$ 52 Million Contract

PERSHING 1-A GIVEN GO -AHEAD

ORLANDO, Fla., Nov. 2 The U. S. Army today announced the award of a 8 52million contract to Martin
Marietta Corporation for a
full production go-ahead on
the Pershing 1-A missile
system.

win A. Rudd is manager for the

project.
The Pershing program director
for Martin Marietta is Nicholas
D. DePasq uale.
The new Pershin, 1-A system
Introduces several Improvements
over the current Pershing equipment deployed in Europe since
1964 with U. S. and West German
The announcement follows by troop unl!JI.
two days the award of an addlThe blg:gest chan1e - but not
tlonal S 10.3 million to Martin the only one - is Jn outward
Marietta for engineering services appearence, with a switch from
and other support actlvities for tracked vehicles to wheels for all
the Army's Jons-range nuclear ground support equipment, inweapon, bringing the contract cluding the erector-launcher.
total to S 62.3 million.
.
The Pershing 1-A improveThe $ 52-mllllon agreement pro- ment pro,gram stems from the
vides tor first-year production of Army's conllnuin1 quest tor a
Improved ground support equip- faster rate of fire 1 lnc~ased re..
ment designed to transport and liability. less maintenance and
launch the 400-mile-range Per- overall lower oosts.
shing missile. Included lo the toRecently, Pershing has taken
tal figure Is a S 5-million incre- on a new and slgnlftcant determent of the contract awarded the rent role - quick reaction alert firm last Au;ust for long-lead- which places It beside other Free
item procurement.
The work will be performed by
Martin Marlett.as' Orlando Division, prime contractor for the
surtacc-to-surfacc ballistic system.
The company also performed the
development work !or the system
under an Army contract issued
In J anuary, 1966.
The production aggreernent Is
an Incentive contract under which
Martin Marlett.a will be rewarded
tor rneetln; or beating speci!ied
requirements, or penalized if performance deadlines are not met.
The contracts were let by the
Army Missile Ccmmand, Redstone
Arsenal, Ala., where Lt. Col. Ed

"PERSHING IN EUROPE"
VOL.1

NO. 6

1/815 T

NOVEMBER 15, 1967

World forces which are kept ready

as a nuclear backu~ against aggression.
The new ground ~ulpment will
feature a hlghly-mobll<O, fastrespondln& erector-launcher which
carries the complete two-stage
missile on a slncle carrier towed
by an eight-wheeled prlm<0 mover.
Other Improvements center on the
programmer/test station, which
provides countdown facilities, and
a completely new battery control
central linked by communications
to hicher headquarters !or use as
a command POst.
Under the new concept, eadi.
firing battery will have severa I
missiles, each on Its own erectorlauncher. The system Is engineered for rap1d movement from one
firing position to the next and
can be transported In C-130 aircraft.
There will be no chani:e, under the Pl-A system, I<> the basic
34-foot missile.

COMMEMORATES 4TH ANNIVERSARY

WACKERNHEIM
A
formal organization day rev iew was conducted on October 26 to commemorate the
4th anniversary of the 1st
Battalion, 81st Artillery as a
Pershing battalion.
What Is now the !St BattaUon,

81st Artillery, was. originally or-

horse mounted cavalry unlt.s were

becoming ineffective and so the

ganized as a horse mounted ca"alry outfit at Ft. Oglethorpe,

Georgia on June 21, 1917. LMer
that year the unit served under
the command of General John J.
Pershing in an effort to holt a
border Incident lnvolvln& the Unlt<ld States and Mexico.
It soon became apparent that

81st was rcdeslgnatcd as Battery

A, 81st Field Artillery on November 3, 1917. Their weaPon was

the 75mm gun (French 75).

In December of 1917, the 8th
Division was activated and the
8ht was assigned to the Division

Somethlnc new fn ,:roall<I eqnlpment for the PEllSBINO mbolle SJ'1tem

la the Improved ereelor-laandler, len. currently 'IUl<ler development
for the U. s. Arm:,.

along with two other artillery regiments. The 81st remained with
the 8th D!vlsion until November 1,
1918 when it entered World War
I at Brest, France. Only two days
after arriving In Europe the arSCHWAEBISCH GMUEND, Control Center. Communications
mistice ending the war was slc
and other mission relaLieutenant Section
nod. Therefore, the 81st never had November 6 ted areas. Climaxing the tour of
the opportunity to take part In General Meyers, G-3 of the the site was a countdown of a Peractual combal
Army's Joint Chiefs of Staff, shing Missile.
Returning lo the States late in I
The men then called on the
December of 1918, tho 8111 was toured the field site of Bravo Bravo field mess site for lunch as
assigned to Ft. Bragg, North Ca- Battery, 4th Battalion, 41st a conclusion to the orientational
rolina, where it remained for Artillery this morning, retour.
three years and on February l, ceiving briefings and orien1922 was inactivated.
The unit remained Inactivated tations on the operations and
!or 18 years until June 12, 1940 mission of the battalion.
when. at Ft. Lewis, Washington ,
Arriving by helicopter, the ge- A WARDS PRESENTED
it was reactivated as Battery A, neral was met by ~6th Group
!st Battalion, 81st Artillery and Commander, Colonel Patrick Posent to Anchorage, Alaska, On wers; Major William Taylor, and
December 16, 1940, all elements Bravo Battery commander, CapWACKERNHEIM - Awards
of the 81st weN! activated and tain Joseph Siraco.
After a 30-mlnute briefing, tho presentations were conducted
sent to Alaska to combine with
Battery A formln& the 81st Field group, ac~ompanled by tho bat- along with the Organization
w l Artlllery Battalion.
talion S-3, Major Robert Lamons,
(Cont. Page 4 Col l J conducted tours of the Battery Day parade on October 26.

