This chapter puts together a picture of how all of the Signal Air Warning Battalions involved in the Invasion of Germany operated in a coordinated combat action and will outline the progress by phases of battle.

In reviewing the histories available it indicated that in some of the Battalions, some of the sites were not reported in the unit histories. Several of the Battalions did not report any ground observer posts.

To begin with here is a list of the Command of the Battalions as listed in the unit histories with rank at that time.

    555th SAW Bn   Lt Col Albert J. Gilardi     CO
                   Cap William Q. Quartz        Exec O

    563rd SAW Bn  Lt Col William L. McBride     CO
                  Maj  Maurice E. Byrne         Exec O

    564th SAW Bn  Lt Col George M Higginson     CO
                  Maj Raymond F. O'Pray         Exec O

    566th SAW Bn  Lt Col Mason H. Miller        CO
                  Maj Albert E. Opdenweyer      Exec O

    573rd SAW Bn  Lt Col Robert H. Eberle       CO
                  Maj William Preece            EXEC O

    582nd SAW Bn  Lt Col Wilbert Speir          CO
                  Maj Harold L. Long            EXEC O

    593rd SAW Bn  Lt Col Edward C. Danford      CO
                  Maj Emil O. Lindner           EXEC O

Editors Note-----The bulk of 19TCG personnel were members of the 566th Signal Air Warning Headquarters and Headquarters Company. The remainder were assigned from the 100th Fighter Wing Headquarters Squadron)

     555TH SAW Bn  Landed at Omaha Beach    from England
     563rd SAW Bn  Landed at Omaha Beach    from England
     564th SAW Bn  Landed at Omaha Beach    from England
     566th SAW Bn  Landed at Omaha Beach    from England 
     573rd SAW Bn  Landed at Omaha Beach    from England
     582nd SAW Bn  Landed at Gelna, France  from Italy
     593rd SAW Bn  Landed at Gelna, France  from Italy

Elements of the 555th SAW Bn made an assault landing on the Normandy D-Day on 6 June 1944.

Elements of the 582nd SAW Bn made an assault landing on the Southern France and that D-Day on 15 August.

The locations of all of the combat operation sites occupied by the Signal Air Warning Battalion Headquarters, their Radar Locations and their Ground Observer Team locations from the unit histories. At the time of this edition all the locations possible were extracted from the unit histories found in the microfilm records of the Air Force Historical Research Agency located at Maxwell Field, Alabama.

All such locations were recorded by the 555th SAW Bn who operated with the IX TAC/First Army group. In their unit history they almost always reported the exact map grid coordinate and/or the name of the town the location was near.

The 563rd SAW Bn who operated with the XIX TAC/Third Army group reported all locations in their unit history giving the exact map grid coordinate as well as the nearest town.

The 566th SAW Bn started out operating under the IX Air Defense Command. In the winter of 1944 the 566th SAW Bn Headquarters Company was assigned to the 19th Tactical Control Group to staff the 19 h TCG headquarters. Some of their units were converted to Telephone Cable Operating units and operated under the IX Air Defense Command (ADC). The remaining Companies operated radar sites and ground observer posts for the IX ADC. Units of the 566th SAW Bn were well reported but there was no reference to which Tactical Control Center their radar and ground observers were reporting to.

In the unit history of the 582nd SAW Bn some of the locations, after landing in Southern France and during operations in the fall of 1944 in the earlier phases of the battle some locations were not recorded in their history. None of the ground observer team locations were reported in their unit history.

The 582nd SAW Bn operated with the XII TAC/Seventh Army group which also supported the First French Army. The headquarters of the 582nd SAW Bn and the 593rd SAW Bn headquarters were always located in the same vicinity and for that reason the 593rd SAW Bn, in their unit history, did not report locations. Both the 582nd SAW Bn and the 593rd SAW Bn were assigned to the 64th Fighter Wing which commanded the fighter/bomber control units under the XII TAC. In the unit history of the 582nd SAW Bn the exact map coordinates were not reported. The radar sites were reported by the location of the nearest town. At times the actual operation site could perhaps be two or more miles from the town.

The 564th SAW Bn reported to the IX Air Defense Command and also supported the Air Defense Command Anti Aircraft Artillery operations centers. Some of the Locations of sites of the 564th SAW Bn were not reported in their unit history and no record was reported in their unit history of their Ground Observer Platoon and Post locations.

The 573rd SAW Bn started out in the IX Air Defense Command when they crossed the channel and in the winter of 1944 they were then assigned to the XXIX TAC/Ninth Army Air Coordination Group for the penetration of Germany.

