By Sea and by Land - The Story of Our Amphibious Forces
Cód:
491_9781443728768
BY SEA and BY LAND The Story of Our Amphibious Forces by LIEUT. EARL BURTON. Foreword: Tanks land on Many times since December 7, 1941, headlines similar to this have appeared in our daily papers, but comparatively few persons, in or out of the military and naval services, realize the backstage activities that made these announce ments possible. Most of us absorb only the thrill attending the reading, similar to that feeling one experiences in wit nessing a gigantic stage spectacle ; and we wonder how it was done. If the public had been permitted to see the detailed planning and the time and effort the cast applied to make the landing possible, the astonishment would be all the greater. Amphibious operations are dramas of life and death and the members of the cast are our soldiers and sailors. Their backstage life cannot be fully revealed at this time, but suffice it to say it is hard and exacting and requires courage of the highest order. The rehearsals preliminary train ing are shrouded in secrecy. It must be that way, and not until the very minute of attack against the enemy-held beach do many, beyond the members of the task force, know anything about the operation. I have lived with these men and have seen them train on land and sea, under both ideal and miserable conditions. At best it is a life of hard work. We know that, unlike any other form of warfare, an amphibious operation cannot strike, fail, retreat, and try again. It must succeed the first time. This requires teamwork and the coalescing of the Army and Navy components into a hard-hitting and fast-moving force. That teamwork exists. This war has brought the Army and Navy closer together than ever before in our history, and Amphibious Forces are the epitome of everything that is sought in military efficiency. Without the success of the initial thrust over the enemy held beaches, our final effort could never materialize. It is the Amphibious Forces who are carrying the vanguard of victory of American
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