7th US Army Non Commissioned Officers Academy
Quote from jkwebster06 on February 5, 2024, 10:18 pmThe above named Academy occasionally granted a place to a serving British Army soldier to participate in their Cadre held at Bad Tolz . I'd never heard of any of it, the Unit, the Cadre or the place - I was soon to find out ! My name somehow came up and so a tale with many twists n turns starts here ; I'll need to break it down to various posts in order to keep readers interest alive, so starting at the beginning :
In preparation, for many weeks prior to the Course starting I was excused best boot wearing on Guard duty, had my khaki combats tailored and was excused an exercise on Soltau to give me more time to prepare - as the only British soldier & non Yank on the Course "they" all wanted me to make a good impression on those "over the pond".
At this stage please remember I was an 18 year old full Cpl, still very wet behind the ears - RHQ informed me I had tickets to Bad Tolz, changing at Munich from where a short journey would have me collected by the Americans. I genuinely believed Bad Tolz was IN America, I'd even being given $200 for my food money & so I thought a US aircraft would transport me the rest of the journey. I got onto a rickety local train and some time later arrived at Bad Tolz railway station, alighting to see a sign "Students for the US Academy Pick Up The Phone" which I did. A voice told me where to stand outside from where I'd be picked up - "Wow" I thought, "I know the Yanks are quick but to get here so fast !" Next thing I knew a huge shiny black Cadillac pulled up - I looked around, expecting to see a 5 Star General get in, but the driver, equally huge & equally black bawled out "Hi, are you the limey for the academy ?" I nodded dumbly, and the driver loaded all my luggage into the boot, after which commenced a journey I would never forget.........
To be continued ( depending on views !) John (JKW)
The above named Academy occasionally granted a place to a serving British Army soldier to participate in their Cadre held at Bad Tolz . I'd never heard of any of it, the Unit, the Cadre or the place - I was soon to find out ! My name somehow came up and so a tale with many twists n turns starts here ; I'll need to break it down to various posts in order to keep readers interest alive, so starting at the beginning :
In preparation, for many weeks prior to the Course starting I was excused best boot wearing on Guard duty, had my khaki combats tailored and was excused an exercise on Soltau to give me more time to prepare - as the only British soldier & non Yank on the Course "they" all wanted me to make a good impression on those "over the pond".
At this stage please remember I was an 18 year old full Cpl, still very wet behind the ears - RHQ informed me I had tickets to Bad Tolz, changing at Munich from where a short journey would have me collected by the Americans. I genuinely believed Bad Tolz was IN America, I'd even being given $200 for my food money & so I thought a US aircraft would transport me the rest of the journey. I got onto a rickety local train and some time later arrived at Bad Tolz railway station, alighting to see a sign "Students for the US Academy Pick Up The Phone" which I did. A voice told me where to stand outside from where I'd be picked up - "Wow" I thought, "I know the Yanks are quick but to get here so fast !" Next thing I knew a huge shiny black Cadillac pulled up - I looked around, expecting to see a 5 Star General get in, but the driver, equally huge & equally black bawled out "Hi, are you the limey for the academy ?" I nodded dumbly, and the driver loaded all my luggage into the boot, after which commenced a journey I would never forget.........
To be continued ( depending on views !) John (JKW)
Quote from DavidFullard on February 5, 2024, 11:15 pmCpl at 18? I was 25 before I made 2stripes LOL. Just what we need John, a good old fashioned army story, I for one want to read more.
Cpl at 18? I was 25 before I made 2stripes LOL. Just what we need John, a good old fashioned army story, I for one want to read more.
Quote from jkwebster06 on February 8, 2024, 9:21 pmPart 2 ......Leaving the railway station I lounged in luxury in the back of the Caddy expecting to be taken to an airport enroute to America. 10 minutes later the driver says "Nearly there" and shortly after I saw the Kaserne for the 1st time. It turned it was a former SS Barracks, designed & built so that you could get to any part of the barracks without going outside. It was basically a 4 sided complex, buildings all joined together & surrounding the 'square, and from memory I think 2 storeys high, and fully self contained. I was later to find out that meant the cookhouse, accommodation, dining areas, the PX ( shop) even a night club, all immaculate. I now realised I was still in Germany, Bad Tolz is in Bavaria they told me.
