Military Tidbits

As a rough rule of thumb, it takes about 1 year to move large bodies of troops up 1 level of competence when in a war situation. Thus when forces are starting from scratch, you would expect the following progression:

0: Untrained militia. Capable of doing one thing at a time, very slowly. Liable to do unpredictable and unplanned actions at any time (fleeing in blind panic, massacring civilians out of hand, failing to carry out the most simple of tasks. Able to cover minimal distance of travel in one day.

1-2: Trained militia. Capable of doing one thing at a time effectively, or two things at a time slowly and with difficulty. Can sit tight and hold a position with some ease, but finds it much harder to both move and fight. Able to cover moderate distances of travel in one day.

2-3: Competent professional. Capable of doing two things at a time effectively (move and fight), and more than two things at a time with difficulty (conduct a fighting withdrawal). Can take simple positions effectively, but gets snagged up on complex defenses (such as those defended by troops capable of counter-attacks).

3-4: Well-trained professional.

4+: War-weary professional. Capable of carrying out anything you want them to, but only too well aware of their own mortality, and well able to calculate the risk calculations. Likely to avoid putting themselves into harms way.

Every Day Operational Things
Operational Evolution	Man-Time Needed
Roman Legionaries Building 100m of Military Road over Grassland	40 Man Hours
Roman Legionaries Building 100m of Military Road over Heathland	450 Man Hours
Roman Legionaries Building 100m of Military Road over Forest	600 Man Hours
Average Number of 88mm Shells Needed to Shoot down 1 Heavy Bomber	3,343 Shells (at 80 RM each)
Emplacing 1 ton of Mines (Enough to cover 100m of frontage)	10 Man Hours
Daily maintenance needed to keep a light vehicle in operation (e.g. M113) and in excellent mechanical shape	4 Man Hours
Daily maintenance needed to keep a heavy vehicle in operation (e.g. M60) and in excellent mechanical shape	8 Man Hours
Converting one M4A3 to “Jumbo” Configuration with armor cut from destroyed tanks.	85 Man Hours
Assembling one Waco CG-4A Glider from the five crates it was shipped in	250~ Man Hours
Removing paralketone protective grease from deck-loaded aircraft (1943)	200 Man Hours
Removing protective plastic coatings from deck-loaded aircraft (1944)	3-4 Man Hours
Removing cosmoline from one M-1 Rifle	3~ Man Hours
Preparing one M4 Medium tank for issue at Ordnance Depots	50~ Man Hours
Converting one M4 Medium tank to carry a 76mm Gun	150 Man Hours
Time between Overhauls
Thing	Hours
B-17 (1940)	4,000 Flying Hours (30-60 Months Service)
B-17 (1944)	8,000 Flying Hours (84 Months Service)
R-1820 Engine (1939)	300-375 Hours
R-1820 Engine (1945)	500-650 Hours
Man Hours of Maintenance Needed Per Flying Hour
F-117A Nighthawk	150 Man Hours
F-15A/B Eagle	32.3 Man Hours
F-16A Fighting Falcon	19.2 Man Hours
F-16C/D Fighting Falcon	22.1 Man Hours
AV-8A Harrier	30.3 Man Hours
AV-8B Harrier	15.5 Man Hours
A-10 Thunderbolt II	22 Man Hours
F-104G Starfighter	45 Man Hours
A-7 Corsair II	25 Man Hours
B-17 Flying Fortress	19.5 Man Hours
B-47 Stratojet	47 Man Hours
B-36 Peacemaker	92 Man Hours
B-52 Stratofortress	117 Man Hours
T-38 Talon	14.8 Man Hours
T-33	9.8 Man Hours
F-4 Phantom II	35 Man Hours
F-5 Freedom Fighter	10 Man Hours
F/A-18E Super Hornet	15 Man Hours
F/A-18C Hornet	20 Man Hours
F-14 Tomcat	60 Man Hours
Bell Model 47G Helicopter	1 to 2 Man Hours

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One hidden cost is maintenance. Richard Anderson of the Dupuy institute sent me the following

"For instance, in WO 169/3861 (Eighth Army) there is a document from the G(AFV) Branch dated 'End Sept.' [1942] headed "Tank Overhaul Programme." It gives the overhaul mileage limit/annual mileage rate/time in workshops for overhaul (weeks) as:

Tank	overhaul mileage limit	annual mileage rate	time in workshops for overhaul (weeks)
Crusader	1200	3000	8
Valentine	2500	3000	8
Matilda	1000	3000	8
Stuart	3500	3000	4
Grant	1500	3000	8

You can see why the Valentine chassis remained in service as a 17 pounder SP in 1944/45.

