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2nd Lt. Leon Baldwin 45th Medical Battalion 3rd Armored Division Frankfurt, West Germany December 1965 - September 1967 |
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2nd Lt. Leon Baldwin 45th Medical Battalion 3rd Armored Division Frankfurt, West Germany December 1965 - September 1967 |
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Although I spent a short time with the 3rd Armored Division, I had a great time. It was very impressive to move across the country side with heavy armor. The sense of speed and power was unmistakable. At the height of the cold war the 3rd Armored had the mission of the mobile defense of the Fulda Gap, a historic invasion route. Being greatly outnumbered, the division had to delay a Soviet incursion through Fulda until manpower was airlifted from the States to prepositioned equipment in rear areas. In case of hostilities, life expectancy was days or hours.
As a result, training was intensive and year round. In the winter when the ground was frozen, maneuvers would be conducted over open farm land. In the summer we trained in Grafenwoehr near the town of Vilseck. 'Graf' was the only training area large enough for live fire exercises. A common sight for the local Germans was convoys of tanks and vehicles moving through their villages and highways. A welcome sight for us was German vendors driving through Graf selling locally brewed beer in 'flip' top bottles.
My first assignment was with the 2nd Brigade in Gelnhausen. I was a field medical assistant to a battalion aid station physician. We traveled in an armored personal carrier which had been modified as an aid station. With the rear hatch opened and a canvas tent attached we provided very mobile responsive medical care. The medical corpsmen on the front line provided the first level emergency care. He would forward the wounded to the aid station for second level care. We then evacuated the seriously injured further back to the Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (M.A.S.H.). The Vietnam era was proving the doctrine of rapid evacuation from the front lines by helicopter directly to the M.A.S.H. Soldiers were being saved at a rate unprecedented in previous wars. The intense peacetime training and maneuvers too often put our aid station to use.
My
second assignment was with the 45th Medical Battalion in Frankfurt. I was
an ambulance platoon leader. We kept our ambulances and battalion transportation
vehicles fully ready for deployment. Medical companies supported other division
units during their training and maneuvers.
But all was not so serious. We were in Germany! So much to see and so
few weekends. My favorite place to live was Gelnhausen. A picture postcard
town with old and new complementing each other. Founded over 800 years ago
by the emperor Friedrich Barbarossa, Gelnhausen is a thriving city on the
banks of the Kinzig river. The old and new are blended together with old
narrow streets, shops, restaurants, ruins, and a tall spired church. A stroll
through town is a real a delight and makes you ready for delicious German
food and beer. From the ruins of Friedrich's castle on the hillside
there is a beautiful view of Gelnhausen and the Kinzig valley.
Gelnhausen has a superb Web site,
please visit.
Click here for two maps (80kb) of the Frankfurt
- Gelnhausen region
3rd Armored Division patch and ambulance picture scanned by Bob Berk.