In the suceeding report the combat sequences sill be listed by phases as shown in the book "West Point Atlas of American Wars". The phases to be shown are as follows:

    Normandy Landing Operations    from 06-12 Jun       1944
    Capture of Cherbourg Phase     from 13-30 Jun       1944
    Expanding the Beachhead Phase  from 01-24 Jul       1944
    The Breakout                   from 01-13 Aug       1944
    The Exploitation               from 14-25 Aug       1944
    Pursuit to the West Wall       from 26 Aug-05 Sep   1944
    Winter Operations              from 16 Sep-15 Dec   1944
    Ardennes Campaign              from 16 Dec-07 Feb   1944
    Rhineland Campaign             from 08 Feb-09 Mar   1945
    Rhine River Crossing           from 20-08 Mar       1945
    Reduction of the Rhur Pkt      from 29 Mar-04 Apr   1945
    Advance to the Elbe Rver       from 05-18 Apr       1945
    Final Operations               from 19 Apr-07 May   1945

Elements of five divisions made the OVERLORD Amphibious assault landings. At Dawn on D-Day the Eighth Air Force struck hard with 1,083 heavy bombers. At H-Hour British and American Light Warning Radar were landed on the Beach. The headquarters of the 555th Signal Air Warning Battalion made an assault landing at Omaha Beach and went into position in the afternoon. On D-Day the men moved their equipment over the beach and into the shelter of a draw east of St. Laurent-sur-Mer. By early morning the next day the LW Radars were on the air and were reporting aircraft. FDP1 was in operation on D+1 and FDP3 was in operation on D+6.

To the Germans the landing came as a surprise. Air attacks had destroyed much of their own radar. Overpowering Allied air attack caused heavy losses to the Germans who were attempting to concentrate on the beach area. In short order the Allied Fighters had attained complete Air superiority and had destroyed much of the German Air Force.

The British pounded Caen and Bradley's U.S. First Army was directed to clear out the Cherbourg Peninsula with his U.S. VII Corps. On 13 June Bradley's U.S. V and U.S. XIX Corps became operational. On 15 June Bradley's U.S. VIII Corps became operational. The Germans at the city of Cherbourg refused a surrender ultimatum and were battered by the U.S. VII Corps accompanied with overwhelming air support and Cherbourg apitulated on 27 June.

The 555th Signal Air Warning Battalion put the Headquarters GCI radar into operation on 16 June and FDP2 and LW2 of the 555th SAW Battalion went into operation on 19 June.

The British Army was in a stalemate, elements of eleven German divisions were opposed to Bradlwy's First Army.

The 563rd Signal Air Warning Battalion started landing on 2 July and FDP1 was in operation on that day. FDP3 and Battalion Headquarters of the 563rd SAW Battalion were operational on 3 July. FDP2, LW2, LW1 and LW3 of the 563rd SAW Battalion were operational on 10 Julyl. FDP4 of the 563rd SAW Battalion were operational on 12 July and LW4 of the 563rd SAW Battalion was operational on 14 July.

The 555th SAW Battalion Battalion headquarters landed on 11 July.

The Breakout is shown in two phases. The St. Lo Break throug started on 25 July and continued through to 13 August.

The U.S. First Army attack on 25 July (Operation COBRA). The attack had as its purpose to end the bloody fighting that had set in and the attack started with a Carpet Bombing in the sector near St. Lo. The 1st Infantry Division and the 4th Armored Division penetrated to Avranches by 31 July.

The Third U.S. Army breakthrough clearly began on 1 August when the following events occured:

On 1 August General Patton flew in from England and opened the U.S. Third Army Headquarters.

On 1 August Major General Weyland opened the XIX TAC Headquarters Patton's U.S. VIII Corps attacked southwest on 1 August.

Patton's U.S. XX Corps attacked south on 1 August

Patton's U.S. XV Corps attacked east on 1 August

Patton's U.S. VII Corps attacked northeast on 1 August

During these operations Allied close air support was superb. The tank columns had direct communications with the aircraft flying column cover, thus insuring immediate tactical support and reconnaissance. The Tactical Air Commands interdicted roads, bridges and railroads and isolated the battlefield.

On 4 August FDP1 of the 563rd SAW Battalion moved to Ardevon, which near Pontorson, and started combat operations that afternoon. Later that day Company A of the 563rd would be awarded a Presidential Citation for this action. FDP1 was reinforced with communications and controllers and acted as the Tactical Control Center for the XIX TAC.

On 6 July FDP2 of the 555th SAW Battalion also moved to Ardevon.

On 14 August in the U.S. Third Army Area about 400 German troops surrendered to the XIX TAC Fighter Bombers by waving white flags from their positions. The Pilots requested the XIX Tactical Control Center to have ground troops pick up the prisoners. The XIX TAC had the responsibility of protecting the U.S. Third Army right flank.

During the period 15 to 28 August Patch's U.S. Seventh Army and DeTessigny's First French Army landed in Southern France and advanced rapidly north and arrived at Grenoble on 24 August.

