119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War I, Meuse–Argonne offensive
On 30 September 1918, the 119th Division was transferred to the command of the 3rd Infantry Division while they waited for their own artillery due to the conditions of the roads. Orders from the American First Army Headquarters instructed all artillery batteries to use Number 5 Shell (a lethal gas mixture of phosgene and smoke) west of the Meuse River on favorable targets and under favorable weather. The 3rd Infantry Division attacked on 4 October 1918 and advanced one kilometer (5/8-mile) along the entire front, supported by rolling barrages from the 119th Field artillery.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War I, Meuse–Argonne offensive
On 6 October 1918, the artillery for the 3rd Infantry Division finally arrived and the 119th Field Artillery was transferred back to the sector of the 32nd Infantry Division. With assistance from the 119th Field Artillery, the 32nd Infantry Division was able to smash its way forward and break through the 8 miles deep Hindenburg Line which had resisted numerous Allied breakthrough attempts ever since the Battle of Arras in April 1917. Beginning on 9 October 1918, the 32nd Infantry Division advanced north and captured the villages of Gesnes, Cote Dame Marie, Romagne-sous-Montfaucon and Bantheville. By 19 October 1918, the 32nd Infantry Division advanced their line one—half kilometer (just over 1/4-mile) north of Romagne-sous-Montfaucon completing the breakthrough of the Hindenburg Line.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War I, Meuse–Argonne offensive
On 20 October 1918, the 89th Infantry Division relieved the 32nd Infantry Division from the front line. The 119th Field Artillery stayed in place to support the 89th Infantry Division. On 20 October 1918, the 89th Infantry Division cleared the enemy from the woods around the village of Bantheville despite a fierce resistance by the Germans and established a defensive line along the northern and western edges of the woods. The 89th Infantry Division spent several days consolidating their position and did not attack again until 1 November 1918.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War I, Meuse–Argonne offensive
On that day, the 119th Field Artillery launched one of the best organized and most dominant artillery attacks delivered on the western front assisting the 89th Infantry Division in smashing through the German defenses gaining 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) of territory, cutting German communications into Belgium and breaking the backbone of the German resistance. Over the next several days, the 89th Infantry Division advanced rapidly and captured the villages of Remonville, Barricourt, Tailly, Nouart, Beauclair, and Beaufort-en-Argonne.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War I, Meuse–Argonne offensive
On 3 November 1918, the 119th Field Artillery was relieved from the front lines to rejoin the 32nd Infantry Division for some much-needed rest, recuperation and re-equipping. After five months of near-continuous fighting, the 119th Field Artillery had assisted in smashing the way for seven American infantry divisions, the French Tenth Army and the 1st Moroccan Infantry Division, recovering a total of 70 kilometers (43 miles) of French territory. The soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery were tired and worn mentally from the exposure and exhaustion; however, their regiment had been finally rendered immobile from the loss of horses. Of the 1,459 horses the 119th Field Artillery received during the war, only 327 survived with the rest either being killed, wounded or lost from all causes. An 11:00 on 11 November 1918, the armistice that ended World War I went into effect.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War I, Meuse–Argonne offensive
Commander Colonel McCormick's letter to his soldiers concluded with the following poignant message.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941
After the armistice went into effect, the 119th Field artillery was transferred to the 40th Infantry Division on 15 November 1918 and relocated to the village of Revigny where a regional replacement depot had been established. On 23 November 1918, the 119th Field Artillery was relieved from assignment to the 40th Infantry Division and fell under the direct control of the First Army where they were granted a two-day respite to enjoy the Christmas holiday. On the evening of 25 December 1918, the 119th Field Artillery made its way to the village of Gondrecourt for training and was transferred to the authority of the 88th Infantry Division through 8 April 1919.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941
