The United States Armored Battalion
The US Army, following several short-lived organisations, settled on a basic formation in 1943 which would see them through to the end in Europe. It was a simple, but powerful unit, and was used by both independent Battalions and those serving in Armored Divisions proper.
The Armored Battalion, circa 1943 to 1945
Battalion Headquarters (8 Officers, 29)
Headquarters Company (5 Officers, 105 men)
Company HQ (1 Officer, 5 men)
Administrative, Mess & Supply Section (23 men) * reduced by 7 men, June 1944
Maintenance Section (1 Officer, 7 men)
Reconnaissance Platoon (1 Officer, 20 men)
Mortar Platoon (1 Officer, 24 men)
Assault Gun Platoon (1 Officer, 26 men)
Service Company (7 Officers, 112 men)
Company HQ (1 Officer, 4 men)
Maintenance Section (1 Officer, 5 men)
AM & S Section (18 men) * reduced by 4 men, June 1944
Supply and Transportation Platoon (2 Officers, 50 men)
Battalion Maintenance Platoon (2 Officers, 30 men)
Administrative and Personnel Section (1 Officer, 5 men)
Light Tank Company (5 Officers, 92 men)
Company HQ (1 Officer, 10 men)
AM & S Section (16 men) * reduced by 3 men, June 1944
Maintenance Section (1 Officer, 9 men)
Three Light Tank Platoons (1 Officer, 19 men); * increased to 24 men when using M24
each comprised of 5 Tanks
Three Medium Tank Companies (5 Officers, 117 men), each comprised of;
Company HQ (1 Officer, 17 men)
AM & S Section (19 men) * reduced by 5 men, June 1944
Maintenance Section (1 Officer, 9 men)
Three Medium Tank Platoons (1 Officer, 24 men)
Total Strength of 729 all ranks (40 Officers, 689 men) * reduced by 29 men, June 1944
Points of note
The intention was to make Armored and Armored Infantry Battalions as interchangeable as possible. There is little point in covering the same ground twice, so where the description in The United States Armored Infantry Battalion page matches please refer to that.
Previously, tanks had been organised in Regiments, each with one Light and two Medium Battalions. This format was retained by the 2nd and 3rd Armored Divisions. I have never seen a detailed account of it, but I am reliably informed that the Medium Battalion was much the same except there was no Light Company. Likewise, the Light Battalions were similar to the Medium, with the notable exception that they had no 105 mm armed Close Support tanks, 75 mm Gun Motor Carriages being used instead.
The elements of the Battalion
Battalion Headquarters - as the Armored Infantry Battalion, but added two Shermans for the commander and his deputy. When the Battalion was serving in the independent role, a third tank with just a four man crew was added to enable an attached artillery observer to accompany the unit.
Reconnaissance Platoon - as Armored Infantry
Mortar Platoon - as Armored Infantry
Assault Gun Platoon - as Armored Infantry, but importantly the Platoon fielded three M4 Shermans mounting the 105 mm Howitzer, as opposed to the M8 of the Infantry. These do seem to have appeared in the Light Battalion though.
The Tank Company - both the Light and Medium Companies mimicked the same organisation, with an HQ commanding three Platoons.
The Medium Platoon consisted of five M4 Sherman tanks. Three tanks made up the 'heavy' Section, commanded by a Lieutenant and two Sergeants respectively, with the remaining two machines forming the 'light' Section, with the Platoon Sergeant and a Sergeant commanding. At least one author has taken this to mean the Platoon mixed Shermans and Stuarts, but this was not the case. The M4 Sherman became the standard tank of the US Armored troops during 1943, replacing the earlier M3, and undergoing a constant series of upgrades and improvements. It had a five man crew of commander, gunner, loader, driver and bow gunner. The Sherman was armed with a 75 mm main gun, increased to a more powerful 76 mm on later models, plus one hull and one coaxial .30 cal machine guns, and a .50 cal for AA defence.
The Light Platoons used the same organisation, swapping the M4 for the smaller M5 Stuart. The M5 was the upgraded version of the earlier M3 light tank, and had a four man crew of commander, gunner, driver and bow gunner. It was armed with a 37 mm main gun, which was showing its limitations by early 1942 to say the least, plus .30 and .50 cal machine guns as on the Sherman. Early in 1945 some units began to receive the new M24 light tank, which added a loader to the crew increasing overall strength accordingly. The M24 was a faster, sleeker machine than the Stuart, mounting a 75 mm gun and the usual MG armament.
Both the Medium and Light Company HQ added two command tanks of the relevant type, while each Medium Company also had a close support tank, an M4 armed with a 105 mm howitzer.
Summary
The US Army based its use of armoured units on overwhelming numbers. They were designed to be fast, cutting edge units, leading the advance while the Infantry mopped up behind. It never quite seemed to happen that way, but when the opportunity arose for the old cavalry style charge the tankers seized it. Like their British counterparts, they suffered a terrible attrition in their comparatively lightweight vehicles. Losses were so great a modified organisational table was issued in 1944. Each Medium Company lost four tanks, one each in the three Platoons and Company HQ. In the final months of the war, the Armored Divisions drove deep into Nazi Germany, but they had travelled a long, lethal and torturous road to get there.
The United States Armored Infantry Battalion
United States Army Divisional Organisations