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When I first arrived at the 23rd Engineers in Hanau in 1971,
and got settled into my job as an Atomic Demolition Munitions
Specialist, I was surprised at how different security was as
compared to Ft. Hood, Texas. I am speaking only of the ADM Platoon,
since I was not familiar with the 3rd Armored Division's other
nuclear operations. The ADM Platoon at Ft. Hood in 1970 had a
training and work area surrounded by a high fence topped with
barbed wire, and guarded around the clock by MP's. It was lit
up at night with flood lights. The Platoon was then part of the
1st Armored Division, which converted some of its units, including
ours, into the 2nd Armored Division while I was there. Our vehicles
were also kept inside that restricted area, and no one from other
units got to see them, and that, of course, included civilians.
We did not wear any special patches, or other items that would
identify us as involved with atomic weaponry. And certainly our
vehicles carried no marking indicating our purpose. And this
was at Ft. Hood, a massive military complex in the middle of
nowhere. It would be an awfully tough nut for any spy or looney
to crack.
On the other hand, in Germany, the operation of the ADM Platoon
with 23rd Engineers was a lot less secure and less secretive.
For example, we wore a patch over one fatigue pocket that read
"23d ENGR ADM" and had a silhouette of a mushroom cloud.
We had a jeep with a spare-tire cover that included the same
information, including that mushroom cloud. This cover was there
for all to see, even as we drove on public roads and sometimes
intermingled with German traffic. I wonder what the people behind
us in traffic were thinking. The cover would eventually meet
its demise when I drove the jeep to a Change of Command ceremony
at Division Headquarters in Frankfurt when Maj. Gen. Kraft was
taking over as Spearhead Commander. Someone at Headquarters must
have been taken aback, because the next day word came to our
Platoon sergeant that the cover was not be seen again.
In comparison to the secure isolation at Ft. Hood, at the
Hessen Homburg Kaserne in Hanau our training and work space was
on the third floor of the Battalion Headquarters building. While
just inside the main gate, the building was close to the street
and had no extraordinary armed security, except for the gate
guards. On that third floor we kept our training equipment, manuals,
records and communications equipment. The training equipment
included exact replica's of atomic munitions. If we prepared
to move out for training or an alert, we'd pull our vehicles
in front of the building and begin loading up. This occurred
in plain view of anyone in the kaserne, or on the public sidewalk
or street in front of the kaserne.
While in convoy for alerts or training, the Platoon had no
special security - no MP's or infantry temporarily assigned to
us. We pulled our own security with what we had - .45 pistols
and M-14 rifles. Even so, I can recall only one incident where
we had a serious security problem, although it turned out not
to be serious. The Platoon was in the field at a regular training
site in a forest area east of Hanau. We had set up camp and had
brought with us most everything we had, including the atomic
replica's. The Platoon was completely alone, with no Army units
in the area. We had established a perimeter with guards posted
24-hours. One night around dusk, I happened to be on guard duty
when a uniformed figure could be scene coming in our direction
through the forest. The Sgt. of the Guard happened to be with
me and both of us began yelling "Halt!", which had
no effect, as this person kept coming. The light was very dim.
We could make out some kind of dark green uniform, and a service
cap, and a side arm (holstered) - definitely not U.S. Army. The
intruder started yelling at us in German. I chambered a round
in my M-14, and the Sgt. pointed his .45 at him. The intruder
threw his hands up. We kept him at bay until another Platoon
member who could speak German arrived. As it turned out, he was
a German forest ranger who hadn't been told that the Army would
be there. He bid an "Auf Wiedersehen" and said he would
check back the next day to see if we had harmed the forest. Sure
enough, we later heard that he billed the Army for some damaged
trees.
One more example of the openness of the AMD platoon's mission
came in the summer of 1971 when the 23rd Engineer Bn held its
annual celebration of its activation as an Army unit. This event
included the entire battalion staff, family and invited guests
for competitive games, fun, food and drinks. The ADM Platoon
competed in the games, and guess what our uniforms were? Fatigue
pants, combat boots and a T-shirt stenciled with "ADM"
and a red mushroom cloud. Everyone in the battalion (as well
as families and guests) knew who we were and what we did.
Despite issues of security and secrecy, or the lack thereof,
that I've touched upon in this piece, I can't honestly say that
these had any effect whatsoever on our Platoon's mission or on
the security of the Army or the nation. But I can speak only
for my time with the 3rd Armored Division in Germany - those
seven months in 1971.
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