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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 8, 1953)
Picnic Fr 15, at Her. Fuchs, pi t , Jig Id eacnyti. Friday, May 8, 1953 THE BATTALION Page 3 reshmen to Make Branch Selections )ay S 3.ndl) irs > note: For the third consecutive year, The s publishing a summary of activities of var- ij ri/lhi branches to aid freshmen in making selection ^JjV/vjj.'it they do advanced work in next year. nd pictures for this page have been furnished my PIO. Air Force instruction is not repre- ’ ause next year all AFItOTC cadets will get ^course of instruction.) ESHMEN will have an opportunity to selection of the branch of service they 3D BAP^ wee ^ i n basic military classes. This act entire future military career of the indi- IICKEN ' e ^ ie * )e t ra i ne d> commissioned, and ' active duty in that branch, said Col. Shel- 5TEAKS PMS&T. ment to branches is based on three fac- ALLKfider of importance: 1) Desire of the indi dent; 2) Course of study and academic s You the students and 3) quotas of students '^aeh branch of the Army, ct that a freshman now wears the “brass” icular branch has no bearing on his se lection, said Col. Myers. Newly assigned freshmen wear the insignia of upperclassmen in their com pany for administrative purposes only, he added. Two Major Divisions The Army is divided generally into two basic groups, depending upon their mission; combat arms, including Infantry, Field Artillery, Anti-aircraft Artillery and Armor; and the services of which sev en are available at A&M. They are Quartermaster Corps, Signal Corps, Army Security Agency, Trans portation Corps, Ordnance Corps, Chemical Corps, and Corps of Engineers. The Army’s mission is to force upon the enemy the will of the nation. . To accomplish this we must close with the enemy in mortal combat, wrest from him the land on which he stands, and force him to submit to our will. This mission can be accom- published only by the infantry. Closely supporting and sharing in the hardships and glories of the Infantry are the other “Arms.” The Armor, drivers and operators of tanks, pro vides the Infantry with mobile cover and shock pow er. The Artilleryman is the long arm of the Infantry. They are the people who can reach out and tag the enemy before the Infantry ever sees him. The En gineers, while classified technically as a service, build bridges, remove mines, and fight in close sup port of the Infantry-Tank-Artillery team. Service Branches It has often been said an Army travels on its stomach. To keep our modern, technically equipped and operated teams effectively working in the field requires much more than food. The various services provide for the technical “know how” and operation that goes to support the combat arms. Research, design, development, procurement, and testing of the thousands of itms used by the Army are responsibili ties of the services. To clothe and feed the Army we have the Quar termaster Corps. To provide vehicles, guns and munitions and the repair services for them we have the Ordnance Corps. The development of protective equipment and defensive tactics as well as offensive weapons pertaining to bacteriological, chemical and radiological warfare are among the missions of the Chemical Corps. Troop housing and utilities, construction of routes of communication, civil works construction, and the building and maintenance of air fields is charged to the Corps of Engineers. Signal com munications of all sorts, radio, telephone, etc., are in the realm of the Signal Corps. The Transportation of men, material, and equipment in a constant effec tive flow so as to get to the right place at the right time is the job of the Transportation Corps. Men with training in certain specialized fields fit well into the services. Mechanical engineers for the Ordnance Corps, civil engineers for the Corps of Engineers, electrical engineers for the Signal Corps and Army Security Agency, chemical engineers for the Quartermaster Corps, experts in all branches of distribution (aerial, maritime and ground) for the Transportation Corps. LOdti-mrcraft rcraft Artillery (former- artillery) is that part of sd States Army which provides land de fenses against the attacks of hostile aircraft and guid- ed missiles. ety of weapons are used plish this mission. They uple ;mounted .50 caliber guns, 40mm and 75mm fc cannon, 9 0mm and 'apid [firing cannon, and lissiles capable of seeking ; ‘homing” on a target, ety of rockets and guided are being developed for M the anti-aircraft artil- coping with the higher nd altitudes of modern fMsiLeapons and equipment of L''A / /-a ire raft Artillery offer a '1/erest to the individual in- in the fields of science neering. Armor liiAg: ri. RMOR is the branch of the combat arms which leads and sup ports the actions of the other mSm s&ritr Infantry -As 0^ ■kR ■ •■vi * HE INFANTRY officer in his m daily duties comes in contact with : ||f| men under the most trying condi- V i ^ tions. As a result, — . Tn-w-T-mr - M I, ^ ^ he develops the zAJPl all. J V/ . 