Showing posts with label german army. Show all posts
Showing posts with label german army. Show all posts
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Hetzenauer trained as a sniper from March 27 through July 16, 1944, before being assigned to the 3rd Gebirgsjäger Division, issued both a K98 rifle with 6x scope and a Gewehr 43 rifle with 4x scope.
On November 6, 1944, he suffered head trauma from artillery fire, and was awarded the Verwundeten-Abzeichen three days later.
On multiple occasions he served with fellow sniper Josef Allerberger. The two of them killed many Soviet soldiers with speed and ease.
Gefreiter Hetzenauer received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 17 April 1945. Generalleutnant and Divisions commander Paul Klatt had recommended Hetzenauer because of his numerous sniper kills, which in sum defeated two strong enemy companies without fear for his own safety under artillery fire and enemy attacks. This recommendation was approved by General der Gebirgstruppe Karl von Le Suire and General der Panzertruppe Walter Nehring.
Hetzenauer was captured by Soviet troops the following month, and eventually served 5 years of routinely appalling conditions in a Soviet prison camp.
He died on October 3, 2004, after several years of deteriorating health.
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WHAT WAS RAD?
(Reichsarbeitsdienst; RAD), a mandatory national service for all able-bodied citizens of the Third Reich. Shortly before coming to power in one of his speeches, Hitler promised that he would be able to eradicate unemployment in the country, and the easiest way: first, from the number of unemployed labor battalions will be formed, which then swell the ranks of the armed forces.Act of June 26, 1935 declared labor service compulsory for all German citizens aged 19 to 25 years in the framework of the established Imperial Service Labour. Twice a year, all young Germans (each group of up to 200 thousand people) were sent to work in labor camps, mostly for agricultural work. Within 6 months the men worked on farms and fields, while women helped with the housework.
In the labor camps under the supervision of the Nazi commissars strictest discipline was maintained in accordance with an elaborate statute.
Hitler considered compulsory labor as a necessary step for a successful program of rearmament of Germany. . According to him, men who shoulder a shovel, will be able to wear and weapons. In addition, the labor service provided labor market lots of cheap labor and reduced unemployment in the country. In September 1936 at the Party Congress, Hitler announced that the number of unemployed in the country has fallen from 6 million to 1 million The statement added the Hitler's popularity in a country which for years has been burdened by unemployment.
Later during the war men from RAD were trained to use arms
Grenadiers Panzer SS Division Totenkopf during the Battle of Kursk
The Germans take the first steps into Soviet occupied Poland. June 21, 1942
He died in the early days of Barbarossa
Raupenschlepper Ost, literally "Crawling Tractor - East", is more commonly abbreviated to RSO. This fully tracked, lightweight vehicle was conceived in response to the poor performance of wheeled and half-tracked vehicles in the mud and snow during the Wehrmacht's first winter on the Soviet Front. The RSO may have been inspired by very similar full-tracked small tractors in use in other armies, mostly originated from the pre-war light to medium series of Vickers artillery tractors
MORE WEHRMACHT IMAGES
MORE WEHRMACHT IMAGES
GREAT WAR DVDS
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