Vol. 30, No.

56th Field Artillery Command

November 1990

Infantry unit activates Update FYI

Stuttgart High establishes acceleration policy

2nd Bn., 4th Inf.

uneases the colors
of 1st Bn., 4th Inf.
by Anthony J.C. Hosch
Staff Writer
1-irn Bamlion. 4th Infantry Regiment activated
No,ember I 6 to pa,e the ,.,ay for the transition of
1nd Bn.. 4th Inf.
The JCti,ation was held at the combat maneu,er
tuinin~ center in Hohenfels.
The a remony began with the formation of troops,
the presentation of the Colors and the playing of the
Genman and American national anthem.
After the ployin~ of both anthems. 1st Bn., 4th
lnf.'s colors \\'Crt held by Col. Karl Ferris,
commander of the Hohenfcls Training Area, and un
~ased bv ~laj. Mi~hael Christie, operations officer for
1st Bn., 4th Inf. and by CS:\1 John Moncrief, 2nd
Bn., -4th Inf.
As the ceremony dre\\ to close, Brig. Gen. Ri
chard Da,is, commander, 7th Army Training Com
mand, said the high standards achieved with the 56th
Field Artiller, Command is what is nced,d 10 conti
nue the proud lineage of the 4th Inf. Reg. as the United Sutes Arm~ Europe's opposing forces.

-..-

Activation Cefemonyl Col. Kall Ferri,, Hohenfels Train

Ing Area Commander, unfurls the colors at the 1st Bn ..

4th Inf. Regiment's ac:1ivation ceremony. The ceremony
was held Nov. 16 at the Hohenfets training area.

Warriors become OPFOR at Hohenfels

by Anthony J.C. Hosch
Suff Writer
They have been described as battlers, knight.s,
combatants, and fighten; but we know them as ...
the "Warriors!
Second Battalion, 4th Infantry Regimnt, "Warriors, ha,c been selcted for a nw mission.
Bec.ause of their unique table of organization and
equipmnt, 24 will move to the comba, maneuver
mining center (CMTC) in Hohcnfls to become the
United State! Army Europe's (USAREUR) opposing
forces.
This is quite a change from ,heir Pershing II mis
sion, which was to prevent any aggression from the
perimeter by conducting patrols, setting up mechani
cal ambushes, and being used as an early warning
system for Pershing.
In their new mission, they will be fighting as a Soviet motorized rifle battalion or regiment against the
best-trained armor and mechanized battalions or bri
gadcs in the world, according to Lt. Col. Clifton
Ripperger, battalion commander.
"I'm looking forward 10 the transition and the
move because of the new training," said Pfc. Brian
Amb1111hl
Spec. James
Campbell,
B
Co., 2nd Bn..
4th Inf.. trains in
the
Strauss
training erea
near NeuUlm
on
opposing
forces t.ciics.
Sae s1ory on
page 6.

Moore, C Co., 2nd Bn., 4th Inf.

The move is made possible with the activation of
1st Bn., 4th Inf. Regiment, November 16, by flag and
name 10 keep the 4th Regiment alive, commented
Ripperger. This would allow 2nd Bn., 4th Inf. 10 relocate and become 1st Bn., 4th Inf., he continued.
"Second Bn., 4th Inf. Regiment will not retro
grade. It will literally pock its vehicles, its people, :and
it.s families and move in it.s ent.irety to Hohenfcls,"
said Ripperger.
When the soldiers and their equipment arrive in
Hohenfels, they will join the 1st Bn., 4th Inf.
The move and mission chan~e will " be challenging
and exciting because it's going 10 be something
different," said Spec. Chris Schneider, C Co., 2nd
Bn., 4th Inf.
The reaction from most of the soldiers with 24
concerning the move were much the same. They are
very excited about the training that they will receive
and proud to have been selected to test other unit.s in
the art of infantry tactics.
The activation of 14 in November marked the be
ginning of the transitional stage for 2-4.
See Infantry, page 6.

inside

the Cable

Survey results, see page 3.

Cook competition, see page 6.
Football champs, see page 7.

Because of rroop reductions in Europe, some

Stuttgart American High School students may be
forced to leave school before the end of the first
semester or the end of the school year.
The Department of Dfense Dependencs School
has established student enrollment cut-off dates to
cam credit for the semester. The officjal cut-off
dates ue Dec. 13 for the first smester and May 16
for the second semester.
Studenu whose sponsor cannot remain in coun
try until the acceleration date may be given an ear
lier acceleration date if the sponsor must leave because of tht troop reductions.
Requests for arly acceleration must be accom
panied by orders that indicate the sronsor's early
reassignment. Students must meet al req... irements
for acceleration which include having a c or
bener in every course in which the student wishes
to accelerate.
Sponsors of studnt.s requesting acceleration
need to send a copy of the orders and a written re
quest for acceleration to the registrar as early as
possible.
After the request is approved the studnt will
receive a form to give to the teachers. The Student
is responsible for acquiring and completing the ne
ccssary work according 10 the teacher's instruc
tions.

