War Daddy - Tank Ace of Aces

It is June 1944, Normandy and the 3rd Armored Division land on Omaha White Beach, near Isigny, France. Riding atop his Sherman is Texan

tank

commander Lafayette G. Pool. His crew has been training hard and has yet to see battle, but this aggressive young sergeant trusts the group of misfits he commands. He calls them his puppies. Men have called him "War Dad"! They have been sent to confront the Germans near the commune of Villiers-Fossard. His Sherman is called "In The Mood." Ready for battle, the mood of Commander Pool and his crew is far from the easy tunes of Glenn Miller.

At 6'3 he is tight for the Texas giant in the

tank

. That's why he likes the fresh air on his face, towering over the Sherman Tower like a cowboy on an iron beast. They are in the 32nd Armored Regiment, 3rd Armored Division, who they nicknamed the 3rd Herd... The fighting is tough, but he goes up against some of the best: In his own words, he described his crew : "My driver was PFC Wilbert." Richards, five foot four at full attention. We called him "Baby." He could have parallel parked that big Sherman in downtown New York during rush hour.

Then “Cpl. Bert "School Boy" Close, seventeen years old, still with peach fuzz on his kind face, co-pilot and machine gunner to the stars. “Del Boggs, my loader, had been arrested on charges of involuntary manslaughter. The court gave him the choice between prison or the army. What else could we call it but "Jailbird"? Corporal Willis Oller was my gunner. I often boasted that he could shoot a mosquito in the eyebrows at 5,000 feet with our seventy-six millimeter pistol. The prints from the tanker's glasses permanently stained his face. We never referred to him by any name other than "Ground Hog." 'In The Mood' found itself at the forefront of a spearhead.

We would like to thank Richard Cutland, formerly Royal Tank Regiment and currently working for Wargaming, and the excellent podcast The Finest Half Hour, for explaining Spearhead. The term "armored spearhead", as the name suggests, was given to the tanks that formed the front of the offensive, the first to come into contact and the first to receive enemy fire. In simple terms, a way to deliver effective concentrated fire on the target and, in theory, quickly overwhelm the enemy. The assault was usually followed by supporting foot infantry, which also critically covered the flanks, but this all depended on the tactical situation and terrain.

Tanks at the “tip of the spear” in terrain that had many obstructions were the main enemy targets. Tanks had limited situational awareness and without infantry were susceptible to things like anti-tank guns. It is a risky tactic if done incorrectly, as the potential for an enemy counterattack, especially on flanks supported by infantry, is a constant threat. Only the bravest wanted to lead the spearhead and Lafayette G. Pool and his men showed true courage by doing so repeatedly. A German soldier, undercover, prepares a Panzerfaust. Translated into English, "tank fist", as the name suggests, is a devastating anti-tank weapon and aims directly at "In The Mood".

Thunder and a cloud of smoke. You hear the cry “incoming mail!” and a colossal impact shakes the tank, leaving ringing in the ears and nervousness. It's enough to put the Sherman out of action. Pool and his men escape. They had a good, if short, six-day streak between June 23 and the 29th. But it's far from the end of their story. Shortly after, they find themselves again inside another Sherman, the 'In The Mood 2'. On August 7, Pool and his men enter the Battle of Falaise Pocket, part of the legendary Operation Overlord. With the German forces surrounded by the Allies, Pool finds himself in Fromental Village in central France, driving the German troops from the scene.

He's right in front of Spearhead, just the way he likes it. Driving a wedge between the Germans, he gets on the radio and jokingly says, "I don't have the heart to kill." They're close." In the middle of the battle, Pool is at the front mopping up the Germans when explosions rock the "In The Mood" and it's clear it's being bombed. The tank is destroyed and the men run away. The most likely reason This was due to a friendly fire incident involving a Lockheed P-38 Lightning Pool, famous for having a bad temper and a big right hook, so the pilot responsible was right to keep his head down, but with 2 tanks down!

The undefeated takes on another Sherman... you can probably guess what it was called... but it's not a case of third time lucky. Moving to Belgium, another Panther is about to cross paths. Commander Pool's rolling power simply destroyed several enemy personnel carriers and returned to find a Panther attacking the head of the column. “Groundhog” unleashes the 76mm gun war dogs and adds another Panther to the column. long list of victories. It seems like nothing can stop them as they all work together as a team. Leading a column heading to the Siegfried Line. This key defensive line has to be opened, and if anyone is going to do it, it's not some dumb kid from Texas, Lafayette G.

Pool and his men. As they advance towards the line, they come face to face with a Panther tank, which attacks them at point-blank range...twice! 'In The Mood 3' dodges the attack and 'Groundhog' puts the enemy in its sights. He shoots. It's just one hit, but is it powerful enough to break armor? There is a huge explosion inside and the turret flies away under the pressure. As they move forward, Jailbird needs his ears checked and is temporarily replaced by Private First Class Paul King. In Münsterbusch, a city in western Germany. The Germans have tried to hide a weapon inside a house.

The experienced soldier Pool realizes the ambush and detects the danger. He orders his loader to prepare to fire. The substitute, Private First Class Paul King, jams the gun. By all accounts, Pool's words that day are, "Back off, baby!" The next sound is a big explosion. The Panther has attacked. Pool falls to the ground, where his right leg bends. The king has been murdered. In an extraordinary display of wartime courage, Pool administers a morphine anesthetic and begins removing his damaged leg with nothing more than a pocket knife. Unaware of this horrific event, the rest of the crew tries to get their bearings.

The Panther again attempts to attack the Sherman as it attempts to retreat to safety. At the edge of a ditch. 'In The Mood 3' changes, ending Pool's brief but incredible career as a tank ace. During the 81 days they traveled in those 3 Shermans, Pool and his crew killed more than a thousand enemy soldiers. 12 tanks in total felt the wrath of "In The Mood", and 258 armored vehicles added to the destruction. He received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Legion of Merit, the Silver Star, the Purple Heart, the Fourragère and the Legion of Honor. Pool returned to Texas, got a prosthetic leg, and rejoined the Army as an instructor before retiring in 1960.

If you liked this video, please comment and share. Please also consider supporting us on Patreon so we can make more videos like this. If you would like to learn more about Pool, we highly recommend visiting The Third Armored Divisions site. Thanks again to Richard Cutland from Wargaming. You can hear more from Richard on the excellent podcasts Tank Nuts and The Finest Half Hour. All links are in the description below.