To the above has to be added the Crusader was designed for Europe, and had engine cooling problems in the desert.

The figures are interesting, if the Sherman was as reliable as the Grant and you allow each tank drives twice as far as the army advances then O'Connor's (1941) and Montgomery's drive to El Agheila (1942) would have meant most of the tank force was due for an overhaul when they arrived. I have been told most of the tanks used in 1940/41 were not used again, but it would be good to confirm this. Such steady attrition would go a long way to explaining the options available to the commanders. Given the lack of tank transporters sending replacement tanks via the ports was vital. After all driving a Matilda from Cairo to El Agheila would just about mean an 8 week overhaul upon arrival. Once, of course, the workshop equipment and spares were in place to actually do the work.

It does confirm stories of how much of a problem Matildas were (and also the Crusaders) and how good the Valentines were. In effect if your Matilda does it's 3000 miles in a year it will spend 24 weeks out of action. If a Stuart does its' 3000 miles in a year it will spend 3 to 4 weeks out of action, a big difference. If I have 52 Matildas then I really have 28 given maintenance requirements whereas I have around 48 to 49 out of my 52 Stuarts. No to mention I would expect the probability of breakdown per mile driven would be higher for the higher maintenance vehicles. I presume the time in the workshops is a function of maintenance staff as well as the length of the overhaul.

It would be interesting to contrast the British figures with the German tank figures.

I suspect the dust and hard stony ground meant the tanks needed more maintenance in the desert. Even so at 1500 miles most of Patton's tanks arriving on the German border in 1944 would be running close to their overhaul requirements.

The Panther needed an engine rebuild every 1,500 km, or around 1,000 miles. Towards the end of 1941 General Halder noted the Czech tank designs had proved more reliable than the German.

Water Requirements (In Gallons/Per Man/Per Day)
	Company	Battalion	Brigade	Division	Above Division
Arctic	4.4	7.2	7.6	7.6	8.4
Arid	5.9	8.7	11.1	11.9	18.4
Temperate	3.9	6.6	7	7	7.8
Tropic	5.7	8.5	8.9	8.9	9.9

Supplies needed for each Soldier in a Combat Zone
Consumption Per Man Day	lb/man/day	kg/man/day
Class I (subsistence)	6.72	3.05
Class II (Clothing, tents, packs)	3.17	1.44
Class III (POL)	0.59	0.27
Class IV (Construction Material)	4	1.81
Class V (Ammunition)	79.96	36.27
Class VI (PX Items)	3.4	1.54
Class VII (Major End Items)	34.17	15.5
Class VIII (Medical Supplies)	1.1	0.5
Class IX (Repair Parts)	1.91	0.87
TOTALS	135.02	61.24

Cargo Density by Supply Class	Imperial		Metric
Cargo Density by Supply Class		lb	cubic ft	kg	cubic meter
Class I (subsistence)	11.29	1	181.29	1
Class II (Clothing, tents, packs)	10.28	1	165.07	1
Class III (POL)	18.45	1	296.25	1
Class IV (Construction Material)	13.11	1	210.51	1
Class V (Ammunition)	19.72	1	316.65	1
Class VI (PX Items)	12.19	1	195.74	1
Class VII (Major End Items)	10.21	1	163.94	1
Class VIII (Medical Supplies)	6.15	1	98.75	1
Class IX (Repair Parts)	12.91	1	207.3	1

Construction Requirements per Mile of Std Gauge Single Track Railroads
Item	Short Tons	Metric Tons	Man Hours
Grading (includes clearing average wooded terrain)	-	-	5.000
Ballast delivered, average haul—5 miles (8.05 km)	-	-	2.500
Tracklaying and surfacing	-	-	3.400
Bridging - 70 linear feet (21.34 m)	128	111	3.200
Culverts. 7 per mile--280 feet (85.34 m)	8	7	1.400
Ties-2,900	218	300	-
Rail. 90-pound--ARA--A Section	79	45	-
115-pound--ARA--E Section	103	57	-
Fastening (based on 39-foot rail) (11.89 m)	33	10	-
Total	569	530	15.500