I was shown my room, basic to say the least, and issued a 4" wooden block - this was to measure my highly polished glass ashtray on the table, 4" from one corner & 4" in from the edge. I didn't smoke in those days but even if I did I couldn't actually USE the ashtray, it was for show only. My bed - issued bedding but the arrangements for the daily inspection meant I couldn't sleep in it, the top blanket had to be pulled so tight that a dollar piece would bounce on it - no bounce meant a demerit & showtime in the evening , and so I had to crawl under the bed and secure the blanket with 47 safety pins ( from the shop !). Obviously then there'd be no time in the morning (Reveille 0500hrs) to pin it, so I slept in my greatcoat on the floor for 6 weeks whereas the Yanks on the course knew of all this and brought sleeping bags, but even the shop didn't have one for me !
The "Autobahn" was a piece of black tarmac that ran the length of our accommodation corridor, with a small strip either side on which we could walk - God forbid anyone stepping on the "Autobahn", it was polished (by us students) every day until it literally gleamed mirror-like, whilst we inched our way to wherever on the side bits of corridor, hoping no-one was coming the other way ! Our rooms were either side of the "Autobahn", with ablution areas at one end. These had toilets but we couldn't use them until you'd lined the pan with toilet paper, it was forbidden for cr*p to touch the sides! Each student was allotted a time to cr*p, mine was 7 minutes - no reading the paper then lol.
0500hrs Reveille, 0515 on parade outside, all 132 students formed up in our allotted platoons complete with pennant flag at the head, and marched off to breakfast...........
To be continued
Part 2 ......Leaving the railway station I lounged in luxury in the back of the Caddy expecting to be taken to an airport enroute to America. 10 minutes later the driver says "Nearly there" and shortly after I saw the Kaserne for the 1st time. It turned it was a former SS Barracks, designed & built so that you could get to any part of the barracks without going outside. It was basically a 4 sided complex, buildings all joined together & surrounding the 'square, and from memory I think 2 storeys high, and fully self contained. I was later to find out that meant the cookhouse, accommodation, dining areas, the PX ( shop) even a night club, all immaculate. I now realised I was still in Germany, Bad Tolz is in Bavaria they told me.
I was shown my room, basic to say the least, and issued a 4" wooden block - this was to measure my highly polished glass ashtray on the table, 4" from one corner & 4" in from the edge. I didn't smoke in those days but even if I did I couldn't actually USE the ashtray, it was for show only. My bed - issued bedding but the arrangements for the daily inspection meant I couldn't sleep in it, the top blanket had to be pulled so tight that a dollar piece would bounce on it - no bounce meant a demerit & showtime in the evening , and so I had to crawl under the bed and secure the blanket with 47 safety pins ( from the shop !). Obviously then there'd be no time in the morning (Reveille 0500hrs) to pin it, so I slept in my greatcoat on the floor for 6 weeks whereas the Yanks on the course knew of all this and brought sleeping bags, but even the shop didn't have one for me !
The "Autobahn" was a piece of black tarmac that ran the length of our accommodation corridor, with a small strip either side on which we could walk - God forbid anyone stepping on the "Autobahn", it was polished (by us students) every day until it literally gleamed mirror-like, whilst we inched our way to wherever on the side bits of corridor, hoping no-one was coming the other way ! Our rooms were either side of the "Autobahn", with ablution areas at one end. These had toilets but we couldn't use them until you'd lined the pan with toilet paper, it was forbidden for cr*p to touch the sides! Each student was allotted a time to cr*p, mine was 7 minutes - no reading the paper then lol.
0500hrs Reveille, 0515 on parade outside, all 132 students formed up in our allotted platoons complete with pennant flag at the head, and marched off to breakfast...........
To be continued
Quote from DavidFullard on February 8, 2024, 9:31 pmDon’t wait too long for part 3 John. It is already sounding like a worse version of the Guards All Arms Drill Course at Pirbright which I confess I almost RTU’d myself from on day 2.
Don’t wait too long for part 3 John. It is already sounding like a worse version of the Guards All Arms Drill Course at Pirbright which I confess I almost RTU’d myself from on day 2.
Quote from jkwebster06 on February 9, 2024, 10:02 pmPart 3.....Queuing in single file , all 132 students line up towards the hotplate, at ease but leaping to attention as the guy in front marches one pace forward , halts and then at ease. Sounds laborious and was, especially if you're at the back of the queue ! Once at the hotplate, WOW ! what a feast, Porterhouse steaks, towers of pancakes dripping in syrup, crispy bacon & loads of sausages. All very well, but at 0530hrs, just a bit too heavy for an English palate, but I got used to it lol. I'd been given $200 to pay for my food there but when I tried to pay I was told "Keep the money Limey, you're a guest of the US Army" - $200 was a LOT of money in those days so I gladly accepted the kind offer. I must mention the Master Chef, who, on days when VIPs were visiting, stood resplendent in his best uniform, adorned with at least 30 medals ! (I'll mention this in a later post).
