Command Car markings

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Miles Through Time
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Command Car markings

Post by Miles Through Time » Wed Jul 28, 2021 4:20 am

Want to ID command car with the 82nd airborn, 307th engineers, A company for a soldier we have a relationship with. He also served in the HQ but not a lot of details about that. Presume a Command car would be a HQ assigned vehicle, but we don't know if the 82nd would be the HQ assignment or if the 307th would also have a HQ.
So, we are thinking...


82 A/B 307E star HQ-9 or
82A/B 307E star X-9 or
82 A/B HQ star x-9

Want to be as historically accurate as possible, realizing that this is not a jeep, but a command car.

Thanks in advance.


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zepher11
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Re: Command Car markings

Post by zepher11 » Wed Jul 28, 2021 5:03 am

I would go with the first option you show. I'm not an expert, but something like this with the HQ-9 for vehicle number:
CC 2967.JPG
307E
Zeph

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W. Winget
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Re: Command Car markings

Post by W. Winget » Wed Jul 28, 2021 5:43 am

Mines XVIII Corp HQ-6 level vehicle, only because we did the 50th Anniversary at Fort Bragg pass in review, left it as that. (Chinese copied the photo and made a cheap axx art piece off it, you may see out there)

Knowing the 82d was a jump unit, a Command Car might be pushing the limits of a Hq vehicle, maybe a jeep glidered into theater, but not a Cmd Car. Not totally 100% realistic, but you may recall "The Longest Day" and John Wayne being hauled around on a MG cart when he was wounded...I think this was a portrayal of a real event that happened to the CDR.

Now the Airborne engineers would be Dodge weapon carriers, Jeep with a airborne dump trailer along with the Clark CA-1 dozer and scraper, but it was unit "mission" dependent, mainly to go in and build airfields for support to pile in quickly. There was a CA-1 or a few glidered into D-Day.

Point is Gliders were used by airborne units VS air dropping gear by parachute as we do in modern days, and a Command Car didn't fit in a glider....

In the 90's I was at NTC in California, the Lieutenant Colonel of I think the 501st, maybe 502nd jumped in with the troops, and a paratrooper above him lowered a mortar tube on a lowering line as they jumped....it hit the Col in the head :shock: , and he had to visit the main post hospital to get checked out. I was ordered to pick him up in a HUMVEE and drive him out to his unit. Being a former Mech Infantry guy in Germany, I figured it would be a large assemblage of 20 or so vehicles....after driving around for 30 minutes we found two guys with a radio behind some large boulders and one HUMVEE nearby which may have not been with them. Point is Airborne is Airborne, they travel really-really light.

Engineers, an example: My 70's VaARNG 276th Eng Co C (CBT) unit had about 6ea. 5 ton dump trucks two Dodge pickup trucks and boxes full of shovels, chainsaws, and hand tools (one sweet M1C that I was the 1st to clean in 40 years as I took an interest in her and I now have to wonder where we would have picked up 30.06 ammo as we all had M16's) our mission would be to mount the dump trucks (troop seats), drive to the site and be labor, be that build a bridge, clear a road, etc. Company Commander would ride in the M880 Dodge.

Ask the guy what level of engineering his unit does, that would help narrow it down.
In general (not looking at TOE's) Command Cars were relegated to Battalion and above based on need to carry the large radios, and secondarily the FO/GO's coordinating the battle. Forward units were equipped with jeeps when available due to size, reliability and economy of use, and then mainly for running chow/mail/injured/replacements around as the Infantry walked across the battlefield securing terrain as only a man with a bayonet can do.
BUT IT's YOUR truck...have fun with it! :D :D :D
V/R W. Winget
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