Did You Know? Little Known Facts of ww2

[spidge]

Do you have any little known facts of WW2 or facts that you feel people are unaware of? Land, Sea, Air, Technology, Weapons, People, Places ........
As an Aussie, I am always pushing the Australian barrow so I will start off with one.

A Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) <st1>Sunderland</st1> performed the type's first unassisted kill of a U-boat.

[spidge]

Medical Services.

<o>Statistics and Data: in WW2 efficient medical care reduced overall losses to only 4 in each 100 wounded (WW1 8 out of 100) . Better surgery, penicillin, plasma and whole blood are responsible in varying degrees, however the credit must be shared by the entire personnel of the Medical Department, whose painstaking care, surgical skill and devotion to duty under trying conditions saved thousands of lives and preserved the fighting strength of our combat forces ! The soldier with an infection of his wounded leg, or with an open chest wound, or a mutilated face, or an injured brain, was certain to receive, after a short interval, the care of an orthopedic, plastic or neuro surgeon – until he could reach his specialist, the G.I. received the type of care which would get him to that specialist in the best possible condition . Army nurses also gave widely varying types of skilled and sympathetic (=angels) service, some in field hospitals and others in general hospitals farther back . WW2 was also the first war in which nurses automatically held officer rank ! (May 1945 17,314 nurses in ETO) .</o> <o></o>Prior to D-Day, June 1944 ETO medical personnel totaled 132, 705, of whom 62,000 were with combat forces and the rest with the Services of Supply (S.O.S.) – by March 1945 the number had increased to 245,387 men . During WW2 the Medical Department’s field forces totaled 13,174 casualties, of which 2,274 were killed . Overall battle casualties in the ETO were as follows: 554,031 mean & women (up to V-E Day) . This can be subdivided into KIA = 98,812, WIA = 373,018, MIA = 42,278, POW = 24,783, died of wounds = 15,140 . The percentage among arms and services was split into Infantry = 75.02%, Air Forces = 9.36%, Artillery = 5.40%, Corps of Engineers = 3.03%, Medical Department = 2.47%, Armored Forces = 1.01%, and others = 3.71% . Also, deaths from disease in WW1 were more than 31 times greater than those suffered in WW2, while lost service due to venereal disease (V.D.) was 30 times higher in WW1 than during WW2 … (although WW2 still numbered 606 men who came down with VD each day) .

[spidge]

Medical Services.

<o:p>Statistics and Data: in WW2 efficient medical care reduced overall losses to only 4 in each 100 wounded (WW1 8 out of 100) . Better surgery, penicillin, plasma and whole blood are responsible in varying degrees, however the credit must be shared by the entire personnel of the Medical Department, whose painstaking care, surgical skill and devotion to duty under trying conditions saved thousands of lives and preserved the fighting strength of our combat forces ! The soldier with an infection of his wounded leg, or with an open chest wound, or a mutilated face, or an injured brain, was certain to receive, after a short interval, the care of an orthopedic, plastic or neuro surgeon – until he could reach his specialist, the G.I. received the type of care which would get him to that specialist in the best possible condition . Army nurses also gave widely varying types of skilled and sympathetic (=angels) service, some in field hospitals and others in general hospitals farther back . WW2 was also the first war in which nurses automatically held officer rank ! (May 1945 17,314 nurses in ETO) .</o:p> <o:p></o:p>


Prior to D-Day, June 1944 ETO medical personnel totaled 132, 705, of whom 62,000 were with combat forces and the rest with the Services of Supply (S.O.S.) – by March 1945 the number had increased to 245,387 men . During WW2 the Medical Department’s field forces totaled 13,174 casualties, of which 2,274 were killed . Overall battle casualties in the ETO were as follows: 554,031 mean & women (up to V-E Day) . This can be subdivided into KIA = 98,812, WIA = 373,018, MIA = 42,278, POW = 24,783, died of wounds = 15,140 . The percentage among arms and services was split into Infantry = 75.02%, Air Forces = 9.36%, Artillery = 5.40%, Corps of Engineers = 3.03%, Medical Department = 2.47%, Armored Forces = 1.01%, and others = 3.71% . Also, deaths from disease in WW1 were more than 31 times greater than those suffered in WW2, while lost service due to venereal disease (V.D.) was 30 times higher in WW1 than during WW2 … (although WW2 still numbered 606 men who came down with VD each day) .