11-. tyP e °f leadership 1^ J. > 1 MEL* '■.mmrmm -• f-'y - | necessary to han dle large groups 1 under any circumstances. By mas- ■ tering minor tactics and learning how to handle himself in opera tions, he develops a battlefield cunning, which helps reduce the s-fff large number of casualties that come to his colleagues, who do not have that training. meuium anti neavy Lana, uaitanons * .The Infantry officer is the jack, in Infantry and Armored divisions, h ¥90^ . %V ; 'I ; of all trades in the Army. His ex- ’Ji’- ] Armor personnel also form (lie ~ *“* ' ' , ‘7~ “? rien . < ;? i forms so basic a part in ^ reconnaissance comnanies of In- ON GUARD—Cadet Charles (Bub- his military education that he ii I'- | fantry a ctiMskms^°and ^he recon- ba) Blank practices ji bayonet qualified for all types of highet ground arms through the use of | i \‘i armored and mechanized equip- ■ p.*; ' ment. Armor personnel make up C VV| armored units from the Infantry i % regimental tank company to the ! medium and heavy tank battalions [ I j)l m- aI -Vn. MAI* STRATEGY—Armor cadets at ROTC summer camp map. strategy regiments and divisions, on a tank problem they are engaged in as part of their training prior to commission in the Armor. ★ Quartermaster Field Artillery Quartermaster Corps is Field Artillery is the branch of concerned with supply and service the combat arms which provides to the troops. concentrated, accurate fire power Leadership standards are high in Armor, for a lieutenant must have a knowledge of gunnery, ra dios and telephones, motors and mobile tactics. Armored units are characterized by mobility, fire power, and shock action. No special academic course is necessary for.enrollment in Armor. camp at Fort Benning, Ga. ★ rn j j • Corps ig Supply in cludes research and develop ment, buying, storage and distribution of to crush the enemy on the battlefield. From the assault guns of the middle ages. Artillery has developed into a family of special- food, clothing, ized weapons, capable of delivering petroleum a great mass of steel in the form g smart is| irt withal wind upirlV st of J/( ' f ou're si®!' 5 ' ie collar fc| for you. 1| mifort aiii-l lanliall<M& our nears;: >hop toda;- lost - for-. : . n distincifi ar. | j products, and items of supply such of bursting shell fragments on combat arm nor a service—it is both. -V' ; Its personnel are trained to be skilled Infan trymen as well as ft as tents, blankets, cots and kitchen enemy positions. equipment. # Modern Field Artillery has as . yf'he above supphesqnclude 70,000 m i ss ion the support of the items,. ha ; nd*ed t by>a nationwide g- r0 und forces .(Infantry, Armor), organization located in camps, Usually located in the rear of its depots, laboratdries, and market supported unit, out of range of centers. rifle fire, it deals devastating The term “Quartermaster Serv- blows on the enemy, ice” includes the operation of pe- offj ce r nersonnel operate the troleum tank farms and petroleum fire direction center, controlling P erform a V construction, mamten naissance battalions of .Armored thrust at Infantry ROTC summer education and positions of hmh J ^ ^ ^ responsibility. Eisenhower, Brad ley and Collins all began their ca reers as second lieutenants in the Infantry. The mission of a battle is to seize ground . . . and it is the Infantry that seizes the ground. All other units are auxiliaries to the mission. Infantry instruction is open to students of any major field. Cbemial . Corps : ChEMICAL Corps is one of the seven technical services of the Army which operate directly under the assistant chief of staff for logis tics, G-4. It is charged with the investigation, re search, design, development, and supply of all c ORPS of Engineers is neither a 1 RANSPORTATION Corps, one of the youngest of all services, performs transportation functions. for the Army an.d provides such transportation’ service for the Air Force or Navy sts may be agreed to jointly. Recently, the Engineers. Their Transportatioif Corps was assign- job is threefold: ed responsibility for the procure- 1) to increase the ment and maintenance of aircraft combat power of our front line for all Army branches. fighting forces by combat con struction and destruction; 2) to Cargo heliedpter companies are chemical warfare items. llliVVfl LE ■— Zooming skyward at Sands Proving G r o u n d, is the “Nike”, the Anti-air- ^Artillery new tactical guided He. rdiiance Corps ^ ^ na * * ,,i l ,s f sin \o fow CM oefi' cm ^ ■ f-mk Sif PNANCE Corps provides the MtK/sd Forces of our country with rial for firepower and mobili ty—rifles, machine guns, artillery, ammunition, tanks, and