Colorized by Jared Enos. SIGNAL CORPS photo # SC197925. Air Force Units Army Units Coast Guard Units Marine Corps Units Navy Units Become a VetFriends Member Site Map. In July the division entered Berlin—the first American unit to enter the German capital city. The division sent brigades to participate in exercises in Germany from 1973 through 1979, and in 1987 the division was engaged in the largest deployment to Europe since World War II as a part of the Third Corps exercise "Reforger 87" to demonstrate the ability to deploy and fight in support of NATO. 2nd Armored Division 1962-1963 Yearbook Cover. D, MENG # TS-039 1/35 GERMAN TANK DESTROYER SD.KFZ.173 JAGDPANTHER AUSF. Home Tags 41st Armord Infantry Regiment. April 1943 – 5 May 1943. Between the cease-fire and the official end of the war in April 1991, 2nd Armored Division (Forward) took part in security operations to ensure peace in Kuwait. The unit returned to Fort Hood, Texas, in April 1991 and continued the inactivation that was interrupted when Iraq invaded Kuwait. The 2nd Armored was organized as a "heavy" armored division, having two armored regiments of four medium tank battalions and two light tank battalions of three companies each. In July the division entered Berlin—the first American unit to enter the German capital city. 1/66 ARM, 2AD after crossing the Weser River, 6 Apr 1945. Note the camouflage uniforms (used only for a short period, due to confusion with German uniforms) and helmet netting. M7 Priest of 2nd Armored Division. The majority of the division would spend much of the next 35 years based at Fort Hood and the division remained on active service during the Cold War.