Headquarters of the 573rd SAW Battalion landed on 29 September and FDP1, FDP2, FDP3 and LW1 of that Battalion landed on 10 September.

Lt Gen Simpson's U.S. Ninth Army was activated on 5 September.

The 582nd SAW Battalion made an assault landing at St Tropez in Southern France on 9 September.

The U.S. 6th Army Group was formed under Gen Devers and the U.S. Seventh Army and the First French Army was assigned. During this period Gen Devers' troops made great gains on the western front. In the U.S. Third Army Area, Gen Patton's operations were stopped by weather and terrain conditions and he was operating in much the same way as the WW I combat operations.

The Ardennes Campaign is shown in three phases which are:

The first phase the German counter attack began on 16 December. At this time the U.S. Third Army was in a good position to attack the German West Wall in the vicinity of St. Avold and east. In the north the German penetrated the First Army in central Luxembourg. The Germans also made major advances in the Seventh Army area into the Colberg area. The U.S. 101st Airborne Division was moved to Bastogne and they stopped the advance of the Germans. The main line of resistance all along the front was infiltered by English speaking German infiltrators and saboteurs.

U.S. Third Army was pulled out of line to attack north to stop the German attack and on 22 December Patton attacked north with the U.S. III and U.S. VIII Corps who relieved the 101st Airborne on 16 December.

The second phase the U.S. First Army and the U.S. Third Army closed in on the remaining German troops and squeezed them back toward the German Border. The XIX TAC carried out its mission under impossible flying conditions and intervened effectively at every crisis. On 1 January the German Luftwaffe had made a skillful, large scale attack on Allied airfields in Holland and elgium, knocking out 136 Allied planes, but losing heavily itself.

The third phase the U.S. Ninth Army was put under command of General Montgomery's British 21st Army Group. Bradley's U.S. 12th Army Group maintained pressure on the Ardennes front where the Germans suffered appreciably from American Artillery and Tactical Air strikes. The Seventh U.S. Army eliminated the Colmar Pocket of Germans.

The U.S. Ninth Army was assigned to reinforce Montgomery's BR 21st Army Group and protected the right flank while advancing to the Rhine river.

Bradley's U.S. 12th Army Group attacked with the First U.S. Army on the left who advanced to the Rhine River where the U.S. 9th Armored Division discovered the Rhine bridge at Remagen still standing and seized it by a daring rush. The U.S. Third Army attacked across the Moselle and drove swiftly through collapsing resistance and on 21 March surrounded and destroyed the German Seventh Army, leaving bypassed German units for U.S. Third Army infantry to mop up.

The U.S. Seventh Army advanced to Lau on the Rhine River.

The U.S. First Army broke out of their bridgehead at Remagen and struck eastward through Geese and Siege and completely surprised the German 6th Army Group.

The U.S. Third Army made crossings at Boppard, St. Goar, Mainz and Oppenheim.

The U.S. XII Corps quickly penetrated to Lauterbach.

The U.S. Ninth Army on the north and the U.S. First Army on the south surrounded the German 8th Army Group containing the German Fifth Panzer Army and the German 15th Army in a 4,000 square mile area.

The Canadian First Army and the British Second Army made hugh gains to the Wesser River.

The U.S. Seventh Army crossed the Rhine River and penetrated to the Nurnburg and along the Main River.

On 18 April the surrounded German 8th Army Group resistance ended and more than 314,000 prisoners were gathered in, the largest mass surrender in the war, and German General Model disbanded his armies and reportedly committed suicide.

The U.S. First 'Army next surrounded the German Eleventh Army in the Harz Mountains.

The U.S. Ninth Army penetrated deeply and the U.S. XIII Corps advanced to the Elbe River.

The U.S. Third Army advanced to the Mulde River and occupied a line from Leipzig to Bayreuth.

The U.S. Seventh Army occupied a line from Beyreuth to Nurnburg.

In the north the Canadian First Army had some stiff fighting. During this period the advance was delayed more by terrain and traffic jams than by enemy opposition.

The U.S. Third Army advanced rapidly through Czechoslovakia and advanced to Zilna on 19 April then withdrew to a line from Neustadt, Czechoslovakia to St. Olten (in Austria) and along the foothills of the Alps to Salsburg, Austria.

The U.S. Seventh Army advanced to a line along the foothills of the Alps from Salzburg, Austria to Landeck Austria.

The U.S. First Army advanced to the Oder River by 19 April and withdrew to a line from Barby, Germany to Plagen, Germany on 7 May.

Germany sued for peace on 29 April and surrendered on 7 May. During April the Allies were hampered by logistical problems more severely than with enemy action. By this time the round trip hauls of supplies was over 700 miles.