Wildflecken Training Area

[mike-munich]

That was some good brew.....................

Al, is there a brew that you don't like buddy ? When are you in Toelz the next time ? This time Dinner is on me.

Wildflecken... Darn. I was there the last time during a REFORGER exercise in the early 90's (91 me thinks). That place truly is a "wild spot"...

[greenberetTFS]

Originally Posted by Dozer523

I remember Wildflecken that was IMHO the minor league version of Graf. And Garmisch -- it did have a little ski hill and it was half the distance from Aschafenburg. Just right if you didn't have time to spend the night in Garmisch.
Anyone remember Hohenfels?
Now that free manuever area was "fun fun fun 'til her Daddy took the car keys away!" Especially if you were a young Mech PL in a Tank Company Team. The joy of being a seeing-eye grunt for a bunch of tread-heads (in M-60A-1s)! We'd dismount and clear the route at night then link up with our Tracks when the Company rolled in just after dawn. Chow showed up in the Merimites (Green Eggs and Sausage). Then tearing around, up and down the bowling alleys.
I remember looking for and being chased by OPFOR tanks, charging into a narrow valley desperate for a hasty ambush site. Finding a hide and spinning the Dragon turret around, dismounting all the LAWs and waiting. . . waiting . . .waiting. Watching the tank roll by . . . waiting for the flank shot. Seeing the shock on the TC's face as he spotted us, the turret spinning. . . "FIRE FIRE FIRE."
The ensuing argument.
"Your DEAD"
"Am not"
"Are TOO"
"I'm a TANK, Grunt"
"Mon down 'Captain Crunch' and we'll see about that!"
Then comes a lone M151 . . . Out climbed a short guy with a purple smoke.
Pin gets pulled, and smoke gets tossed
under the tank!


Dueler Six (ADC-M, 3 ID) made the call . . .

Anyone remember Hohenfels?

Yes,I do ......However I've never went to Wildfleken....But,if you've ever gone to Hohenfels in the dead of winter and the temperature was well below zero,you'll never forget that place.... Hitler used that place to train his troops for fighting on the Russian front I was told...... I'm from Chicago where the wind off the lake was called the Hawk and could cut you in two when it dropped well below zero,but Hohenfels made it fell like a warm summer breeze............Yes,I remember Hohenfels..................

Big Teddy

[sg1987]

Originally Posted by greenberetTFS

Anyone remember Hohenfels?

I HATED the place...big ice box. We humped mickey mouse boots but were NEVER allowed to wear them.

[glebo]

Ahh, memories start to appear. When I was in the nickel 'o nasty (1/509th) we got kicked out of the NCO club at I think it was Graff, coulda been hohenfelds, who knows.

We were consuming some "adult beverages" and folks where doing the "flaming asshole" competition.

This is a good one....please allow me to explain, you roll up some newspaper (or any other paper), pull your drawers down, stick the rolled up paper between your cheeks, light the paper on fire, then the one that has the shortest amount of paper left (before extinguishing the fire) is the winner....cool huh??

Of course this was done standing atop of the tables, and about two-three folks would do it at the same time.

Funny thing is, the Bn CDR and CSM were in on it too. I think the CSM was Bobby Teague, and the Bn CDR was Murphy (can't remember his first name.)

Needless to say, we were not invited back, don't know why.

[mojaveman]

You guys sure had some crazy ways to amuse yourselves Glebo. Did you leave the NCO Club that night with a bald and blistered bottom or with a few hairs still in place?

[glebo]

Originally Posted by mojaveman

You guys sure had some crazy ways to amuse yourselves Glebo. Did you leave the NCO Club that night with a bare and blistered bottom or with plenty of hairs still in place?

The fifth is invoked here

[greenberetTFS]

Originally Posted by sg1987

I HATED the place...big ice box. We humped mickey mouse boots but were NEVER allowed to wear them.

Mickey mouse boots.......... Do they still have them in the army?

Big Teddy

[Richard]

We never used Wildflecken or Grafenwohr or training areas like that - we used the Alps, Schwarzwald, and other areas throughout our AOR. Closest I ever got to Wildflecken was use of the 11th Armored Carnival Regiment's 3rd Recon Squadron's base at Bad Hersfeld for an FOB when we were 'training' to the sunrise side of there in late 1976 while the IGB fencing was being torn down between OPs India and Romeo and refabricated. We collected a couple of loose SM-70s and even received a cool 'border certificate' for our wanderings. Sounds like we didn't miss anything by not using Wildflecken.