After breakfast, marched back to the accommodation and commenced block jobs, not the cursory attempts we did in BAOR, but after a shower (VERY clean the Yanks, even my No2 SD could only be worn twice before being dry cleaned) the ablutions, our rooms (bed already "pinned") and the "Autobahn" polished to high heaven. We had a layout to strictly observe on the bed, including our best boots thereon, ready for inspection. The DS would slide a piece of paper, end on, between the boots - if the paper went through they weren't close enough, so demerit mark & evening "showtime". The only way my ammo boots could pass was for me to "Strabalene" the welts ( remember that stuff, instant shine like black varnish ?), effectively glueing the boots together ! For the duration I got away with that, the DS never clicked on . This was the time they measured the ashtrays position, absolutely vital to get it 4" in from each edge at the corner, and naturally to be clean as crystal. This is when they tested the tautness of the top blanket - when it passed the "dollar test" we breathed a sigh of relief, but because they insisted we changed the sheets weekly the pins had to come out & after stripping the bedding, start the ritual all over again, taking about 45 -60 minutes of struggle to make the bed, all 47 pins employed !
At this point I must point out that I was the only Brit on the course so was naturally a figure of curiosity to the other 131 all American students, many of whom thought we had fog every day in Britain, and that London WAS Britain! My accent came in handy at times, "Of course I knew the Beatles" lol !), and most had never spoken to a Brit before - you must remember, this was the mid 60's & before the travel industry exploded with the cheap flights (Laker) and package holidays. It meant conversation was easy, but usually consisted of a multitude of Q&A from both sides, interesting to say the least.
Breakfast ,block jobs & inspections over, it was time to start the working day........
To be continued
Part 3.....Queuing in single file , all 132 students line up towards the hotplate, at ease but leaping to attention as the guy in front marches one pace forward , halts and then at ease. Sounds laborious and was, especially if you're at the back of the queue ! Once at the hotplate, WOW ! what a feast, Porterhouse steaks, towers of pancakes dripping in syrup, crispy bacon & loads of sausages. All very well, but at 0530hrs, just a bit too heavy for an English palate, but I got used to it lol. I'd been given $200 to pay for my food there but when I tried to pay I was told "Keep the money Limey, you're a guest of the US Army" - $200 was a LOT of money in those days so I gladly accepted the kind offer. I must mention the Master Chef, who, on days when VIPs were visiting, stood resplendent in his best uniform, adorned with at least 30 medals ! (I'll mention this in a later post).
After breakfast, marched back to the accommodation and commenced block jobs, not the cursory attempts we did in BAOR, but after a shower (VERY clean the Yanks, even my No2 SD could only be worn twice before being dry cleaned) the ablutions, our rooms (bed already "pinned") and the "Autobahn" polished to high heaven. We had a layout to strictly observe on the bed, including our best boots thereon, ready for inspection. The DS would slide a piece of paper, end on, between the boots - if the paper went through they weren't close enough, so demerit mark & evening "showtime". The only way my ammo boots could pass was for me to "Strabalene" the welts ( remember that stuff, instant shine like black varnish ?), effectively glueing the boots together ! For the duration I got away with that, the DS never clicked on . This was the time they measured the ashtrays position, absolutely vital to get it 4" in from each edge at the corner, and naturally to be clean as crystal. This is when they tested the tautness of the top blanket - when it passed the "dollar test" we breathed a sigh of relief, but because they insisted we changed the sheets weekly the pins had to come out & after stripping the bedding, start the ritual all over again, taking about 45 -60 minutes of struggle to make the bed, all 47 pins employed !
At this point I must point out that I was the only Brit on the course so was naturally a figure of curiosity to the other 131 all American students, many of whom thought we had fog every day in Britain, and that London WAS Britain! My accent came in handy at times, "Of course I knew the Beatles" lol !), and most had never spoken to a Brit before - you must remember, this was the mid 60's & before the travel industry exploded with the cheap flights (Laker) and package holidays. It meant conversation was easy, but usually consisted of a multitude of Q&A from both sides, interesting to say the least.
