Help with Uncle's WWII Service Record - ITALY
Re: Help with Uncle's WWII Service Record - ITALY
What is the link between 3rd Armoured Reconnaissance Regiment (The Governor General's Horse Guards) and the 25th Armoured Delivery Regiment?
Re: Help with Uncle's WWII Service Record - ITALY
I’m not sure I understand your question……but I think your asking is their a link between the two units.
NO, their are two completely separate units. The 3rd Armoured Reconnasissance Regiment (GGHG) is a “front line (F Echelon - Fighting Echelon)” unit, responsible for Recce duties to determine where the enemy was located (and ‘could’ come in contact with the enemy but usually “withdrew” to report to HQ’s)
A Eschelon was “just behind F Eschelon, and could immediately support the front lines troops
The 25th Armoured Delivery Regiment (Elgin Regiment) was in B Echelon (not front line) responsible for delivering “new” and “rebuilt” tanks and other Armoured vehicles, and the crews to operate them (if necessary) from the REAR to the front lines
So, the 25th Armoured Delivery Regiment supplied new vehicles and “armoured corps” troops to ‘front line’ armoured units. This means “all the armoured units in their Theater of Operations. It had TWO SQUADRONS to support each Area of Operations, one located in the B ECHELON to support the Front line units and one behind in the LINES OF COMMUNICATIONS, which sent armoured vehicles and reinforcements up to the Armoured Delivery Squadron “near” the front lines. ‘G’ & ‘H’ Squadrons, 25th Armoured Delivery Regiment were the TWO Squadrons that supported Armoured units in Italy. “G” was the FORWARD unit (normally located near the B Eschelon) and “H” Squadron was located well back, they would be responsible for getting new vehicles (and the men) from wherever they landed in Italy (eg Naples) to an area they could continue to train, then these moved forward to “G” Squadron in the FORWARD area. Sorry, I’m repeating myself, but hopefully explaining it well enough to you.
So to explain more:
Echelon There are three levels of echelon, F, A and B. Artillery Training Volume II, Pamphlet 1 1949 describes them as follows:
F Echelon – Contained the essential personnel and vehicles for fighting. In a Field Regiment, the F Echelon consisted of the reconnaissance parties, the Regimental Headquarters group and the gun groups. The ammunition vehicles were often also grouped within this echelon.
A Echelon – Contained the personnel and vehicles required by the unit at short notice to maintain its fighting efficiency. A Echelon was normally located at the Wagon Lines.
B Echelon – Contained the personnel and vehicles necessary to collect, breakdown and distribute stores and supplies for the regiment. Vehicles that could conveniently be left out of battle were also located with this echelon.
LINES OF COMMUNICATION - these were units behind the ‘B ECHELON, they went back as far as the coast and their responsibility was to make sure the roads were open, to move men and material up to the forward lines, everything that needed to be done to support the FRONT LINE eg “H” Squadron, 25 Armoured Delivery Regiment. These units were normally well beyond artillery range, but still ready to respond to an enemy breakthrough or to support REAR and FORWARD Echelon units.
The organization of ECHELON’s were very similar in Armoured, Engineer, Infantry, Artillery and other Combat groups.
The above is much more complicated actually, but I tried to explain it simply. This all has to do with Battalions, Brigades, Divisions, Corps, Armies, Army Groups……and the nature of the support (Supply, Engineers, Artillery, Medical etc). Each of these support units had units IN THE F ECHELON, and backward.