trucks. Ord nance material ranges from time pieces to radar controlled automatic them j; v anti-aircraft guns; from bRf jeeps to ponderous tank Vif] sporters; from pistol car- weV'jes to twenty-ton bombs, py- Vhnies, and guided missiles. [ large part of this type mate- used by friendly foreign ies is supplied by the Ordnance ^ 3S. ' he Ordnance procurement pro- Y n involves more expenditure of is than all other Army services : together. Ordnance research jects require millions of dollars ually. . ^ storage, drum manufacturing, sal- fj res 0 f many guns; and the vage collection and repair, laundry ac ^ ua ] fi re 0 f ^be pieces. As and dry cleaning, mobile ba.h ^ roun( j observers or air observers units, bakeries, operation of the - n ]i a i SO n planes, they become the food service program, lefugeia- e y es Q f ^be artillery in adjusting tion and sales stoie. the fire on the enemy It also includes gardens and A mathematical background is farms, operation o. baggage ware- d es i rous Q f students enrolling in houses, maintenance and repair, ^bis branch graves registration service, animal care and transportation and many other services that make the Amer ican soldier the best-fed, best- clothed and best-equipped soldier in the world. ance, repair and Engineer supply operated by Transportation Corps personnel. Transportation offi cers are the i^rmy’s traffic man- The Chemical Corps is respon sible for procurement and supply of Chemical Corps equipment for fill operating facilities for the Air Force. It furnishes advice to all ele ments of the Department of De- Army Security Agency r' ^ (i (i rlRMY Security Agency, a field C agency of the intelligence division, FJIGNAL Corps operates a world has two broad interlocking func- wide communications network, tions. These two functions are linking Army units everywhere signal intelligence, which com- with the Pentagon, prises the production of intelli- and capable of gence from enemy communications, sending a message and communication security, which around the world comprises the protection of in- in less than ten formation which might be derived seconds. by others from our own communi- Signal personnel cations. are assigned a t To accomplish the mission of division and higher headquarters communication security, the Army where they install and operate all Security Agency is responsible for communications facilities, to in- the preparation, publication, stor- clude the latest in radio, radio age, distribution, and accounting relay and telephone carrier equip- of all cryptosystems employed by ment designed by the Signal Re- the Army; the development and search Laboratories. maintenance of cipher machines. In addition, the Signal Corps the promulgation of communica- also provides photographic cover- tion security doctrine; the moni- age and short range weather pre- toring of friendly radio traffic in dictions for the Army. order to detect and correct viola- - Aviation in the Signal Corps has tions of communications security; been re-established and signal offi- the inspection of cryptocenters: cers now pilot light planes and hel- and the surveilance of programs of icopters in their own units. cryptographic instruction. *7^ a *ers as well a^s highway and rail- the entire Army, road executives. Constant im provement in the movement of men The Corps of Engineers not only and supplies throughout the world f e nse on chemical, biological war- nerforms this military function, challenges the initiative, leader- f are> an( j radiological defense; but is the responsible federal ship, and ingenuity of transporta- ana iy Ze s and disseminates infor- agency for flood control works and tion otticers in command or stall ma tion on foreign chemical, biol- the maintenance and development capacities, many of which are 0 gi ca ] > an d radiological develop- cf our rivers and harbors for navi- closely allied with civilian occupa- men t s an d activities • trains chemi- gation. tions. < C al staff officers and Chemical Because of the highly technical The academic courses which Corps troops and units; supervises engineering skills required, Engi- more nearly parallel this type of training of Army personnel in neer officers are restricted to per- work are industrial engineering biological and chemical warfare sonnel engaged in engineering or and business administration. How- (offensive and defensive) and ra- some similar scientific pursuit and ever, no special academic course is diological defense; and manufac- must meet the same physical re- necessary for admission to this tures chemical munitions and quirements as the combat arms. branch. agents. n M : ■ . : : • • ' / V -> - jir. ;i ~Tpj tm . m t -Ml.a . : ATOMIC ARTILLERY—This is a 280mm gun which will soon be used by the Field Artillery in test firing shells with atomic war heads at Frenchman’s Flat, Nev. _