British Form Tough Reconnaissance Corps London, Feb 5 (AP) The organisation of a tough, hard-hitting Reconnaissance Corps – the newest of the British Army’s task forces – was disclosed today in an official announcement which said the units have a “scale of armaments and degree of mechanization unprecedented in military history.” The reconnaissance troops function on land somewhat as “commandos” do against enemy coasts and are “just as tough” But their roles are reversed. The amphibian commando’s objective is destruction first and information secondly. The reconnaissance man wants information first but, if necessary, is armed and ready for decisive operations. One reconnaissance battalion is being assigned to each infantry division and “if possible the battalion will probe the enemy lines by cunning and stealth,” said the official source. “But if it has to fight for its facts, then it can turn on such a blast of fire that no battalion ever possessed before.” A battalion’s arsenal includes anti-tank artillery of undisclosed caliber, .55 caliber riflesand grenades, batteries of mortars and “hosts of tommyguns and light machine-guns.” For high speed and maneuverability, each reconnaissance battalion has more than 250 vehicles, of which 70 are motorcycles and others armored cars of great speed, Bren gun carriers and troop carrying trucks. Sarasota Herald-Tribune - Feb 5, 1942 Reconnaissance Corps Created by British London - (AP) The organisation of a tough, hard-hitting Reconnaissance Corps – the newest of the British Army’s task forces – was disclosed today in an official announcement which said the units have a “scale of armaments and degree of mechanization unprecedented in military history.” The reconnaissance troops function on land somewhat as “commandos” do against enemy coasts and are “just as tough” But their roles are reversed. The amphibian commando’s objective is destruction first and information secondly. The reconnaissance man wants information first but, if necessary, is armed and ready for decisive operations. One reconnaissance battalion is being assigned to each infantry division and “if possible the battalion will probe the enemy lines by cunning and stealth,” said the official source. “But if it has to fight for its facts, then it can turn on such a blast of fire that no battalion ever possessed before.” The Norwalk Hour - Feb 6, 1942 Every Man a Specialist in Reconnaissance Corps New British Unit is Mechanized on Unprecedented Scale; Trained like Commandos London – Details of a well kept army secret – the building up of the Reconnaissance Corps from a training center over the Scottish border – were made known recently. Plans for this scouting force to be trained in commando fashion and armed and mechanized on an unprecedented scale, took shape last spring. The scheme called for men with cunning to probe the enemy’s lines, with endurance to scale rocks and swim rivers in full kit, and with skill to handle a variety of weapons. From small beginnings the corps grew rapidly. Each battalion – there is one to each infantry division – has high speed cars, Bren carriers, troop carrying trucks and motorcycles, 250 of them in all, forming a column 13 miles long. It has anti-tank artillery, rifles and grenades, batteries of mortars and hosts of tommy-guns and light machine-guns. Every man is a specialist. He may know: All about wireless, the mainstay of reconnaissance: How to drive anything: How to find his way about strange country: How to clear minefields: How to hit both men and planes from the revolving turret of an armored car. Or he may be an assault trooper in which case his training will be the hardest of all. When armored cars and carriers are held up during an action it is the assault infantry’s task to move up in speedy little trucks and clear away opposition. These are the men who must be fit to make their way at top speed over any kind of country and to fight as they go. They must be able to dig the first stages of a trench system in half the normal time. They must know how to drive and how to give first aid. Their weapon training is brought to a high pitch on the field firing range. Every man has been tested under conditions as nearly as possible to those of actual war. To test his initiative and quickness of decision a man carrying the weapons of his choice is sent round a “blitz range” to be attacked at various points, sometimes so suddenly that he must fire his service rifle from the hip. Ottawa Citizen - Mar 21, 1942 Cheers Paul
