A Medal for the Ghost Army
The UK’s Ghost Army of World War II is being put up for a Congressional Gold Medal.
The Ghost Army consisted of two units, the 23rd Special Headquarters Troops and the 3133rd Signal Service Company. They created realistic tanks, vehicles like Jeeps and troop carriers, and airplanes, to fool the Germans into believing that there was a huge deployment in one place while Patton was busy engaging German defenses elsewhere.
The story is here: https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/05/13/renewed-push-to-award-gold-medal-to-world-war-ii-ghost-army/
There is also a video, so pop some popcorn and enjoy a brief trip through history.
Category: Army, Historical
Like to read comments from ” been there-done that” types. May not always agree but will kick as much A. as I can for your right to say it!
History Channel mentioned them- after D-Day they crossed the channel and continued to spoof the Germans up to the end of the war in Europe. Well deserved recognition- hope it goes through.
One Panzer unit stayed in Calais for the rest of the war having never stopped the invasion sure to come in the Calais area…
D-Day was the largest mobilization of any human endeavor in history and will go down as being the largest mobilization ever.
Everything I’ve read about it tells me that anybody and everybody wanted to be a part of it.
Tom Selleck played a masterful “Ike” in the movie of the same name.
“Front row center, for certain, but still just spectators” as the invasion got going.
They deserve the Gold Medal of Freedom for their part. They also deserve a Presidential Unit Citation for the yeoman’s work they did.
“Those too, also serve, that blow up tanks and trucks with air instead of high explosives.”
BZ Ghost Army…’bout time you got some more official recognition!
The defensive hardware deployed in Calais would of made a big difference if they had of been in Normandy. Ike might would of had to make that announcement he had folded up in his pocket.
It wasn’t a UK ( British) unit, but a US one. There was a good documentary on them on Netflix.
They recruited out of radio schools and also a lot of artists and people who worked as stage hands and prop masters.
They did a lot of signals work, sending and receiving messages from “fake” units. They also did physical tasks like using loudspeakers to broadcast sounds of trucks or tanks.
Sometimes it was something as low key as painting unit designations on Jeeps and wearing unit patches and being seen where they know the locals would report it to the Nazis.
The documentary was “Ghost Army” and I made it mandatory watching for my PSYOP detachment. They did a lot of creative stuff with limited resources and fooled not only the enemy but friendly and allied forces as well.
Long ago in a galaxy far far awayI attended the USAF Tactical Deception Course. The particular class I was in was taught at Hurlburt in early 1991. Operation Body Guard and Operation Fortitude were included in the curriculum.
Does that make me a school trained and certified liar?
Are you saying that you are a Decepticon?