Furniture sale
The defense reutilization and marketing region
Europe (DRMR-E) plan was approvd by the
Commander in Chief, United States Army, Eu
rope, Crosbie E. Saint. This policy is designed 10
reduce excess household furniture now accumulat
ing due to unit inactivations and base closures.
Sales to occupants will be scheduled on a onetime, cash-only ba&is by the military community's
cntralized furnishings management office
(CFMO). These sales will be jointly run by the
defense reutilization and marketing office
(DRMO) and CFMO repmeomives.
The DRMO will continue to hold additional
furniture sales for all identification card holders at
MILCOM CFMO, and also directly at DRMO
storage yards.
For more information, contact your local hous
ing furniture office. The telephone number in
Schwabisch Gmiind is '4 27- S7 11, Goppingen's
telephone number is 4 lS-34 96 and the number
in Neu Ulm is '4 27-68 4}.
Mr.

Good-

WTenehl

Pfc.

John Grtlfis, D

Btry., 1st Bn.,

9th FA, tightens
a bolt on the

railing of a
CUCV bed du
ring the battal

ion's retrograde

ae!ivities. See
story on pages
and 5.

-........
4

Retrogade

/ ~

....

,'

Soldiers prepare vehicles

for turn-in to 29th ASG
by Richard J. Clemenson
Staff Writer
Three months ago l st Bn., 9th FA's
motor pool looked like a used car lot.
Three hundred twenty-two vehicles,
many of which have been pushing, pulling and grinding in the 56th FA CMD
for nearly 30 years, lined the pavement
aching for repair.
Today, after recruiting the services of
infantrymen, Pershing crewmcmbers,
truck drivers and mechanics throughout
the battalion, 321 of those vehicles are
on line, freshly painted and prepped for
their final exit from Pershing.
And number 322 waits in the wings.
l .ike a majority of the vehicles - rust,
dents, scrapes and a variety of other vehicle ailments decorate it. And like all
1he other vehicles, the welders, grinders,
sandblasters, mechanics and painters of
the battalion's retrograde team will
patch them up.
The first step on the vehicle's road to
recovery is the maintenance bay of 55th
Spt. Bn.
According to Maj. Mike Couch, battalion executive officer, the mechanics
of 55th "will check the vehicle twice before it's turned over to Mr. King and
the 29th ASG (Area Support Group).
The first time is to work off any deadline gigs and the second time is to check
for any mistakes they might have missed."
From there the truck will move one

bay over to the "body and fender

shop," a.s it is affectionately called by
the eight-member team that works
there.
It's not actually a body and fender
shop but rather an all purpose repair
bay where the vehicles are patched up
and in some cases overhauled.
"We make 'em look pretty," Sgt. Timothy Makinson, noncommissioned officer in charge of the shop called out
from under a rusted-out 2-1/2 ton
truck.
"Sometimes that's nearly impossible.
Deuce and a balfs (2-1/2 ton truck) :trc
the worst though. They have some seriuos holes that have to be welded and
sometimes fabricated (reconstructed),"
said Makinson.
"Look at these boogers. They'll take
half a day to patch up," Makinson
screamed as he point.s 10 an area of fist
sized holes in the fender of a 2-1/2 ton
truck.
"Just one more," muttered Pfc. Kenneth Snyder.
According to Makinson the process
of welding the holes together and grinding the rust off its undercarriage and
body usuaUy takes a day and from there
the vehicle is sent across the motor pool
to "The Paint Crew".
Like the "body and fender shop",
"The C rew has been together since the
vehicles started rolling through last AuguSt. And like their counterparts down

the way they have come from different

jobs around th.e Command and have
seen it's once rag-tag outfit turn into a
great team.
"We've got all kinds here, bellowed
Sgt. Ernest Woods, day paint crew
chief.
"We've got infantry, fifteen echoes
(Pershing crcwmembers) and truck drivers. Myself, I'm banalion ammo," he
added.
"We're in a groove right now. We
started with trailers and worked our
way up to the trucks. We can get a
truck in and out of here in one day

......,

. . .f

now."

