Trivia WW 2
Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 6:17 pm
>
> Subject: For
> you History Buffs, WW II Trivia
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> WW II
>
> Trivia
>
> You
> might enjoy this from Col
> D. G. Swinford, USMC,
> Ret and history buff.
> You would really
> have to dig deep to get
> this kind of ringside
> seat to history:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 1. The first German
> serviceman killed in WW II
> was killed by the Japanese
> ( China , 1937), the
> first American serviceman
> killed was killed by
> the Russians ( Finland
> 1940); highest ranking
> American killed was Lt Gen
> Lesley McNair, killed
> by the US Army Air
> Corps. So much for
> allies.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 2. The youngest US
> serviceman was 12 year old
> Calvin Graham, USN.
> He was wounded and
> given a Dishonorable
> Discharge for lying about
> his age. His benefits
> were later restored
> by act of Congress.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 3. At the time of Pearl
> Harbor, the top US Navy
> command was called CINCUS
> (pronounced 'sink
> us'), the shoulder
> patch of the US Army's 45th
> Infantry division was the
> Swastika, and Hitler's
> private train was named
> 'Amerika.' All three
> were soon changed for PR
> purposes.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 4. More US servicemen died
> in the Air Corps than
> the Marine Corps.
> While completing the
> required 30 missions, your
> chance of being
> killed was 71%.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 5. Generally speaking,
> there was no such thing
> as an average fighter
> pilot. You were
> either an ace or a
> target. For instance,
> Japanese Ace Hiroyoshi
> Nishizawa shot down over
> 80 planes. He died
> while a passenger on a
> cargo plane.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 6. It was a common practice
> on fighter planes to
> load every 5th round with a
> tracer round to aid
> in aiming. This was a
> mistake. Tracers had
> different ballistics so (at
> long range) if your
> tracers were hitting the
> target 80% of
> your rounds were missing.
> Worse yet tracers
> instantly told your enemy
> he was under fire and
> from which direction. Worst
> of all was the
> practice of loading a
> string of tracers at the
> end of the belt to tell you
> that you were out of
> ammo. This was definitely
> not something you
> wanted to tell the
> enemy. Units that
> stopped using tracers saw
> their success rate
> nearly double and their
> loss rate go down.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> YOU'VE GOT TO LOVE THIS
> ONE........
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 7. When allied armies
> reached the Rhine, the
> first thing men did was pee
> in it. This
> was pretty universal from
> the lowest private to
> Winston Churchill (who made
> a big show of it)
> and Gen. Patton (who had
> himself photographed in
> the
> act).
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 8. German Me-264 bombers
> were capable of bombing
> New York City, but they
> decided it wasn't worth
> the effort.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 9. German submarine U-120
> was sunk by a
> malfunctioning toilet.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 10. Among the first
> 'Germans' captured at
> Normandy were several
> Koreans. They had
> been forced to fight for
> the Japanese Army until
> they were captured by the
> Russians and forced to
> fight for the Russian Army
> until they were
> captured by the Germans and
> forced to fight for
> the German Army until they
> were captured by the
> US Army.
>
>
>
> AND I SAVED THE BEST FOR
>
> LAST....
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 11. Following a massive
> naval bombardment,
> 35,000 United States and
> Canadian troops stormed
> ashore at Kiska, in the
> Aleutian Islands . 21
> troops were killed in the
> assault on the island.
> It could have been worse if
> there had been any
> Japanese on the
>
> island.
>
>
>
> Subject: For
> you History Buffs, WW II Trivia
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> WW II
>
> Trivia
>
> You
> might enjoy this from Col
> D. G. Swinford, USMC,
> Ret and history buff.
> You would really
> have to dig deep to get
> this kind of ringside
> seat to history:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 1. The first German
> serviceman killed in WW II
> was killed by the Japanese
> ( China , 1937), the
> first American serviceman
> killed was killed by
> the Russians ( Finland
> 1940); highest ranking
> American killed was Lt Gen
> Lesley McNair, killed
> by the US Army Air
> Corps. So much for
> allies.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 2. The youngest US
> serviceman was 12 year old
> Calvin Graham, USN.
> He was wounded and
> given a Dishonorable
> Discharge for lying about
> his age. His benefits
> were later restored
> by act of Congress.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 3. At the time of Pearl
> Harbor, the top US Navy
> command was called CINCUS
> (pronounced 'sink
> us'), the shoulder
> patch of the US Army's 45th
> Infantry division was the
> Swastika, and Hitler's
> private train was named
> 'Amerika.' All three
> were soon changed for PR
> purposes.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 4. More US servicemen died
> in the Air Corps than
> the Marine Corps.
> While completing the
> required 30 missions, your
> chance of being
> killed was 71%.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 5. Generally speaking,
> there was no such thing
> as an average fighter
> pilot. You were
> either an ace or a
> target. For instance,
> Japanese Ace Hiroyoshi
> Nishizawa shot down over
> 80 planes. He died
> while a passenger on a
> cargo plane.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 6. It was a common practice
> on fighter planes to
> load every 5th round with a
> tracer round to aid
> in aiming. This was a
> mistake. Tracers had
> different ballistics so (at
> long range) if your
> tracers were hitting the
> target 80% of
> your rounds were missing.
> Worse yet tracers
> instantly told your enemy
> he was under fire and
> from which direction. Worst
> of all was the
> practice of loading a
> string of tracers at the
> end of the belt to tell you
> that you were out of
> ammo. This was definitely
> not something you
> wanted to tell the
> enemy. Units that
> stopped using tracers saw
> their success rate
> nearly double and their
> loss rate go down.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> YOU'VE GOT TO LOVE THIS
> ONE........
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 7. When allied armies
> reached the Rhine, the
> first thing men did was pee
> in it. This
> was pretty universal from
> the lowest private to
> Winston Churchill (who made
> a big show of it)
> and Gen. Patton (who had
> himself photographed in
> the
> act).
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 8. German Me-264 bombers
> were capable of bombing
> New York City, but they
> decided it wasn't worth
> the effort.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 9. German submarine U-120
> was sunk by a
> malfunctioning toilet.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 10. Among the first
> 'Germans' captured at
> Normandy were several
> Koreans. They had
> been forced to fight for
> the Japanese Army until
> they were captured by the
> Russians and forced to
> fight for the Russian Army
> until they were
> captured by the Germans and
> forced to fight for
> the German Army until they
> were captured by the
> US Army.
>
>
>
> AND I SAVED THE BEST FOR
>
> LAST....
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 11. Following a massive
> naval bombardment,
> 35,000 United States and
> Canadian troops stormed
> ashore at Kiska, in the
> Aleutian Islands . 21
> troops were killed in the
> assault on the island.
> It could have been worse if
> there had been any
> Japanese on the
>
> island.
>
>
>
