Photos WW2 US Forces

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Soldiers of the U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps, Fort Miles, Delaware.

 

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A GI, armed with a Thompson SMG, passes a burning tank of Rommel's "Afrika Korps". Tunisia 1943.

 

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The rangefinder platform, aboard USS McCONNELL (DE-163) circa 1943.

 

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Supported by a Stuart tank, infantry from the 132nd Infantry Regiment advance against dug-in Japanese positions on Bougainville, March 1944. In this action, they were credited with destroying more than twenty pillboxes in close-in combat.

 

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Major Richard Bong, the highest scoring American ace in WWII, with 40 confirmed kills. He was part of the 475th Fighter Squadron based originally in New Guinea, then on to Dulag in the Philippines.
In New Guinea, they flew the P-39 Airacobra, but transitioned to the P-38 Lightning. After the war he worked as a test pilot, but died in the crash of an experimental plane.

 

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Before the days of the USSOCOM, the green berets in Vietnam, and even the CIA, Special Operations were very much alive and active especially during WWII. The Office of Strategic Services, OSS, lead by the Medal of Honor recipient General Wild Bill Donovan were a very crucial part of the Allies success in both the fights against the Japanese and the Germans. Soldiers, Marines and sailors throughout the ranks of the Armed Forces were carefully picked for their language skills, education, and gallantry in battle. These selected few would be the muscle and brains of this newly developed organization. In this picture, OSS agents are preparing their Chinese counterparts for a combat jump into Japanese occupied China.

 

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Original color photos of the AVG in China.

 

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A US Soldier from the Wisconsin National Guard’s 32nd Infantry Division AKA the Red Arrow Division with a captured Type 92 Lewis light Machine Gun in Papua New Guinea. The Red Arrow division logged 654 consecutive days in combat, the most out of any other US division in the war.

 

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General Aircraft, Roosevelt Field, NY. Production of the CG-4 Glider, 1943 .Picture cited from the book, WWII and the Long Island Home Front (History Press)

 

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En route to Makin Atoll on 11 August 1942, Marine Raiders exercise on the deck of the submarine USS Nautilus. The raid on Makin was a morale booster for the Marines, who were hungry for action, but 19 of their number were killed in the fighting.
The Marine Raiders are special operations forces originally established by the United States Marine Corps during the war to conduct amphibious light infantry warfare. "Edson's" Raiders of 1st Marine Raider Battalion and "Carlson's" Raiders of 2nd Marine Raider Battalion are said to have been the first United States special operations forces to form and see combat during World War II.

 

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VE Day in the Pacific.

 

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Poltava airfield 1944.Operation Frantic.

 

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Ernie Pyle was a well-respected journalist who wrote about the experiences of the average GI at war. Thus, where the GIs went, so did he.
His articles were syndicated and were widely read right across the United States during WW2.
Sadly, he was killed by enemy machine-gun fire on the island of Ie Shima whilst "embedded" with the 77th ID, April 18th, 1945.
He was just 44 years old.

 

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A member of the First Special Service Force with an M1A1 Bazooka on the outskirts of Rome - June 4, 1944
LIFE Magazine Archives - Carl Mydans & George Silk Photographers

 

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A member of the First Special Service Force with a BAR outside of Rome - June 4, 1944
The 1st Special Service Force was an elite American–Canadian commando unit in WW2
LIFE Magazine Archives - Carl Mydans Photographer

 

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Members of Major (later Gen) Edward Thomas' HQ detachment, 1st Battalion, 2nd Regiment, First Special Service Force on their way into Rome.

 

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Destroyer USS Cole DD-155 off of Safi Morocco during Operation Torch - November 1942
Picture taken from USS Philadelphia CL-41
On November 8, 1942, USS Cole landed 175 men of the 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division, under enemy fire on a pier at Safi, Morocco
USS Cole received the Presidential Unit Citation for her performance in this mission
USS Cole was a Wickes-class destroyer launched in 1919, she was named for Edward B. Cole, a United States Marine Corps officer who died as a result of the wounds he received at the Battle of Belleau Wood in WW1
In addition to the Presidential Unit Citation, USS Cole received three battle stars for her WW2 service, sold for scrap October 1947
LIFE Magazine Archives - Eliot Elisofon Photographer

 

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Interestingly enough he has a round loaded into the bazooka ready to fire.

 

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Crew of Iowa (BB-61) on board Japanese battleship Nagato in Japan. US Forces spread Japanese flag on deck. Photographed by Iowa crew, August 1945