GEN MEYERS BRIEFED BY 4141ST

~:;;hlllips, CO of lhe l/8ll~ ~atdles ~is ~ ~ d ~s:n-=

du.rin1 recent orcanizaUGn day ae&lvHle1.

USAREUR RECOGNIZES 56TH GROUP'S AIRCRAFT SAFETY RECORD

The Aviation Sections of
36th Artillery Group Headquarters and its three attached battalions recently
received Certificates of Merit
'from USAREUR for maintaining zero aircraft accident
rates for fiscal year 1967.

~
.

ColoMl George w. Pickell noted that this achievement was

particularly noteworthy "because
of the aviation personnel and
equipment turbulence
which
existed during the period."
Group

Commander

Colonel

Powers added that the receipt of

thl:,: award "means muc::h more
that just the !&ck of aircraft accidC!nt~ d uring a .specified period.
Such an award is indicative of a

sound
maintenance program,
quallllcd pilots and support
personn el. proper supervision,
a nd command emphasis.''

Plyillg in formation, four helicopters of the 3184th pass over Artillery Kaaeme.

AT1/81ST

Lieutenant Colonel Phillips,

the CO of the 1st Battalion,
81st Artillery presented the
awards.

Bronze Star Medals we~e awarded to Chaplain (CPT) Lloyd E.

Kincaid Jr. and SP5 Richard A.
Melcho, both of Headquarters Battery. SFC George H. Jarmon of
Service Battery received a Certificate of Achievement , and CW3
Franky M. Donahoo, Headquarters Battery, accepted the safety
award for the Aviation Section.
Soldier of the Quarter went to
SP4 Ronald H. Pope from D Battery. Service Battery won the
reenl.lstment plaque for the month
and It was presented to SSC Charles E. Kitchens.
Plaques for outstancllng driver
and wrecker operator of the month
were presented to SP4 Thomas J .
Simpson of A Battery.
Outstanding light vehlcle and
heavy vehicle drivers ot the
month awards went to SP4s Ed
ward J . Proulx of B Battery and
Cedric D. Farris of Service Battery respectively.

THE GIANT GETS NEW LEGS

The U. s. ARMY"s PERSHING MISSILE under,oes tests on an improved en,ctorlauncher in Orlando, Florida. Mounted on rubber tires instead ot tracked vehicles, the new Pershing lA around equipment carrlto the complete missile on one carrier pulled by an
M-656 prime mover. The missile Is cradled on the last-erecting launcher which tervH as
its own launch pad. At rear ls the new pro1rammer/test station which serves as power THE PERSHING MISSILE undergoes rapid ~~on tests by Martin Marietta encineers
supply and countdown vehicle.
at Orlando, Florida, s part of a development prosram o! second generation around support equipment for the system.

LAUNCH CONTROL EQUIPMENT. The Improved Procrammer-Test Statlon and Power

Station tor the U. S, Army's Pershtn1 1- A missile system are mounted on an M-65G
carrier. The power station, at rear of vehicle, provide, energy for tbe enUn, system.
The programmer-test station provides.the means tor missile checkout and countdown. It
Is equipped with computer control devices and Is capable o! aut<>matlc selttest and ma!
function is.olatlon. Modern electronic packa&inc. featuring plus-In mlcromodules, allom
the operator to perform repairs right at the flrln& site.
(Cont. from P I Col3J
r
On September 3, 1944, the
8151 enter ed World War II, In
Europe, as a tractor drawn 155mm
howiuer unit. Whlle in Europe
the unit won three battle streamers !or Its participation in the
Rhineland Ardannes..Alsacc and
Central E1.1rope campaigns.
After VE Day the Battalion
was ordered to proceed to Marseille, France for dabarkatlon to
1

the Pacific Theater. However, VJ

most powerful weapon, named

after the man under whom It
first served, General J"ohn J.
Pershing.

(Cont. !rem P. 2 Col. 51

packed snow are three to 12 ti
mes greater than on dry pavement.

5. Allow other motorists a

wide margin of safety, remembering that they may also be having
difficulty w ith traction.

