U.S. Army Experimental Airborne Tank Company of World War II

Battle Order
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This is a graphic of the U.S. Army's Airborne Tank Company based on The Nafziger Collection's digitization of a TO&E dated 22 September 1944. The U.S. Army had two airborne tank formations for testing purposes, the 151st Airborne Tank Company and 28th Airborne Tank Battalion. The timeline of their existence is shown at the bottom of this page. They were intended to test the validity of a gliderborne armored formation to support the Airborne Divisions with the M22 Locust as the primary platform, although they never saw combat in that form.

The baseline Airborne Tank Company consisted of a Company Headquarters and 3 Tank Platoons with 18 M22 light tanks (experimentally designated T9 and nicknamed the "Locust" by the British). One tank was specifically for recovery and contained within the Maintenance Section, similar to regular Light Tank Companies before they were issued the medium tank-derived M32 Tank Recovery Vehicle. Structurally the company was similar to a regular Light Tank Company, but made much heavier use of the ¼ jeep and Dodge 3⁄4-ton WC‑series. Unlike in regular light tank units there were no half-tracks, 2½-ton trucks, heavy wreckers, or tank recovery vehicles. As well, M22s had 3-man crews instead of 4, with the commander doubling as a loader.

Because the 151st was a separate company it ought to have been augmented because it lacked support from a Battalion HQ & Service Company. In theory this included a Reconnaissance Section, Howitzer Section (75mm Pack Howitzer), and small maintenance, supply & transportation, and medical elements. The Nafziger Collection lacks a detailed breakdown of the Airborne Tank Battalion's H&S Company, but it did have at least 3 75mm pack howitzers or 1 per Airborne Tank Company. This was likely an approximation of the 3 M8 Howitzer Motor Carriages (75mm) and 3 M21 mortar carriers (81mm) contained within the Light Tank Battalion HHC.

I'm not certain if the 151st Airborne Tank Company abided by this exact structure. There are references to a "Reconnaissance Platoon" in some writings on it, although whether that was a T/O organization, task organization, or colloquial description is unclear based on what I've read. However, based on Roberts' research it seems that the 151st was not only at augmented TO&E strength, but exceeded the standard allotment of enlisted men (although not officers) by more than double after their PCS to Camp Mackall in July 1944.

The inability to transport the M22 in widely available gliders in U.S. Army service was basically its death knell. It could be transported by the C-54 Skymaster in two pieces (the chassis slung under its belly and the turret carried internally), but this was impractical in combat due to the time it'd take to reassemble the tank and a requirement for improved runways. The British on the other hand had the means to transport it with its Hamilcar glider. They had the option to take the 17 Locusts in the 6th Airborne Armored Reconnaissance Regiment's motorpool with them on D-Day, but decided to send Tetrarchs instead due to mechanical reliability issues with the Locust (Roberts, p. 112). Eight Locusts were incorporated into the British airborne's bit of Operation Varsity though, although of these eight ultimately only four were available for action on the day. Two were fully operational, 1 had a non-functional main gun and radio (after its glider crashed through a house), and 1 had a non-functional machine gun and radio (Roberts, p. 125). One was lost en route due to a glider structural failure, 1 was lost on landing after its glider hit a ditch, 1 was shotdown by Flak on approach, and 1 landed successfully but was knocked out by a German armored vehicle shortly after.

↓ Timeline of 151st Airborne Tank Company

This is an excerpt from US Airborne Tanks, 1939–1945 by Charles C Roberts Jr who gained access to the US Army 151st Airborne Tank Company Unit Records, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, Abilene, Kansas.

15 August 1943 - 151st Airborne Tank Company activated at Fort Knox, KY with an initial recruitment of 5 officers and 70 enlisted men drawn from 20th Armored Division. Small groups of 1 to 29 soldiers at a time were transferred in and out of the company over the following months. Strength of 5 officers, 95 enlisted men by 31 August.
8 June 1944 - Acted as a holding unit for 220 attached unassigned from 126th Separate Tank Company (possibly a Heavy Tank Company based on a veteran account). These personnel were transferred out over the next month, mostly to AGF Replacement Depot #1 at Fort Meade, the 87th Infantry Division, 28th Airborne Tank Battalion and other miscellaneous units. Strength temporarily jumped from 6 officers, 129 enlisted men (31 May) to 6 officers, 238 enlisted men (31 June)
19 July 1944 - Permanent change of station (PCS) from Fort Knox, Kentucky to Camp Mackall, North Carolina
20 July 1944 - 73 enlisted men were assigned en route from Armored Replacement Training center (Fort Knox), the largest single intake since activation. Strength 6 officers, 196 enlisted men (31 July)
1 September 1944 - 5 officers and 171 enlisted men complete Glider Training and qualified as Glidermen
24 September—6 October 1944 - Company participated in Airborne Maneuvers as part of the opposing force against the 13th Airborne Division. It simulated a German 151st Panzer Abteilung, but because there were no viable delivery methods the company did not benefit from the airborne nature of the exercise. Strength 5 officers, 180 enlisted men (31 September)
31 December 1944 - 151st Airborne Tank Company inactivated. 5 officers relieved and reassigned to Armored Officers Replacement Pool (Fort Knox). 136 enlisted men transferred to AGF Replacement Depot #1 to be dispersed among armored units. 1 enlisted man transferred to HQ Company, Airborne Center. Strength 5 officers, 137 enlisted men (28 December) reduced to zero by the end of 31 December.

↓ Timeline of 28th Tank Battalion

This is primarily sourced from Shelby Stanton's "Order of Battle U.S. Army, World War II" which you can borrow for free on Internet Archive. The section independent Tank Battalions start on page 296.

6 December 1943 - 28th Airborne Tank Battalion activated at Fort Knox, Kentucky under a proposed undated TO&E
19 February 1944 - Reorganized under TO&E 17-53 "Airborne Tank Battalion" dated 15 January 19944
20 October 1944 - Redesignated 28th Tank Battalion and reorganized under TO&E 17-25 "Medium Tank Battalion" dated 15 September 1944
10 February 1945 - Reorganized under TO&E 17-15 "Medium Tank Battalion" dated 18 November 1944
5 August 1945 - Departed San Pedro, CA aboard USS Elmore (APA-42) bound for Batangas, Philippines. The battalion included 39 officers, 692 enlisted at that time.
30 August 1945 - Arrived in the Philippines
11 January 1946 - Returned to San Francisco, CA
13 January 1946 - 28th Tank Battalion inactivated at Camp Stoneman, CA.