The POMCUS sites in Germany.....

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - The POMCUS sites in Germany..... (Page 1 of 2)

Posted: 8/9/2011 2:23:03 PM EDT

I figure by now, most of them are closed.

They housed equipment for REFORGER(Return of Forces to Germany).

Housed at the sites, and this is just a guess, we're the complete sets of equipment for US III Corps (At the time 3ACR,1CD, 4ID, & 5ID)

The goal of the program was to fly the soldiers of the entire corps to Germany over in the first week of a conflict, and one division per week thereafter by sea.

I don't know if there were any sets positioned for the rest of 2AD(the division's 2BDE was stationed west of Hamburg)

Any idea what we did with it all? The equipment, that is.

Here are some cool reference pics for our stuff and theirs(Warsaw Pact)

US Units

NATO Units

Warsaw Pact Units

Posted: 8/9/2011 2:24:58 PM EDT

[#1]

I went to high school in Zweibrucken on the lower left of the first map.

Posted: 8/9/2011 2:34:35 PM EDT

[#2]

Jeez, does this bring back some 80's memories.

I spent 4 years assigned in Hanau, but in reality most of the time was in Graf, Vilseck, or Fulda.

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:23:40 PM EDT

[#3]

Quoted:
Jeez, does this bring back some 80's memories.

I spent 4 years assigned in Hanau, but in reality most of the time was in Graf, Vilseck, or Fulda.

Not bad for a guy who was only 7 when the wall came down, huh?

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:25:45 PM EDT

[#4]

Its "REFORGER"

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:26:14 PM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
I went to high school in Zweibrucken on the lower left of the first map.

I went to high school in Munich, on the lower center of the map.

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:27:43 PM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:
I went to high school in Zweibrucken on the lower left of the first map.

Hal Hap Arnold High School, Wiesbaden, Germany here.

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:31:51 PM EDT

[#7]

i was in nurnberg 87-90, on the czech border, 2nd acr

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:36:49 PM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
Its "REFORGER"

I need a new keyboard.

Posted: 8/9/2011 3:56:37 PM EDT

[#9]

No one has any insight on this?

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:06:03 PM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
No one has any insight on this?

Most of those predeployed equipment storage sites have been closed and dismantled, after the cold war ended and the likelihood of a large war in Europe diminishing there was far less need. Those types of sites continue to exist in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, in Asia they are as large as they were at the height of the coldwar, in the Mid-East they are larger than back then.

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:15:31 PM EDT

[#11]

The base at Gelnhausen was turned into an apartment complex as far as I know.

Served there from 84-87

3AD 4/8th Cavalry

Canadian Army Trophy winners 1987

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:17:44 PM EDT

[#12]

I thought a lot of equipment got moved out when the CFE Treaty went into effect

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:18:15 PM EDT

[#13]

I went to Giessen High School when my stepdad was part of a test to see how fast they could move a ton of 1st cav folks from Ft. Hood overseas in a hurry!

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:21:04 PM EDT

[#14]

Almost all of the small cacernes are gone, I helped close Dexheim in 2008 as well as a few others. Most US Army units are now at Graf, Hoenfels, Vilseck, Wiesbaden, Baumholder, and K-town. There are still a few random small posts open but not many and not for long. We handed most of them back over to the Germans who promptly turned them into apartment complexes.

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:25:13 PM EDT

[#15]

I was stationed in Berlin twice, before and after The Wall was torn down..... we were but a speed bump for the Ivans......matter of fact, our ASP, Ammunition Supply Point, was moved from just outside our Infantry barracks, McNair Kaserne, to 8 miles away in the Grunewald.....We had minimal small arms ammo in vaults for each company.

All Ivan had to do was drop in 2 platoons of Spetznaz, blow the dump with most of our small arms, 81mm mortar, 90mm recoilless, Dragons and TOW missiles, and we'd be combat ineffective.

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:31:49 PM EDT

[#16]

Someone I know who was in the armored cav told me that they and their equipment was shipped to Saudi Arabia for Gulf War I.
I never asked if the equipment came back with them after the war

Posted: 8/9/2011 4:40:06 PM EDT

[#17]

I was with 5/8 INF and 3/8 INF, 1st BDE, 8th ID(M), at Lee Barracks, Mainz-Gonsenheim, 90-91.

A lot of our equipment (M-113's) was turned over to allies or turned into targets for impact areas.

Posted: 8/9/2011 6:16:17 PM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
Someone I know who was in the armored cav told me that they and their equipment was shipped to Saudi Arabia for Gulf War I.
I never asked if the equipment came back with them after the war

I was in 3ID in Schweinfurt 1992-93 and we received some M1A1 Heavies that had been in the Gulf War. Had to blow sand out of the air intake filters and man did that take forever. Started off with desert tan paint and eventually they got CARC painted green camo.

Posted: 8/9/2011 6:26:18 PM EDT

[#19]

Ive been trying to game out this scenario in my head for the last decade.

