Colin’s Comments (group member since Dec 16, 2012)

Colin’s comments from the THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP group.

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Also from my book:


“Not only did the German high command refuse to take steps which actively assisted their troops, they even took steps which worsened their plight. At Riga, thousands of Jewish ..."

I will add to that with a great story. I interviewed a German SS officer, Brigadefuehrer Otto Kumm, who was then a Lt. Col. tasked with reinforcing the supply route to Kharkov. He was given several hundred Ukrainian Jews as a labor force to repair the roads. He contacted the paymaster as to how they would pay the laborers. The paymaster, a colonel said they were not employees, but prisoners. Kumm reminded him that the Geneva Convention stated POWs could not be forced to work in a combat zone. A superior officer arrived, gathered all the Jews, and marched them to the train station. They were gone. The route was not secured in time. Kumm then asked his superior, Paul Hausser where his labor went. Hausser said "Himmler" needed them elsewhere, that's all I know."

Manray9 wrote: "Paul wrote: "Manray9 wrote: "carl wrote: "I was recently in Fredericksburg, Texas, home of the
War of the Pacific/Nimitz museum, but as the name
implies, the town also has a touch of German to it..."

I and my family are from Greenville/Pickens, SC. I know the area and the history well, and you are correct in your statement. Most people do not realize that the state with the most registered slave owners in 1862 was Delaware.

I knew Sir John after he had taken his position at Oxford. Great intellect and a great guy to speak with.

Dj wrote: "


Okay, so a little deeper into this and the Canadian's do get to be talked about on their ow..."

The Germans realized that their HE rounds were even more effective against Shermans than AP rounds, which punched thru armor, but may not destroy, just disable. The HE round still had enough penetration to damage, but the magnesium based pyrotechnic ignited fuel and munitions more easily, ensuring destruction. Often only one round was required. Ernst Barkmann destroyed 9 Shermans, firing 9 rounds from his 75mm in a Panther in about 12 minutes, and disabled four more by tracking. He ran out of ammo and fell back. In all the 20+ tanks in the column were wiped out. He earned a Knight's Cross for his action.

B-26 was a difficult and dangerous bomber to fly. That is one of the few WW II aircraft that I have not flown in, although I knew of one that was flying.

My friend Pieter Krueler (subject of "Four War Boer") knew Smuts all of his life and highly respected him, even when he had to fight against him in WW I.

Photo 17 with himmler is famous. The SS general on Himmler's right (left in photo) is Obergruppenfuehrer Karl Wolff, one of the many SS officers I interviewed.

He wrote his autobiography, and you can also read a bio of him by Brigadier Gen. Collyer (old book). My book Four war Boer also covers him to some degree.

Katriina. ♥ wrote: "Hey everyone,
My name is Katriina, I'm a student, writer and panzer tank enthusiast. Currently I'm still in school - high school - my main focus being on business, economics and history. I'm from F..."

Katriina, one of my books, The Star of Africa was published in Finnish, which you may like, given your interests.

Flying in a B-24 or B-17 is also a bone jarring experience.

hi Jeanne, I hear you. My uncles and family traced the family roots, and then I took it up, going back to AD 635, quite few interesting people in that chart. The history incredible.

Most people do not know that Princess (later Queen Elizabeth) drove an ambulance in London during that time. What is less known, is that one of those UXBs was under a demolished flat. A pregnant woman was trapped, with her husband in Malaya serving. they could not move her util the bomb had been diffused. Elizabeth all of a child, held her hand, did not leave. That is true grace.

My newest book with Anne, Four War Boer is 1/3 about WW I in Africa, as 2nd Boer war vet Piet Krueler was a kommando leader under Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck. Check it out.

Leni is mentioned in my book The Star of Africa, and her birthday parties were a riot. She lived to be 100. She told me once when she was in her 70s, that if she were 20 years younger, she would show me a good time. I can only assume it meant the open bar, but maybe not. I have a photo of her taken at her 100th b'day party on my website, photos section.

Lake Starnberg is great, I was the house guest of Leni Riefenstahl during a few of the interviews, where she had a really nice home there.

One of my good friends was an Abrams M-1 commander in Khafji during Desert Storm, he got 6 kills, and took a dozen hits, no damage from the Iraqis. He then broke thru the Republican Gaurd with 3 of his 4 tanks still operable and rescued the Special Forces recon team that another friend of mine was on. He fought off a dozen tanks going in reverse to keep the frontal armor facing the enemy, until the air support he called destroyed the enemy tanks. A-10s carved them up.

Koronov started out as a driver, then loader/gunner and then became a commander, where he went through 5 T-34s during Kursk/Orel. He said that T-34 drivers were issued three things: 1-A handbook on operation, 2-A first aid kit, 3-a hammer to knock the transmission into gear since the gearbox was crude and often stuck. Of interest, 2 out of every ten shells were duds.

Geevee wrote: "Very interesting discussion thanks gents.

The Royal Armoured Corps instructors at Bovington (sourced from various armoured regiments) were excellent, and I recall during my initial training as a..."

Geevee wrote: "Very interesting discussion thanks gents.

The Royal Armoured Corps instructors at Bovington (sourced from various armoured regiments) were excellent, and I recall during my initial training as a..."

Yes, look at my website, and go to Future Book Projects, Anyway you will see The Panzer Aces Speak, a future book. many of these guys commanded Tigers, all had the Knight's Cross or higher. They all bitched about the road wheels in snow and mud, especially in winter. however, the one saving grace was that that overlap provided additional protection from hits. I also interviewed a T-36/Kv-1 commander, Gregor Koronov, who had his own nightmarish stories with the Christie suspension system.

One of my interviews was with Ernst Barkmann, Knight's Cross, 2nd Waffen SS Division "Das Reich" and he described his four Panthers (two disabled) leaving him and one other against a battalion of Shermans with the 76mm. He killed 9 in as many minutes, and track damaged four more, managing to limp his Panther away for repairs. he feared mechanical breakdown even more than even Firefly engagements. He said, "It is not all about the armor, or the gun. It is about knowing where to aim and make the shot count."

I interviewed some tankers from both sides of the war, from several countries. I always felt sorry for the M4 crews. They were just dead men waiting against their counterparts in Pz V and Pz VI meds and heavies.