[jacobtowne]

During WW2 the Medical Department’s field forces totaled 13,174 casualties, of which 2,274 were killed . Overall battle casualties in the ETO were as follows: 554,031 mean & women (up to V-E Day) . This can be subdivided into KIA = 98,812, WIA = 373,018, MIA = 42,278, POW = 24,783, died of wounds = 15,140 .

Are these figures for Australia alone, or do they include other allies?

JT

[jacobtowne]

The U.S. Navy lost more than 80 destroyers and escorts during WWII, beginning (I think) with Reuben James.

DESTROYERS

AARON WARD 9 10 S, 160 12 E 7 April 1943
ABNER READ 10 47 N, 125 22 E 1 November 1944

Name Location Date

BARTON Off Guadalcanal I., Solomons 13 November 1942
BEATTY 37 10 N, 6 00 E 6 November 1943
BENHAM Off Savo I., Solomons 15 November 1942
BLUE 9 17 S, 160 02 E 22 August 1942
BORIE North of Azores 1 November 1943
BRISTOL 37 19 N, 6 19 E 13 October 1943
BROWNSON Off New Britain 26 December 1943
BUCK 40 00 N, 14 30 E 9 October 1943
BUSH 27 16 N, 127 48 E 6 April 1945
CALLAGHAN 25 43 N, 126 55 E 29 July 1945
CHEVALIER Off Vella Lavella, Solomons 6 October 1943
COLHOUN Off Okinawa, Ryukyus 6 April 1945
COOPER Ormoc Bay, P.I. 3 December 1944
CORRY 49 31 N, 1 11 W 6 June 1944
CUSHING Off Savo I., Solomons 13 November 1942
DE HAVEN 9 09 S, 159 52 E 1 February 1943
DREXLER Off Okinawa, Ryukyus 28 May 1945
DUNCAN Off Savo I., Solomons 12 October 1942
EDSALL S of Java, N.E.I. 1 March 1942
GLENNON 50 32 N, 1 12 W 8 June 1944
GWIN 7 41 S, 157 27 E 13 July 1943
HALLIGAN 26 10 N, 127 30 E 26 March 1945
HAMMANN 30 36 N, 176 34 W 6 June 1942
HENLEY 7 40 S, 148 06 E 3 October 1943
HOEL 11 46 S, 126 33 E 25 October 1944
HULL 14 57 N, 127 58 E 18 December 1944
INGRAHAM 42 34 N, 60 05 W 22 August 1942
JACOB JONES 38 42 N, 74 39 W 28 February 1942
JARVIS Off Guadalcanal I., Solomons 9 August 1942
JOHNSTON 11 46 N, 126 09 E 25 October 1944
LAFFEY Off Savo I., Solomons 13 November 1942
LANSDALE 37 03 N, 3 51 E 20 April 1944
LEARY 45 00 N, 22 00 W 24 December 1943
LITTLE 26 24 N, 126 15 E 3 May 1945
LONGSHAW 26 11 N, 127 37 E 18 May 1945
LUCE 26 35 N, 127 10 E 4 May 1945
MADDOX Off Sicily 10 July 1943
MAHAN Ormoc Bay, P.I. 7 December 1944
MANNERT L. ABELE 27 25 N, 126 59 E 12 April 1945
MEREDITH (DD 434) Off San Cristobal I., Solomons 15 October 1942
MEREDITH (DD 726) 49 33 N, 1 06 W 8 June 1944
MONAGHAN 14 57 N, 127 58 E 18 December 1944
MONSSEN 9 04 S, 159 54 E 13 November 1942
MORRISON 27 10 N, 127 58 E 4 May 1945
O BRIEN 12 28 S, 164 08 E 15 September 1942
PARROTT Norfolk, Virginia 2 May 1944
PEARY Port Darwin, Australia 19 February 1942
PERKINS Off New Guinea 29 November 1943
PILLSBURY Bali Strait, N.E.I. 1 March 1942
POPE Java Sea 1 March 1942
PORTER 8 32 S, 167 17 E 26 October 1942
PRESTON Off Savo I., Solomons 15 November 1942
PRINGLE 27 25 N, 126 59 E 16 April 1945
REID 9 50 N, 124 55 E 11 December 1944
REUBEN JAMES 51 59 N, 27 05 W 31 October 1941
ROWAN 40 07 N, 14 18 E 11 September 1943
SIMS Coral Sea 7 May 1942
SPENCE 14 57 N, 127 58 E 18 December 1944
STEWART Off Surabaya, Java, N.E.I. 19 February 1942
STRONG Kula Gulf, Solomons 5 July 1943
STURTEVANT Off Key West, Fla. 26 April 1942
TRUXTUN Placentia Bay, Newfoundland 18 February 1942
TUCKER Off Espiritu Santo I., New Hebrides 4 August 1942
TURNER Off Ambrose Light, New York 3 January 1944
TWIGGS 26 08 N, 127 35 E 16 June 1945
WALKE Off Savo I., Solomons 15 November 1942
WARRINGTON 27 00 N, 73 00 W 13 September 1944
WILLIAM D. PORTER 27 06 N, 127 38 E 10 June 1945
WORDEN Amchitka I., Aleutians 12 January 1943