Day came before the battalion

6. Expect slippery roac). surfaces
departed and so it returned to around every curve, on bridges,
the States In February 1946. On In shaded areas, when passing to
February 7. the battalion was a different type of road surface,
inactivated for the second time in and when the sun goes clown.
its history.
7. Give signals In such a manFrom January 1946 to May ner that the other driver wlll
1954 the battalion went through have time to apply proper winterseve-ral short phases of activation driving t.edmiques. rememberini
and inacthation. On May 15, 1954, that poor weather conditions afthe battalion aaaln was reacti- fect stopping and slowing distanvated at Ft. Jockscn, North Caro- ces.
lina as a 155mm howitzer unlt
To support the USAREUR sauntil the summec of 1956 when fety program, the European Exthe bnttalinn was transferred to chanee Service (EES) garages will
Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, and re- continue t<> give tree mechanical
duced to battery size where It inspections to privately owned
became the 81st Field Artillery vehicles during the month of NoRocket Ba tt~ry /Honest John).
vember.
After being Inactivated again
Although the Inspection Is free,
in 1957, lhe 81st reactivated as required replacement parts and
a Corporal Missile Battalion In labor wUl be charged to the ve1958 and was assigned to Fl hicle owner at usual EES prices.
Hood, Texas and later to Ft. Car
son, Colorado.
The ba1talion remained at Ft.
Carsen until 1961 when, for the
second time in four years, It was
inactivated again. After two years
o! inactivation the unit was reac
tivated at Ft. Sill on February 27,
1963 as the 1st Battalion, 81st
Artillery. Its weapon this time was
\he Army's newest, the Pershing
Mis~ilc.

In the Battalion's 47 year history It has participated in one

war, prepared tor another, and
has lraine-d for a third. Its wea ..
pons have consisted of the 75mm
gun, 155mm howitzer, 8 lnch howlt.zer and two generations of
rockets and missiles. Today, the
81st is armed with the Army's

GROUND SUPPORT equipment for the Pershing missile system Includes the battery
control central (BCC) bcina developed under tho Perahlns l A proaram. Dosicncd to
1lve the battery commander a better means to control and monitor tirlnc s.ite actlvitle~,
the BCC is mounted in an expando-van at<>p an M-656 truck and Is linked by radio
with higher headquarters.

SP/4 WHITE NAMED SCANDINAVIAN BOXING CHAMP

W ACKERNHEIM
The
USAR EUR welterweight
boxing champion, SP4 Israel
R. White of Headquarters
Battery, 1st Battalion, 8lstArt illery recently returned from
a most successful boxing tour
of the Scandinavian Region.
SP4 White was represenUn& the
Ut Battalion, 81st Artillery while
travelln& with the 1st Brl&ade,
8th Division boxln-" team.

Eadi member o! the team fought

two three round fights during 1he
tour. SP4 White's first tight came
In Stockholm, Sweden aaalnst the
Swedish Olympic Champion whom
he defeated bv a unanimous decision. From Stockholm, the team
moved on to a small town in
Northern Sweden called Pl1ae,
where White !ought the junior
champion of the Northern Scandinavian Re&lon. Again White deteated his foe by a unanimous
decision.

Two Swedish newspapers car-

ried articles on the fights and

bolh praised White's lighting
abllltles.
After the tour, White returned
to Lee Barracks In Mainz and
participated ln a tournament held
Saturday, 28 October. He notched
another victory in defeating the
light heavyweight champion from
the 3rd Brlaade by a technical
knod<out. His next scheduled tight
Is Saturday, II November In
Mannheim, Germany.

WEIGHTLIFTINGCLASSESTOBE HELDFOR4/4IST
SCHWAEBISCH GMUEND
- Weightlifting and bodybuilding classes have been set
up for 4/4lst perso1U1el announces Hardt Gymnasium
Instructor Doug Beard.
The instructions are slated for
1900 hours Mondays, Wednesdays,
and Fridays, and will Include lifting and bodybuilding techniques by Doug, a former wights
champion in Mannheim and
USAREUR competitions.
"With the USAREUR tltle-Ulting to get underway sometime in
February or March", Specialist
Beard notes the "aood chances of
4141st taking some titles."
The competitions arc divided
Into eight weight classes, starting
at 110 pounds for the Bant.amwcl&ht division, ond progressing
to 198'1, or over for the Heavyweight division.

Winners are determined on a

basis of totaled points gained In
the three olymplc llfts: the snatch,
the press. and the clean jerk.
"The Open Divisions", he adds.
"will be open to all USAREUR
personnel, regardless of liftin-" experience. while the Novice Divi ..
sions allow only those without
previous wel&ht experience."

Predicting good results for

those willing to try for the Hel
delburg trials. Doug notes that.
"thP. novice competitions is not
that hard. and I'm sure that many
here In the battalion could take
titles at USAREUR 1his year, if
they will take the ti me to work
out regularly",

BATTERYB 3184TH LOSES

7 TH ARMY FOOTBALL PLAYOFF
NECKARSULM - Battery
B, 3rd Battalion, 84th Artillery lost in the 7th Army
Southern Region flag football
playoffs to Headquarters,
384th MPs in an October 30
game played at Wilkens

Barracks, Ludwigsburg, by a
15-13 score.
Battery B scored on two
Nakasone-Zeagler passes, but
were overtaken on three field
goals by the 384th MPs.