I think I have the correlation of forces pretty well set up, but some help from vets on the "who, what, where" of units would be awesome.

Posted: 8/9/2011 7:29:48 PM EDT

[#20]

I was in Goeppingen in the late 60s and Boumholder in the mid 70s. BAHS for most of my high school years, 7-10 grades. Worked in the motor pool for a year as a coop program for auto mechanics. Lots of good memories from those times.

Posted: 8/9/2011 7:46:14 PM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:
I figure by now, most of them are closed.

They housed equipment for REFORGER(Return of Forces to Germany).

Housed at the sites, and this is just a guess, we're the complete sets of equipment for US III Corps (At the time 3ACR,1CD, 4ID, & 5ID)

The goal of the program was to fly the soldiers of the entire corps to Germany over in the first week of a conflict, and one division per week thereafter by sea.

I don't know if there were any sets positioned for the rest of 2AD(the division's 2BDE was stationed west of Hamburg)

Any idea what we did with it all? The equipment, that is.

Here are some cool reference pics for our stuff and theirs(Warsaw Pact)

US Units
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b191/fugitivemind1990/Cold_War_units_in_West_Germany.gif

NATO Units
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b191/fugitivemind1990/NATOmap.jpg

Warsaw Pact Units
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b191/fugitivemind1990/Probable_Axes_of_Attack.jpg

Most of the equipment was brought back in the mid 90s. Joint Logistics Over The Shore (JLOTS).

Appearantly, the deployment of Desert Sturm was too much of a cluster fuck. So, the equipment was electronically monitored leaving Ro-Ro's (sp) and brought onto shore with LCACs and other equipment.

The one I was involved with was at Camp Lejeune, NC. Was lots of fun, especially being my first civilian job after ETS and two years of college. Got to tell quite a few high ranking officers that they ddin't know what the fuck they were doing.

Worst thing was leaving shore to go out and service electromechanical equipment on all of those boats. Never seen so many freaking sharks in my life.

ETA: Kitzingen am Mein 3ID 84-87

Posted: 8/9/2011 7:54:54 PM EDT

[#22]

The 2nd ACR HQ (Merrill Barracks) was turned into housing for refugee seekers by the German Govt. A big furniture store now sits where the motorpool was, and the HQ office bldg itself is a nightclub (with the regimental crest still visible on the entryway awning). Sheridan Kaserne in Augsburg is locked up and empty, looks like it did the day it was turned over to the Germans.

2nd ACR 89-90 / USAFS Augsburg 87-88. Good times!

G

Posted: 8/9/2011 9:33:20 PM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I went to high school in Zweibrucken on the lower left of the first map.

I went to high school in Munich, on the lower center of the map.

Elementary school at McGraw kaserne..back in the day.

Posted: 8/10/2011 12:04:10 AM EDT

[#24]

MOAR!!!

Posted: 8/10/2011 1:38:44 AM EDT

[#25]

I was in the ashaffenberg area when we turned the kaserns over to the Germans to house refugees back in 92. Reading someone post about Hanau brings back some old drunken memories.

Posted: 8/10/2011 12:07:54 PM EDT

[#26]

OP, have you read The Third World War, August 1985 by Sir John Hackett? I am reading it now and it seems like it would be right up your alley.

Posted: 8/10/2011 12:28:30 PM EDT

[#27]

Quoted:
OP, have you read The Third World War, August 1985 by Sir John Hackett? I am reading it now and it seems like it would be right up your alley.

I have read that. Its decent, except for the 2 term jimmy carter, iran still being on our side, and the draft coming back

Posted: 8/10/2011 2:11:15 PM EDT

[#28]

Quoted:
I was in the ashaffenberg area when we turned the kaserns over to the Germans to house refugees back in 92. Reading someone post about Hanau brings back some old drunken memories.

Hell yea brotha, gettin plowed in Hanau, end up in Frankfurt, in the redlight district , looking at freaky chinese chicks with inch and a half long nipples

Good time , good times

Posted: 8/10/2011 2:15:29 PM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:

Quoted:

I was in the ashaffenberg area when we turned the kaserns over to the Germans to house refugees back in 92. Reading someone post about Hanau brings back some old drunken memories.

Hell yea brotha, gettin plowed in Hanau, end up in Frankfurt, in the redlight district , looking at freaky chinese chicks with inch and a half long nipples

Good time , good times

Wandering back to post, so drunk that you end up in the wrong barracks.

There were some mighty fine looking working ladies in Frankfurt though.

Posted: 8/10/2011 2:44:03 PM EDT

[#30]

I've always wondered what they did with this stuff too.

Posted: 8/10/2011 2:48:34 PM EDT

[#31]

ACK!!! I see wildchicken on the map!

worst 3 years of my life! /shudder

Posted: 8/10/2011 3:14:20 PM EDT

[#32]

Aschaffenburg also, Ready Kaserne 86-89

Posted: 8/10/2011 3:33:15 PM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:

ACK!!! I see wildchicken on the map!

worst 3 years of my life! /shudder

Ack! The Chicken!

