US Army Training Center - Yearbook (Fort Carson, CO)

Page 15 text:

Ruhr Pocket, The 9th moved into the line and thwarted a major Germany attempt to break through the pocket which had bottled up thousands of enemy troops. The Division worked constantly on shrinking the Ruhr Pocket in the closing days of the war, freeing 900 slave laborers from five countries with the capture of Sinu on the Dill River. The 9th was assigned to Ingolstadt, Germany, at war's end. Among the awards and decorations awarded to individual soldiers we five Congressional Medals of Honor, 66 Distinguished Service Crosses, 1 Legion of Merit, one Distinguished Flying Cross, 1855 Silver Stars: 2- Bronze Stars for heroismg 3570 Bronze stars for meritorious service and l Air Medals. Duing the course of the campaigns of World War II, the 9th Infan Division suffered 4581 personnel killed in action, 16,961 wounded in act. and 750 missing in action. During the war, the 9th captured approximately 130,000 prisoners. Distinguished unit citations were awarded the lst Battalion of the 39th for action on June 28, 1944, near St. Jacques de Nehoug the 2nd Batttalion of the 39th for action july 11 and 12 at Le Desert, France, the 2nd Batta- lion of the 47th for action june 21 to 26, 1944, at Cherbourg, France, and the 3rd Battalion of the 47th for action during its drive on Cherbourg and the Hague Peninsula from june 21 to 26, 1944.

Page 14 text:

Through the 9th's efforts, the Cotentin Peninsula had been cut off. Next the Division turned north toward Cherbourg, seizing Octeville and capturing the senior army and navy commander of the Cherbourg area. By July 1, the Division had cleaned up the Cap de la Hague, Later that month, it spearheaded the St. Lo breakthrough and joined the chase which closed the Falaise Gap. Swinging eastward, the 9th moved across the Seine at Meluen to Chateau- Thierry and, on September 2, 1944, laid claim to being the first allied unil to begin the liberation of Belgium when a unit entered Momignies. On September 5, the Old Reliables crossed the Meuse River and entered Germany south of Toetgen. The months of October and November wen spent battling! through Saarlautern and hammering the German forces. A hard battle was fought near Aachen before the winter offensive or Monsehau Forest. After relieving the 99th Division, the 9th beat back the enemy's major effor in that sector. March 1945 found the Old Reliables helping the lst Division mopping up resistance in Bonn. Later that month the 9th was one of the first divisions in the Remagen bridgehead area-crossing the Wied River near Hopper. The next month it surged forward again, cutting the Cologne-Frankfurt autobahn at several points and taking the walled city of Zulpich. In per- haps its greatest test of driving power, the 9th successfully reduced the

Page 16 text:

The 9f!1 Dl'Vl3'lbll Today The Mllvslbn - fralhlhg The 9th Infantry Division's basic combat training mission is manifold. It required the undivided attention and cooperation from the trainee as well as an unprecedented attention to duty by the cadre instructors. The primary objective of the training program is to develop a superior trainee-graduate, well grounded in all phases of the in- struction received, and well prepared for efficient and honorable service as a soldier. The basic combat training program is highly concentrated and carefully developed to train a skilled soldier in the Atomic Age. The course of instruction covers 36 major subjects - from map reading to machine gun firing - all are important to the modern fighting man. The training is divided into eight 44-hour segments for a total of 372 combat training hours. In addition, each trainee receives a 20-hour period of instruction and orientation prior to commenc- ing the combat training. Major emphasis is on complete mastery of the M-1 rifle, basic weapon of the infantry soldier. A total of 86 hours of instruction and training - including the entire third week - is devoted exclusive- ly to the NI-l rifle. Thirty-nine hours are spent on physical conditioning and dis- mounted drill. Squad tactical training is taught for 16 hours. Six- teen hours are spent in familiarization and firing of the light machine gun. During the seventh week the trainees are taken into the field for a bivouac. While in bivouac, instruction is given in technique of fire, squad tactical training, firing of the rocket launcher, and running of the close combat indoctrination course. Among the other subjects occupying the busy trainees during the two month training cycle are carbine firing, night firing and night vision, bayonet drill, guard duty, first aid, camouflage and concealment, battle indoctrination, map reading and use of the compass, signal communications, inspections, code of conduct and military justice, to name but a few. Three tests are given during the cycle to evaluate the ef- fectiveness of the training and the progress made by individual trainees. Included are two hour physical training tests and a