Battle of Arracourt

For the battle, German units assembled 262 tanks and assault guns. Combat Command A (CCA) under Colonel Bruce C. Clarke of the U.S. 4th Armored Division in XII Corps consisted of the 37th Tank Battalion, the 53rd Armored Infantry Battalion, the 66th and 94th Armored Field Artillery Battalions the 177th Field Artillery Group and the 191st Field Artillery Battalion. Also present were elements of the 35th Tank Battalion, the 10th Armored Infantry Battalion, the 704th Tank Destroyer Battalion, the 25th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, the 24th Armored Engineer Battalion, and the 166th Engineer Combat Battalion. The 5th Panzer Army outnumbered CCA in tanks and was equipped with Panther tanks, superior to American M4 Sherman tanks in frontal armour protection and main gun range, countered by the U.S. tanks' faster turret traverse and stabilized guns. In close air support, U.S. forces enjoyed an overwhelming advantage. Earlier sorties by U.S. fighter bombers caused some German panzer units to fail to arrive in time for the battle, as they were damaged or destroyed in separate encounters with other Allied forces. ==Battle==

, commander of the 37th Tank Battalion, on his command tank On 18 September, amidst deteriorating weather and increasing fog, U.S. tactical air forces were unsuccessful in an attempt to locate and destroy advancing German armored units. However, while the weather had shielded the German advance from air observation and attack, it also handicapped the 5th Panzer Army. Poor visibility combined with a lack of motorized scouting and reconnaissance units in the new "Panzer Army" formations prevented German armored forces from properly coordinating their attack, which soon degenerated into a disjointed series of intermittent thrusts. While the advancing Germans were continually exposed to American fire, U.S. armor was able to maneuver into favourable defensive positions, staying hidden until the German armour had closed to within effective range then inflicting heavy casualties. The fog that had allowed German forces tactical surprise and protection from U.S. air attack also negated the superior range of their tank guns. From 20 to 25 September, Fifth Panzer Army ordered its subunits of the 111th Panzer Brigade and the understrength 11th Panzer Division into a series of attacks against the Arracourt position. Throughout the battle, Army observation pilot Major "Bazooka Charlie" Carpenter attacked the enemy with his bazooka-armed Piper L-4 Cub, USAAF serial number 43-30426 and nicknamed Rosie the Rocketer. and was eventually credited with destroying six enemy tanks, including two Tiger I heavy tanks. Carpenter's actions also forced the German tank formation to retreat to its starting position, in the process enabling a trapped 4th Armored water point support crew to escape capture and destruction. In addition to missions of opportunity flown by XIX TAC fighter-bombers, CCA was able to call in tactical air strikes against German panzer concentrations. The 4th Armored's close relationship with the XIX TAC and mastery of ground-air tactical coordination was a significant factor in destroying the offensive capability of the German armored formations. By 24 September, most of the fighting had moved to the village of Château-Salins, where a fierce attack by the 559th Volksgrenadier Division of the German First Army nearly overwhelmed 4th Armored's Combat Command B, before being routed by U.S. fighter-bombers. The following day, Third Army received orders to suspend all offensive operations and consolidate its gains. In compliance with corps orders, the entire 4th Armored Division reverted to the defense on 26 September. CCA withdrew to more defensible ground, and CCB, relieved at Château-Salins by the 35th Division, linked up with the right flank of CCA. The Fifth Panzer Army, by now reduced to only 25 tanks, pressed its attacks unsuccessfully for three more days, until clearing weather and increased U.S. air activity forced the Germans to suspend their counteroffensive altogether and begin a retreat towards the German frontier. ==Aftermath==

The Battle of Arracourt occurred near the end of Third Army's Lorraine campaign, a rapid advance through France which had been stopped short of entering Germany by the decision of the Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower's to divert fuel supplies to other forces. The delay allowed the German Army to regroup for the defense of the German border on the Siegfried Line. Adolf Hitler, however, was less than pleased with the results of the German offensive, and relieved the commander of Army Group G, Johannes Blaskowitz. Arracourt was the largest tank battle involving U.S. forces on the Western Front until the Battle of the Bulge, and has been used as an example of how crew quality and tactical training can be far more important factors in determining the outcome of a tank battle than the technical merits of the tanks themselves. Analysis Steven Zaloga describes the German losses: "Of the 262 tanks and assault guns deployed by the German units in the week of fighting near Arracourt, 86 were destroyed, 114 were damaged or broken down, and only 62 were operational at the end of the month". By comparison "4th Armored Division's Combat Command A, which had borne the brunt of the 5th Panzer Army's counter-offensive at Arracourt, lost 25 tanks and 7 tank destroyers. While Third Army had succeeded in the early weeks of September in completing a limited advance toward Germany—despite orders to the contrary—the Battle of Arracourt signaled a temporary halt to the U.S. drive in north-eastern France. On 22 September, Third Army commander General George S. Patton was informed that his fuel supplies were being restricted and that he would have to shift to a defensive posture. A paradox of the Battle of Arracourt is that the Germans believed, despite their heavy losses, that they had succeeded in their objective of stopping the advance of Patton's Third Army, as the Third Army had come to a halt. Generalmajor Friedrich von Mellenthin—Chief of Staff of the 5th Panzer Army—summarised the situation: Robert S. Allen's 1947 work "Lucky Forward", a volume full of praise for General Patton and the Third Army's campaigns in 1944–45, does not mention the Battle of Arracourt. In the face of the initial German attacks, the Third Army was little troubled by them, and concentrated on its own advance on Sarreguemines. Subsequently, Patton and his staff had to focus on reorganization, in order to comply with Eisenhower's order to halt their advance but the actions at Arracourt, among others fought by the Third Army in September 1944, contributed to a shift in U.S. perceptions of the campaign: ==Maps==

File:Arracourt 1.png| File:Arracourt 3.png| File:Arracourt 4.png| File:Arracourt 2.png| ==Notes==