Rehabilitation Requirements for a 100-Mile, Standard Gauge, Single Track Railroad Division
Item	Per 100 Miles (161 km)	Percent of Demolition	Rehabilitation (quantity)	Construction STONs	Material MTs	Man-Hours (Thousands)
Main line trackage	100 mi	10	7.0 mi	2,708	1,033	36.4
Port trackage²	-	100	3.0 mi	1,368	1,092	14.4
Passing sidings²	2.4 mi	80	2.4 mi	1,049	874	11.5
Station sidings²	1.6 mi	80	1.6 mi	730	532	7.7
Railway terminal^2,3	1.0 ea	75	0.75 ea	8,025	4,875	160.0
Water stations	3.0 ea	100	3.00 ea	135	210	9.0
Fuel stations	1.0 ea	100	1.00 ea	19	16	0.9
Bridging (70 ft per mile)	7,000	55	2,700 linear ft	2,700	2,672	70.0
Culverts	28.000 linear ft	15	4,200 linear ft (74 ea)	63	63	13.7
Grading and ballast	-	-	-	-	-	40.5

German Munitions Production in World War II
Designation	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945
K. 98 k (Mauser)	279,863	1,081,234	913,875	1,075,122	1,794,39?	1,922,482	347,052
K. 98 k ZF (Telescopic Sights)	None	None	5,922	23,567	57,255	35,632	3,915
G. 24 (t)	None	77.000	101.800	151.250	None	None	None
G. 29 (p)	None	69.503	180.208	119.997	None	None	None
G. 29/40	None	300	None	None	None	None	None
G. 33/40	None	29.000	48.049	54.454	None	None	None
G. 41 (M)	None	None	1,673	None	None	None	None
G. 41 (W)	None	None	5,000	6,778	91.597	24.532	None
G. 43	None	None	None	None	3.209	277.862	68.207
G. 43 ZF	None	None	None	None	None	21.936	31.499
People's rifle	None	None	None	None	None	None	53.033
Fallschirmjaeger Gewehr	None	None	None	None	None	524	3.873
Infantry Guns
Designation	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945
le. I.G. 18	290	850	1.115	1.188	1.965	2.309	549
I.G. 37	None	None	None	None	None	2.279	None
I.G. 42	None	None	None	None	None	258	269
s.I.G. 33	48	310	492	420	862	1613	410
Anti-Tank Rifles (Panzerbüchse)
Designation	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945
Panzerbüchse 38	703	705	None	None	None	None	None
Panzerbüchse 39	None	9.645	29.587	None	None	None	None
schwere Panzerbüchse 41	None	94	349	1.030	1.324	None	None
Gr. B. 39	None	None	None	1.416	26.607	None	None
Anti Tank Rifle Grenade Production (For Panzerbüchses)
Designation	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945
Patrone 318	780,0	1.864,1	4.726,9	2.046,4	None	None	None
s.Pz.B. 41 Sprenggranate	None	None	9,2	373,3	130,1	None	None
s.Pz.B. 41 Panzergranate	None	156,2	889,5	270,0	287,1	None	None
Mortar Production
Designation	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945
5-cm-Gr.W. 36	1.630	6.622	5.815	8.775	3.000	None	None
8-cm-Gr.W. 34	1.523	4.380	4.230	9.780	19.588	26.341	5.788
8-cm-Gr.W. 42	None	None	None	None	1.591	None	None
12-cm-Gr.W. 42	None	None	None	None	3.367	4.557	537
10-cm-Nb.W. 35	110	279	238	None	None	None	None
10-cm-Nb.W. 40	None	294	23	None	None	None	None
21-cm-Gr.W. 69	None	None	None	None	None	33	96
M.Gr.W. M 19	64	None	None	None	None	None	None
l. Ldg.W.	None	27	131	None	None	None	None
s. Ldg.W.	None	None	42	None	None	None	None

Warship Operating Costs
Warship	Construction Cost	Yearly Operating Cost	Percentage
Spruance -Class DD		$35 Million (FY 96)
Ticonderoga-Class CG		$28 Million (FY 96)
Arleigh Burke-Class DDG		$20 Million (FY 96)
Virginia Class CGN	$675 Million (FY90) $827.10 Million (FY 96 Calculated)	$40 Million (FY 96)	4.8%
California Class CGN		$40 Million (FY 96)

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IIRC, a hole the size of a letter-sized piece of paper, 1 meter (3'4") below water will admit 600 tons water/hour into a ship. Holes don't have to be large to let in lots of water - it's possible the water shorted some part of the electrical system, and brought the whole system down.

-- Pengolodh

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It doesn't matter how big the hole is, if it can't be stopped and a flooding perimeter established, the ship will sink. My guess here would be that the ship's design didn't allow a flooding perimeter to be established.

--Seer Stuart

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