Despite the eight hour, night and day

shifts the team endures, morale is high Spray painting! Lying beneath a 2'1:ton truck
1st Bn.. 9th FA reaches up to touch-up the tn.
and growing higher as the end nears.
"I love tbts work. 1 even asked to ex- dercarrlage.
tend so I could be a part of this. It's
great to sec this job get done and done
well, Pfc. Rodney Henry said.
For H enry and the others, the job is
nearly done and been done well according to Couch. After "The Paint Crew"
rums the last vehicle over to 55th Spt.
Bn. for one last maintenance check, it
and the rest of the vehicles will be turned over to 29th ASG.
According to Couch, tha,'s when the
real test will be.
"Mr. King and bis inspectors look
through everything when they inspect.
We've done well up to this point and
we'll be put to the test when it comes
time to turn them in, he said.
Grinding away! Pie. Kennith Snyder. 1st
Bn., 9th FA grinds some rust oH the bed of
a 2W-lon 1ruck during the battallons ret
rograde activities.

Bang! You're painted! Spec. Jeffery Witherspoon, HIHSB. 1st Bn., 9th FA spray paints a vehicle for retrograde.

Double checking! Sgt Timothy Makinson.

1 sl Bn.. 9th FA Inspects a 2'12ton truck
fender alter welding it together.

Pershing Ca1Novem,,., 1990

l:

Pfc Rodney Henry.

k s bUmper nnd ur,.

Mixing it up! Spec. Kevin Steele. 1st Bn., 9th FA mixes

some pa,nt before it Is sprayed onto a 1st Bn .. 9th FA
truck du11ng battalion retrograde activities.

Sandblaatlngl Sand flies everywhere as Spec.

WIiiiam Everett.

1st

Bn.. 9th FA sandblasts the under-

carriage of a five-ton truck.

55th fights retrograde war

Greasel Spec. George Langston. A Co.. 55th Spt.

of a CUCV.

Bn.. wor1<.s on tile harmonic balancer

by Julia Hearn
Staff Writer
Their odds seemed slim - they were
outnumbered by hundreds. Some of
their weapons on hand were wrenches,
screwdrivers, grease guns, blow torches
and sanding machines. Although the
odds were slim and time was running
out, they outmaneuvered the enemy.
Soldiers of the 3rd shop, A Company, 55th Support Battalion weren't
fighting a war against other soldiers, but
against vehicles and equipment. Their
mission: to repair vehicles and equipment for retrograde.
"Since May we've completed over a
thousand jobs, said CW02 Lawrence
Schwendeman, automotive technician
for A Co., 55th Spt. Bn. The jobs
included were automotive repair, welding, and vehicle repair.
The 3rd shop is divided into different
sections: automotive, fuel and electric,
and welding-allied trade. "We have
twenty-six soldiers here. They have
been working I~ 10 16 hours a day since
May," added Schwendeman.
Usually a vehicle goes to the automo
rive section first. After the unit's mo
tor pool presentS the problem 10 us, a
Quality Assurance Quality Control
(QAQC) person in.spccu it to verify the
deficiency, explained Sgt. Sheldon Pat
ton, wheeled vehicle mechanic. "It's
then sent to product control where it's
put on a status sheet a.nd pans are
ordered. We place it in a holding )01 until we have the space, time, and the mechanics 10 do ii.-
After the job is finished, we take the

vehicle on a 20-mile road trip to make

sure our work is quality work," added
Patton. The QAQC also docs a final inspection of the vehicle.
Another key element to the process is
the welding team. Although a vehicle
may be sound mechanicdly, it may still
need body work. "We do all the welding and body work, said Pfc. Michael
Carnes, metal worker.
According to Schwendeman most of
the welding has to be done because of
rust. "We cut the old metal awav, and
replace it with new sheet metal. The al
tcrna1ive would be 10 send it away to be
fixed, but we don't have time for that,"
explained. Carnes.
"We've been working a 101 on door
channels, fenders, and bed channels,
added Carnes. "I've gotten a lot of ex
perience from the retrograde.
The fuel and electric team have been
repairing smaller components such as
starters, batteries, generators and fuel
lines.
Although the shop is di"idc,d into
sections, teamwork plays an important
role in retrograde. "It was surprising
how well we work together through the
long hours. I have a lot of respect for
these guys here, they are dedicated,"
said Pfc. Shane Matzke, wheeled vehicle
repairman.
"You won't find a tighter group," added Sgt. Gary Carter, wheeled vehicle
mechanic. "Our wives and families are
very supportive by uking care of 1hini;s
we don't have time for. It's hard work
but we enjoy it, we're like a small family of our own.