DESTROYER ESCORT VESSELS

EVERSOLE 10 10 N, 127 28 E 28 October 1944
FECHTELER 36 07 N, 02 40 W 5 May 1944
FISKE 47 11 N, 33 29 W 2 August 1944
FREDERICK C. DAVIS 43 52 N, 40 15 W 24 April 1945
HOLDER Mediterranean Sea 11 April 1944
LEOPOLD 58 44 N, 25 50 W 9 March 1944
OBERRENDER Off Okinawa, Ryukyus 9 May 1945
RICH 49 31 N, 1 10 W 8 June 1944
SAMUEL B. ROBERTS Off Samar I., P.I. 25 October 1944
SHELTON 2 32 N, 129 13 E 3 October 1944
UNDERHILL 19 20 N, 126 42 E 24 July 1945


JT

[Peter Clare]

Taking off and landing at RAF Ballykelly in Northern Ireland had an unusual obstacle, a train.
Although the aircraft and train are stationary in this photo, taking off and landing at Ballykelly had to fit in with the timetable of the LMS Railway (Northern Counties Division) Belfast to Londonderry line which crossed the runway before its end.

[Gotthard Heinrici]

Before it was overrun by Soviet Forces the Germans blew up the German Memorial at Tannenberg and removed the remains of Field Marshal Von Hindenburg who was buried at the site of his greatest victory against the Russians in World War I

(Still trying to track down the book it was in, so bear with me)

The night before D-Day, the light house overlooking two of the landing beaches lit up for the first time in 5 years. No-one knows who lit it, and why the Germans did not turn it off, but it guided in the ships.
Equally, mine sweepers were clearing the landing areas throughout the night, only a few hundred yards off shore, and still the Germans did not react to their presence. Why?

[jacobtowne]

Facts which contradict accepted ideas and conclusions are frequently discounted. Didn't the German High Command expect the invasion at the Strait of Calais?

And look at the intelligence the U.S. had indicating a large buildup of German troops opposite the Ardennes in late 1944, intelligence that was ignored because of the prevailing mindset.

JT

[lancesergeant]

With Hurtgen Forest as one of the results of said mindset.