United States Army Ranger Battalion
The US Army Rangers were inspired by the Commando units of the British Army. As it transpired, they were never used in the same raider style operations, but a detachment did accompany the Canadian and British troops on the Dieppe raid of 1942. Instead, the Rangers were more usually employed during the beach landings which characterised so many American operations. They were thus more akin to light infantry. Some Infantry Divisions formed small 'Ranger' units for reconnaissance work, but these were ad hoc teams with no official connection to the established battalions.
The Ranger Battalion, circa 1944
Headquarters Company (8 Officers, 88 men)
Battalion Headquarters (7 Officers)
Staff Platoon (1 Officer, 28 men)
Intelligence Section (7 men)
Supply & Transport Platoon (31 men)
Communications Platoon (22 men)
Six Rifle Companies (3 Officers, 65 men), each comprised of;
Company HQ (1 Officer, 3 men)
Two Rifle Platoons, each comprised of;
Platoon HQ (1 Officer, 3 men)
Two Assault Sections, each comprised of 11 men
Weapons Section comprised of 6 men
Total Strength of 504 all ranks (26 Officers and 478 men)
Points of note
The Ranger Company is probably the smallest and leanest company deployed by the United States during the war. Like the British Commando Troop, it boiled a normal Rifle Company down to its bare minimum; two platoons of two squads, each with a small weapons element and the barest command functions. The obvious omission is heavy weapons. HQ Company maintained six 81-mm mortars which one of the Rifle Companies could operate as and when required, but there were no heavy machine guns.
The elements of the Battalion
Headquarters Company - provided the necessary admin and motor pool for the Battalion, plus its command staff and signals.
It also maintained an impressive weapons pool for issue as required. Along with the six 81 mm mortars there were six 60 mm weapons, twenty submachine guns and by mid 1944 ten Bazookas.
The Ranger Company - the Ranger Rifle Company packed considerable punch for its size. Company HQ was no more than an Officer, Sergeant, and runners. Platoon HQ had the same format, but introduced a sniper rifle, the M1903A4, as well. The Assault Section seems to have begun as a normal 12 man squad. In the above formation though, it had split into a five man assault element, a five man machine gun element and a Section leader. The machine gun was the M1919 Browning light machine gun, with NCO, gunner, loader and ammunition bearers. The Weapons Section served a single 60-mm mortar, and there was also a Bazooka available for each Platoon. Only the Officer and Sergeants at the HQ levels carried submachine guns in theory at least, while gunners and loaders had .45-cal pistols, the remainder M1 Rifles.
Summary
The Ranger Battalions provided the US Army with an elite formation which it could entrust with the capture of vital objectives during the many amphibious landings they undertook. The Rangers never got to raid Fortress Europe in the same way as their British counterparts, but they introduced the US to the notion of irregular, special forces, an idea they have today practically patented.
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The United States Infantry Battalion
United States Army Divisional Organisations