Breakfast ,block jobs & inspections over, it was time to start the working day........
To be continued
Quote from DavidFullard on February 10, 2024, 11:45 amThis is better than my e-reader John keep on posting the story!
This is better than my e-reader John keep on posting the story!
Quote from jkwebster06 on February 13, 2024, 1:00 pmPart 4... Each day was a different programme, sometimes in the "classroom" which was a huge auditorium where all 132 of us could sit in semi circular tiers of seating, looking down onto the DS instructors, & at other times, out onto the training area. This was a large wooded area where a multitude of tasks and exercises could take place. The first rule there to observe was NEVER drop a cigarette butt, or even the ASH, onto the ground - highly polished butt cans were nailed to trees at various intervals to accept such rubbish & woe betide any student flicking the ash or, sacre bleu, the butt onto the ground !
The training area was also for night exercises, one of which involved us students being organised into platoons. I was a Platoon Leader in my foxhole dug into a hillside - a few of my platoon were in it with me when, at about 2am , out of the blackness came the unmistakeable sounds of Brenda Lee singing! The idea was to get us humming the tunes to give our positions away to the enemy ( the Viet Cong) in hiding across the valley. This was my 1st taste of psychological warfare, something the Americans were well into. Another example was to use loudspeakers : "PFC Rodrigez, don't worry about your wife, whilst you're in your foxhole Sgt Abraham is looking after her - he calls every night and doesn't leave until 6am having checked she's OK" !! PFC Rodrgez of course is blazing, leaping out of his hidden position shouting "I'll kill him". That reaction is just what the enemy needed and a fusillade of gunfire rent the hillside. I thought "Well, I'm a Brit, they won't bother with me" - WRONG ! A short time later....."We believe you have an English man with you - do you know he wears very skimpy underwear, surely a sign of being homosexual ?" My face glowed with embarrassment & indignation, especially when those in the foxhole kept shifting away from me lol. There are other instances of "life" on the training area, one involving dogs which I'll keep for a later time.
Back to the classroom (auditorium), perched up high & hoping I wouldn't fall asleep & tumble down - to try & stay awake during these lectures I would count the medals, buttons & badges on each tutor, the record I found was 52 ! On one occasion I was "caught" sleeping & the tutor roared out "Why is it every time we have an English student they tend to fall asleep ?" By this time I'm a little(?) jarred off with proceedings & yelled back "In the British Army they give you a bed to SLEEP in, not hold it together with safety pins instead. In addition, we can sleep for 8 hours & not be expected to work until midnight with reveille at 5 0'clock as here ! " The tutor just could not believe that we could sleep past 5am - thought we were bone idle lol. We were programmed each day from 5am until midnight, and from midnight to 0015 was "free time" before lights out. The evenings were taken up with more lectures but mostly concentrated block cleaning, copious amounts of water (fire hoses) and polish in equal amounts used, and our personal kit cleaning. We wore 2 piece overalls, cleaned & heavily starched daily (own expense), which needed breaking into by forcing a leg or arm through the starch in order to wear them, but it did avoid ironing them - the steam iron was reserved for our best kit, in my case N0 2 Dress and Blues (N01's). The Yanks were fascinated by my Blues, especially as I'd borrowed patent leather George boots and spurs for the Course !
Back to the "medal count" - I used to take the Mick out of the Yanks for getting a medal or badge for the slightest thing, even for "being 1st in the breakfast queue" - on one morning , with a VIP visiting , the Master Chef was there, adorned with literally 30 medals / badges
Part 4... Each day was a different programme, sometimes in the "classroom" which was a huge auditorium where all 132 of us could sit in semi circular tiers of seating, looking down onto the DS instructors, & at other times, out onto the training area. This was a large wooded area where a multitude of tasks and exercises could take place. The first rule there to observe was NEVER drop a cigarette butt, or even the ASH, onto the ground - highly polished butt cans were nailed to trees at various intervals to accept such rubbish & woe betide any student flicking the ash or, sacre bleu, the butt onto the ground !
