IX Engineer Command

The Commanding General of one American Army stated that he would be willing to relinquish tactical air support in his sector if need be, in order to have air-supply, a good indication of the importance placed on supply and evacuation fields during the campaign in Germany.

Detachments of the command were assigned to different Corps. They usually consisted of one company, stripped of excess personnel although carrying extra equipment, and organized with a view towards mobility. They carried almost no bulky construction supply such as surfacing material, but did provide marking materials for runways and some wind-socks. These detachments were to travel with the advance spearheads of the drive and be under orders of the Corps headquarters.

The Command re-geared itself almost overnight for the new operations. The First Engineer Aviation Brigade was to operate with the First and Ninth Armies and the Second Brigade was with the Third and Seventh Armies.

During the pursuit phase of the campaign beyond the Rhine, aviation engineer units closely followed up the advance with the fastest airdrome reconstruction operation in the annals of the AAF. The "stripped down" companies of aviation engineer battalions traveled with onrushing armor and repaired airfields over-run in the drive as fast as humanly possible. An average of twelve fields were put into service during each week, after the Rhine was crossed and until the -first junction with the Russians was realized. In one seven-day period, a total of 21 were made operational --- an average of three fields per day. Greatest part of this construction effort in Germany was devoted to S and E strips, a priority item in support of the armies' advance. Construction schedules to base tactical groups deep in Germany were also accomplished at the same time.

An example of how this new type operation worked is the story of two platoons of the 852nd battalion. As the drive jumped across the Rhine and towards the heart of Germany, the two platoons joined separate Corps of the Ninth Army on the 11th of April. By 2100 on April 12th, two separate airstrips were made ready for Air Transport craft by these detachments. In less than seven days of the drive, they were responsible for the operation of five advanced S and E strips. The gas,