Uesugi Kenshin  | 07 Jan 2022 12:32 a.m. PST |
Did the VG only field Assault Squads, Platoons & Companies? (W/ the occasional MG-42 "Support Squad")? Or would they have had other integral units like mortars, anti-tank teams, Snipers & Flamethrowers? Thanks all. |
| Martin Rapier | 07 Jan 2022 1:07 a.m. PST |
VG Battalions had all the same support stuff as normal infantry battalions, including the regimental infantry guns develved down to the battalion heavy weapons companies. The only oddities were the high allocation of automatic weapons and grouping of the LMGs at platoon and company level. They had lots and lots of mortars as the infantry guns were replaced with 120s. AFAIK no German infantry battalion of any type had integral flamethrower teams apart from motorised units with battalion level pioneer platton. |
| Uesugi Kenshin | 07 Jan 2022 2:19 a.m. PST |
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| donlowry | 07 Jan 2022 10:24 a.m. PST |
Probably the main difference between most VG divisions and ordinary infantry divisions is that their (3) regiments only had 2 battalions each, instead of 3. (Plus the one fusilier battalion at division level.) |
| Starfury Rider | 07 Jan 2022 11:09 a.m. PST |
My stuff on the Volks Grenadier Battalion level org is up on the website. link Gary |
 Mserafin | 07 Jan 2022 12:54 p.m. PST |
Note that at least the 26th VG division was organized as a regular infantry division with 3 battalions per regiment. Also, by this point in the war, two battalion regiments were standard for German infantry divisions. |
| Thresher01 | 07 Jan 2022 4:28 p.m. PST |
Stugs accompanied a number of the VG units. |
| Uesugi Kenshin | 07 Jan 2022 9:06 p.m. PST |
Just to follow up, I saw on Star Fury's awesome post that the VG companies featured integral 7.5cm Infantry Guns. Does anyone know which model of Infantry Gun this would be? Is it this model?
link |
| Achtung Minen | 08 Jan 2022 6:34 a.m. PST |
Production of the IG 37 never supplanted or even exceeded production of the IG 18. VG Regiments would certainly have received some of the IG 37, but the IG 18 was probably still more common. I don't think there is any reason to believe that certain formations received certain weapons and not others, as the two infantry guns were interchangeable (in terms of doctrinal usage, organizational charts and ammunition). |
| Starfury Rider | 08 Jan 2022 7:15 a.m. PST |
The "Hints for deployment of the Grenadier Regiments of the Volks Grenadier Division' dated 05 Sep 1944 assumed the IG37, ad did the KAN (equipment table). link Agreed though, in real life units would get what was available, which might be old kit or might be new. Gary |
| donlowry | 08 Jan 2022 10:06 a.m. PST |
Mserafin, I did say "most." I believe, without looking it up, that the 12th VG also had 3 battalions per regiment. IIRC, the name Volksgrenadier was originally given to a few infantry divisions (such as 12th and 26th) as a reward for good performance, and only later used to designate the new 7-battalion divisions. |
| Achtung Minen | 08 Jan 2022 11:37 a.m. PST |
Neat document Gary, I hadn't seen that before. The description of the usage of the IG on attack, defense and against tanks is particularly interesting. Thanks. |
| Uesugi Kenshin | 08 Jan 2022 4:47 p.m. PST |
Thanks again all for the excellent info. This is going to be my first Bolt Action army. I'm even more interested now in doing them. Many thanks. |
