325th Glider Infantry Regiment At Salerno

325th Glider Infantry Regiment At Salerno by Phil Yates The old 325th Infantry Regiment from the First World War was reactivated early in 1942. It was initially intended as a motorised infantry battalion, but trained as the new 82nd Airborne Division’s glider infantry regiment instead. The glider-riders were conscripts unlike the glamorous paratroopers and despite sharing the danger of airborne operations, did not receive jump pay, a source of continuing bitterness. The 325th Glider Infantry Regiment trained in the United States and in Tunisia before landing from the sea as reinforcements for the Ranger Force in Salerno in late September 1943. Read more on Painting US Airborne Troops here... Read more on Airborne Operations in World War Two here... Read more on Modelling and Representing Gliders In Flames Of War here...

They fought the retreating Germans all the way to Naples over the following fortnight before being withdrawn to prepare for the invasion of France on D-Day. Despite their short combat stint in the mid-war period, glider infantry are an interesting variation on the normal US rifle company. In order to keep their force small for ease of transport, each company lost a rifle platoon and support weapons were kept to a minimum.

If you’d like to field a US Rifle Company (page 38 of Fighting First) based on the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment in Flames Of War here are a few notes to help you historically base your force on the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment.

• The Glider companies are usually only two platoons strong, rather than the normal three of most Rifle Companies. • Each Glider Rifle Platoon had a M2 60mm Mortar. You can represent these by taking three mortars in a Mortar Platoon. Or with your opponents agreement as a 60mm mortar to each platoon for +1 point each. • The Glider Rifle companies only had one M1917 Machine-gun Platoon.

• The 325th Glider Infantry Regiment’s Glider Rifle Companies don't have access to Anti-tank or Cannon Platoons. • If you field a Tank-destroyer Platoon, it should probably be equipped with M3 75mm GMC tank destroyers (see community cards). The one major difference was the availability of Parachute Artillery. • So instead fielding a 105mm Field Artillery Battery or M7 Priest Artillery Battery, field the Parachute 75mm Artillery Battery from page 15 of All American.   ~ Phil.