Posted: 8/10/2011 4:31:33 PM EDT

[#34]

Ha, it's funny, Back in my Reserve days, I was in an Training Division in the late 80's. Made up of Drill Sgts and Tank Commanders. The units war time mission was to train 1100 Raw recruits in a 19E (M60 Armor crewman) MOS in 70 days and then follow them over seas to fall in on POMCUS stocks. We always thought that mission was wishful thinking as those stock piles Had to be ID's by the Soviets and the Warsaw Pact and would have been taken out withing the first few days.

As units moved and equipment was upgraded, a lot of the stocks went thru depots and then back stateside or to Nato Allies to help stock there units. Gamma Goats. GOERS,M901 ITV's, M60's. A lot of that was replaced by Bradley's, M-1's, Hemmints,Humvee's, etc.

I was on a acceptance team back in 87-88 for a Reserve unit that was upgrading from Slick M60's to M60A3's. These A3's were coming from Mainz Depot care of Illisheim (sp?)West Germany from 1/13th Armor. As they were moving and getting M-1's.

So a lot of equipment moved around quite a bit as units upgraded and older equipment became obsolete.

Posted: 8/10/2011 4:38:40 PM EDT

[#35]

Quoted:

Ha, it's funny, Back in my Reserve days, I was in an Training Division in the late 80's. Made up of Drill Sgts and Tank Commanders. The units war time mission was to train 1100 Raw recruits in a 19E (M60 Armor crewman) MOS in 70 days and then follow them over seas to fall in on POMCUS stocks. We always thought that mission was wishful thinking as those stock piles Had to be ID's by the Soviets and the Warsaw Pact and would have been taken out withing the first few days.

IIRC, the Soviets wanted to slime the sites with something persistent like VX.

Posted: 8/10/2011 4:41:01 PM EDT

[#36]

I was there from 98-07, well after the Cold War....

Other then the stuff that was organic to units (which were getting smaller), the only "war stocks" left were in Belguim... Not sure how much.

Posted: 8/10/2011 4:47:10 PM EDT

[#37]

Quoted:

I went to high school in Zweibrucken on the lower left of the first map.

Schweinfurt here in 80-81. All I remember about it is trick or treating one year.

Dad was a tank gunner.

Posted: 8/13/2011 3:53:18 PM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Ha, it's funny, Back in my Reserve days, I was in an Training Division in the late 80's. Made up of Drill Sgts and Tank Commanders. The units war time mission was to train 1100 Raw recruits in a 19E (M60 Armor crewman) MOS in 70 days and then follow them over seas to fall in on POMCUS stocks. We always thought that mission was wishful thinking as those stock piles Had to be ID's by the Soviets and the Warsaw Pact and would have been taken out withing the first few days.

IIRC, the Soviets wanted to slime the sites with something persistent like VX.

I have a feeling things would've gotten out of hand pretty quick if they did that.

Posted: 8/13/2011 4:45:48 PM EDT

[#39]

Crailsheim McKee Barracks for me

Posted: 8/13/2011 4:53:47 PM EDT

[#40]

Does Graf still hug a root like it did in he 70s ?

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:21:02 PM EDT

[#41]

Some of the old sites still exist, some became apartment complexes, others (most) industrial.

There are quite a few "sperrgebiet" areas in Germany, some of them with some interesting things in them.

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:22:58 PM EDT

[#42]

We gave most of it to germany.

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:26:48 PM EDT

[#43]

I was in Giebelstadt, near Wurzburg, from '80 to '83. 3rd Aviation Battallion (Combat), 3rd Infantry Division.

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:30:42 PM EDT

[#44]

Interesting photos here for those who haven't seen them (this one in specific is in England - Germany was not the only place equipment was stationed in case of war). A lot of photos:

http://www.rafburtonwood.org/site8/site8.html

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:31:49 PM EDT

[#45]

Schweinfurt from 1978-1981 3ID 2/30I

Got two fine weeks of guard duty at the ammo/POMCUS site at Miesau Army Depot. Yep, it sucked.

Ancient History:

Nazi eagle still on the building: the army just chipped the swastika out

Wildflecken

East german commie guard in Berlin

Soviet commie guards at the Soviet War Memorial in West Berlin, yes, West Berlin

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:33:17 PM EDT

[#46]

You can google most of those bases and find what happened. My old base in Erlangen
was razed and became part of town.

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:36:01 PM EDT

[#47]

REFORGER '85, that was one cold bastard

Posted: 8/13/2011 5:40:06 PM EDT

[#48]

Baumholder '87-'89. 1-39 INF AAA0 (Anything, Anytime, Anywhere. Bar None!) in the old 8th ID.

When I got there they still had M16A1's, Jeeps, M60A3's and M113A2's. Earned my EIB summer of '88 when our Brigade went to Mainz for combined EIB testing with the Brigade stationed there. Born and raised in S.C. and never knew what winter truly was until I went to Hohenfels in January.