The training area was also for night exercises, one of which involved us students being organised into platoons. I was a Platoon Leader in my foxhole dug into a hillside - a few of my platoon were in it with me when, at about 2am , out of the blackness came the unmistakeable sounds of Brenda Lee singing! The idea was to get us humming the tunes to give our positions away to the enemy ( the Viet Cong) in hiding across the valley. This was my 1st taste of psychological warfare, something the Americans were well into. Another example was to use loudspeakers : "PFC Rodrigez, don't worry about your wife, whilst you're in your foxhole Sgt Abraham is looking after her - he calls every night and doesn't leave until 6am having checked she's OK" !! PFC Rodrgez of course is blazing, leaping out of his hidden position shouting "I'll kill him". That reaction is just what the enemy needed and a fusillade of gunfire rent the hillside. I thought "Well, I'm a Brit, they won't bother with me" - WRONG ! A short time later....."We believe you have an English man with you - do you know he wears very skimpy underwear, surely a sign of being homosexual ?" My face glowed with embarrassment & indignation, especially when those in the foxhole kept shifting away from me lol. There are other instances of "life" on the training area, one involving dogs which I'll keep for a later time.
Back to the classroom (auditorium), perched up high & hoping I wouldn't fall asleep & tumble down - to try & stay awake during these lectures I would count the medals, buttons & badges on each tutor, the record I found was 52 ! On one occasion I was "caught" sleeping & the tutor roared out "Why is it every time we have an English student they tend to fall asleep ?" By this time I'm a little(?) jarred off with proceedings & yelled back "In the British Army they give you a bed to SLEEP in, not hold it together with safety pins instead. In addition, we can sleep for 8 hours & not be expected to work until midnight with reveille at 5 0'clock as here ! " The tutor just could not believe that we could sleep past 5am - thought we were bone idle lol. We were programmed each day from 5am until midnight, and from midnight to 0015 was "free time" before lights out. The evenings were taken up with more lectures but mostly concentrated block cleaning, copious amounts of water (fire hoses) and polish in equal amounts used, and our personal kit cleaning. We wore 2 piece overalls, cleaned & heavily starched daily (own expense), which needed breaking into by forcing a leg or arm through the starch in order to wear them, but it did avoid ironing them - the steam iron was reserved for our best kit, in my case N0 2 Dress and Blues (N01's). The Yanks were fascinated by my Blues, especially as I'd borrowed patent leather George boots and spurs for the Course !
Back to the "medal count" - I used to take the Mick out of the Yanks for getting a medal or badge for the slightest thing, even for "being 1st in the breakfast queue" - on one morning , with a VIP visiting , the Master Chef was there, adorned with literally 30 medals / badges
Quote from jkwebster06 on February 13, 2024, 1:12 pmPart 4 was sent just before I'd finished......."the Master Chef was there, adorned with literally 30 medals / badges. There you go, says I, with a note of triumph "HE'S always first for breakfast & look at those medals " !! John (JKW)
Part 4 was sent just before I'd finished......."the Master Chef was there, adorned with literally 30 medals / badges. There you go, says I, with a note of triumph "HE'S always first for breakfast & look at those medals " !! John (JKW)
Quote from Cliff_C on February 16, 2024, 7:39 pmDid you get your Yank medals?
Whilst in B sqn, Berlin. Me and Ronnie Whiteside were in the Brigade shooting team for the Tri-partite skill at arms comp. Ronnie was the pistol and I the smg, all Brigade team names went into the pot! and each country chooses names. We ended up in the American team. They liked our jersey heavy wool (nylon). I was presented with a medal and two bars, one said smg and the other was grenade. I had never thrown a grenade in my life until the day of the competition. The training with the yanks was great as we had unlimited ammunition and we all got to share each others weapons!! Our smg was rubbish compared to the the heckler koch MP5 (I like that one) that the French were using but the Americans were still using the grease gun and that was worse than the smg. I do remember that the 2 para guys in the team were allowed to wear the yank medals on their combat jacket whilst they were in Berlin.
Looking forward the your next installment
Cliff
Did you get your Yank medals?
Whilst in B sqn, Berlin. Me and Ronnie Whiteside were in the Brigade shooting team for the Tri-partite skill at arms comp. Ronnie was the pistol and I the smg, all Brigade team names went into the pot! and each country chooses names. We ended up in the American team. They liked our jersey heavy wool (nylon). I was presented with a medal and two bars, one said smg and the other was grenade. I had never thrown a grenade in my life until the day of the competition. The training with the yanks was great as we had unlimited ammunition and we all got to share each others weapons!! Our smg was rubbish compared to the the heckler koch MP5 (I like that one) that the French were using but the Americans were still using the grease gun and that was worse than the smg. I do remember that the 2 para guys in the team were allowed to wear the yank medals on their combat jacket whilst they were in Berlin.
Looking forward the your next installment
Cliff