Posted on Sep 25, 2017
WWII Infantry Full Combat Pack, US Army; from The Big Picture TV-211 (circa 1951)
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Ready for Battle: The Personal Equipment of a World War II Soldier
Adapted from ―Survey of U.S. Army Uniforms, Weapons and Accoutrements , courtesy of the US Army Center of Military History: http://www.history.army.mil/html/museums/uniforms/survey_uwa.pdf
The United States Army in World War II had a distinct advantage over the Axis when it
came to equipment. Both in terms of quality and quantity the power of American
industry kept the GI’s well supplied.
For a Soldier, equipment is a matter of survival. Even something as simple as a button
can make the difference between victory and defeat if it fails to function properly at the
wrong time. For this reason Soldiers have a strong tendency to become attached to
equipment they like, and to modify or discard equipment they find unreliable or useless.
Among the Infantry, who have to carry their equipment wherever they go, this tendency
is even stronger.
Individual Load Carrying Equipment :
Soldiers must carry everything they need for combat operations with them at all times.
Individual load carrying equipment is designed to allow the Soldier to carry a basic load
of ammunition, food, water, and first-aid gear. The exact make-up of this load varies
from conflict to conflict. In more modern times the load has grown to include additional
equipment such as gas masks, maps, compasses, and radios. Because of the cost of
replacing equipment for Soldiers is high, equipment is usually replaced in phases, with
front-line troops receiving the new equipment first. Support units typically receive
equipment later as older equipment wears out or becomes obsolete. Because of this,
Soldiers in World War II went to war using several different versions of the basic load
bearing gear.
https://www.armyheritage.org/images/stories/Ready_for_Battle_-
_World_War_II.pdfhttp://http://www.45thdivision.org/Pictures/General_Knowlege/combatload.htm
Additional video footage :
https://youtu.be/78IixVwa81k
https://youtu.be/jdPApis3OiU
@ col mikel COL Mikel J. Burroughs @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen C. @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen F. @ ltc frank LTC (Join to see) @ ltc john LTC John Mohor @ ltc bill LTC Bill Koski @ maj william Maj William W. "Bill" Price @ maj stephen LTC (Join to see) @ capt tom Capt Tom Brown @ capt marty Maj Marty Hogan @ smsgt doc SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas @ tsgt joe TSgt Joe C. @ sra christopher SrA Christopher Wright @ msg andrew MSG Andrew White @ sfc joe SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL @ sgt david SGT (Join to see) @ sgt david SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth @ sp5 mark SP5 Mark Kuzinski @ spc margaret SPC Margaret Higgins SCPO Morris Ramsey
Adapted from ―Survey of U.S. Army Uniforms, Weapons and Accoutrements , courtesy of the US Army Center of Military History: http://www.history.army.mil/html/museums/uniforms/survey_uwa.pdf
The United States Army in World War II had a distinct advantage over the Axis when it
came to equipment. Both in terms of quality and quantity the power of American
industry kept the GI’s well supplied.
For a Soldier, equipment is a matter of survival. Even something as simple as a button
can make the difference between victory and defeat if it fails to function properly at the
wrong time. For this reason Soldiers have a strong tendency to become attached to
equipment they like, and to modify or discard equipment they find unreliable or useless.
Among the Infantry, who have to carry their equipment wherever they go, this tendency
is even stronger.
Individual Load Carrying Equipment :
Soldiers must carry everything they need for combat operations with them at all times.
Individual load carrying equipment is designed to allow the Soldier to carry a basic load
of ammunition, food, water, and first-aid gear. The exact make-up of this load varies
from conflict to conflict. In more modern times the load has grown to include additional
equipment such as gas masks, maps, compasses, and radios. Because of the cost of
replacing equipment for Soldiers is high, equipment is usually replaced in phases, with
front-line troops receiving the new equipment first. Support units typically receive
equipment later as older equipment wears out or becomes obsolete. Because of this,
Soldiers in World War II went to war using several different versions of the basic load
bearing gear.
https://www.armyheritage.org/images/stories/Ready_for_Battle_-
_World_War_II.pdfhttp://http://www.45thdivision.org/Pictures/General_Knowlege/combatload.htm
Additional video footage :
https://youtu.be/78IixVwa81k
https://youtu.be/jdPApis3OiU
@ col mikel COL Mikel J. Burroughs @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen C. @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen F. @ ltc frank LTC (Join to see) @ ltc john LTC John Mohor @ ltc bill LTC Bill Koski @ maj william Maj William W. "Bill" Price @ maj stephen LTC (Join to see) @ capt tom Capt Tom Brown @ capt marty Maj Marty Hogan @ smsgt doc SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas @ tsgt joe TSgt Joe C. @ sra christopher SrA Christopher Wright @ msg andrew MSG Andrew White @ sfc joe SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL @ sgt david SGT (Join to see) @ sgt david SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth @ sp5 mark SP5 Mark Kuzinski @ spc margaret SPC Margaret Higgins SCPO Morris Ramsey
WWII World War Two
Gear
Infantry
11B: Infantryman
Military History
Posted 7 y ago
Responses: 12
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One of the most amateurish Army films I’ve ever seen, but more notable is that the title is wrong. The pack set discussed is the M-1945 pack system copied to a large degree (& improved upon) from the Marine M-1941 system. Most soldiers fought WW2 with the horrible M-1928 pack that was the M-1910 pack with a couple of minor tweaks. (See pic) It was a flat piece of canvas with shoulder straps and 3 long straps that wrapped around and held everything together. The Quartermaster Dept should still have bruises from the beating they deserved for forcing soldiers to use that piece of crap.
Additionally, the cargo pack shown was not for the shelterhalf. It was for extra clothing as such that later would be called the ‘sustainment’ load. The shelterhalf and blanket were formed into the well known horseshoe roll and attached to the combat pack by the tent straps. (see the pics).
Many of you know and spotted this. In my case I had each of these packs (in mint condition) as a kid in the 50’s when you could pick them up at a real surplus store for literally dimes, then much later when I started collecting TA50/782 gear as an adult.
Additionally, the cargo pack shown was not for the shelterhalf. It was for extra clothing as such that later would be called the ‘sustainment’ load. The shelterhalf and blanket were formed into the well known horseshoe roll and attached to the combat pack by the tent straps. (see the pics).
Many of you know and spotted this. In my case I had each of these packs (in mint condition) as a kid in the 50’s when you could pick them up at a real surplus store for literally dimes, then much later when I started collecting TA50/782 gear as an adult.
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Morning SGT John " Mac " McConnell thanks for sharing the info and the video. It was pretty cool and never knew that.
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