FWIW - I would not have wanted to have been anywhere in the Fulda Gap area if the 3rd Guards Horde Army had ever come across the IGB IAW their war plans.

Richard's $.02

[mojaveman]

Originally Posted by Richard

We never used Wildflecken or Grafenwohr or training areas like that - we used the Alps, Schwarzwald, and other areas throughout our AOR. Closest I ever got to Wildflecken was use of the 11th Armored Carnival Regiment's 3rd Recon Squadron's base at Bad Hersfeld for an FOB when we were 'training' to the sunrise side of there in late 1976 while the IGB fencing was being torn down between OPs India and Romeo and refabricated. We collected a couple of loose SM-70s and even received a cool 'border certificate' for our wanderings. Sounds like we didn't miss anything by not using Wildflecken.

FWIW - I would not have wanted to have been anywhere in the Fulda Gap area if the 3rd Guards Horde Army had ever come across the IGB IAW their war plans.

Richard's $.02

I think the 11th ACR in Fulda was merely an early warning device or trip wire of sorts. I really wonder if they would have even slowed down the Soviet 3rd Guards Army very much.

[Richard]

Originally Posted by mojaveman

I think the 11th ACR in Fulda was merely an early warning device or trip wire of sorts. I really wonder if they would have even slowed down the Soviet 3rd Guards Army very much.

British 4th Armor BDE (Desert Rats), 11th ACR (Black Horse), and 2nd ACR (Dragoons) were all 'trip wires' for a general Soviet attack along the IGB - thankfully, it never happened. The first real line of defense was actually the Rhine - a Wacht am Rhein scenario - which is why all our depot activities were located far West of the Rhine.

Richard's $.02

[Dozer523]

"Fight and die before the Main" I remember standing on the east bank of the Main with my Company Commander. We had just left our third Battle Position.

"Sez he: This is where the Engineers will have the bridge set up."
Sez me: So why isn't it set up now?"
Sez he : "You don't think they'll actually set it up here, do you?"
Sez me: "Sure, sir. Why wouldn't they?"
Sez he: "You don't actually think YOU'RE going to be here?"

My TC was more optimistic. In the map canister he had the navigational charts from Calaise to Dover.

[Richard]

My TC was more optimistic. In the map canister he had the navigational charts from Calaise to Dover.

Smart guy, your TC. Our NEO plans for my wife and son in Bad Tolz were for them to go stay with friends in Austria - figured the traffic going West would be a nightmare and swimming the Rhein any time of the year was not to our liking - of course they would've been on their own because I would've already left for that longed for camping trip even further to the East.

Как вы говорите, падение вашего оружия и руки вверх или я вас стрелять по-русски?

Richard's $.02

[alfromcolorado]

When I was in 1/10 we used Graf/Vilseck and Wildflecken for weapons training for the things we couldn't do at the local training area or in the various woods. Wildflecken wasn't any better or worse than any other place. Actually, less anal people than we encountered at Graf/Vilseck. Kind of like training at the ranges at Bragg, Drum, Carson, etc. and better than trying to get something done at Devens.

Originally Posted by Richard

We never used Wildflecken or Grafenwohr or training areas like that - we used the Alps, Schwarzwald, and other areas throughout our AOR. Closest I ever got to Wildflecken was use of the 11th Armored Carnival Regiment's 3rd Recon Squadron's base at Bad Hersfeld for an FOB when we were 'training' to the sunrise side of there in late 1976 while the IGB fencing was being torn down between OPs India and Romeo and refabricated. We collected a couple of loose SM-70s and even received a cool 'border certificate' for our wanderings. Sounds like we didn't miss anything by not using Wildflecken.

FWIW - I would not have wanted to have been anywhere in the Fulda Gap area if the 3rd Guards Horde Army had ever come across the IGB IAW their war plans.

Richard's $.02

[Richard]

When I was in 1/10 we used Graf/Vilseck and Wildflecken for weapons training for the things we couldn't do at the local training area or in the various woods.

We shared the BW ranges with the Mountain and Airborne units - which always led to some friendly competition.

Richard's $.02

[Dozer523]

Originally Posted by glebo

The fifth is invoked here

Glebo. . . are your memories of "Shy Helen" (. . . from Graf") starting to return?