The 119th Field Artillery made a ten-day journey to the port city of Brest to rejoin the 32nd Infantry Division on 18 April 1919 in preparation for their return to the United States. On 25 April 1919, the 119th Field Artillery boarded the S.S. Frederick for their return home where they arrived at the New York Port of Embarkation on 3 May 1919. On 16 May 1919, the 119th Field Artillery was demobilized at Camp Custer, Michigan. Commander Colonel McCormick named many terrain features at Camp Grayling after French locations where the 119th Field Artillery were in combat. Some of the named locations are: Red Arrow Hill, Juvigny Hill, and the Cote Dame Marie hill range.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941
The 119th Field Artillery's proud record of achievements during World War I led the Army to decide that their namesake could not be allowed to pass into history and must be carried on. So in 1921, the 119th Field Artillery was reconstituted in the National Guard and allotted to the state of Michigan. Sometime in June 1921, the 119th Field Artillery was assigned to the 32nd Infantry Division. On 22 June 1921, the 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery was organized and federally recognized at Lansing, Michigan.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941
On 12 October 1921, the 2nd Battalion, 119th Field Artillery was organized and federally recognized at Jackson, Michigan. The regimental headquarters unit was organized and federally recognized on 10 February 1922 at Lansing, Michigan and Colonel Joseph H. Lewis was selected to be the next commander of the 119th Field Artillery. On 1 August 1933, the 119th Field Artillery was converted from horse-drawn to truck-drawn artillery.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941
The 119th Field Artillery conducted annual summer training most years at Camp Grayling, Michigan. However, some years, annual summer training was conducted at Camp Custer, Michigan. The 119th Field Artillery conducted joint summer training at Camp Grayling, Michigan with the 329th Field Artillery in 1928, 1932 and 1937 and with the 328th Field Artillery in 1929 and 1936. The 119th Field Artillery participated in Second Army Maneuvers held out of Camp Custer, Michigan from 8 to 22 August 1936.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941, Auto workers strike – Flint Michigan
Colonel Glenn W. Carey was appointed the next commander of the 119th Field Artillery in January 1939. The 119th Field Artillery participated in Second Army Maneuvers held out of Camp McCoy, Wisconsin from 4 to 27 August 1940. The 119th Field Artillery was relieved from their assignment to the 57th Field Artillery Brigade, 32nd Infantry Division on 18 September 1940 and reassigned to the 72nd Field Artillery Brigade which was directly attached to the V Corps without being attached to an Infantry Division. During this reorganization the 119th Field Artillery added a third battalion when the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, Third Battalion, was organized. On 11 October 1940, the 119th Field Artillery changed their armament from 75-mm guns to 155-mm guns.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Interwar Period 1919–1941, Auto workers strike – Flint Michigan
The 119th Field Artillery was inducted into federal service on 7 April 1941 at Lansing, Michigan and was moved to Fort Knox, Kentucky, where it arrived on 17 April 1941. The 119th Field Artillery was then transferred to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri on 2 June 1941. The 119th Field Artillery participated in joint maneuvers with the Second Army and VII Corps out of Camp Robinson, Arkansas from 11 to 30 August 1941.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War II
The United States declared war on Germany on 11 December 1941 four days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and on the same day that Germany declared war on the United States. Colonel Lloyd M. Hanna was appointed the new commander of the 119th Field Artillery on 16 February 1942. In 1943, the United States Army decided to restructure the non-divisional field artillery to increase their flexibility and response times during combat. The 119th Field Artillery had been a non-divisional field artillery unit since they were separated from the 32nd Infantry Division on 18 September 1940.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War II
The regiment was broken up on 8 February 1943, and its elements were reorganized and redesignated. The old Headquarters and Headquarters Battery was renamed to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 119th Field Artillery Group. The 1st Battalion was renamed the 978th Field Artillery Battalion. The 2nd Battalion was renamed the 979th Field Artillery Battalion.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War II
The 119th Field Artillery Group was transferred to Camp Young, California on 23 August 1943 for training. Prior to overseas deployment, the 119th Field Artillery Group moved to Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts on 5 February 1944 for staging until they departed from the Boston Port of Embarkation on 27 February 1944. The 119th Field Artillery Group arrived in England on 8 March 1944 where they waited for the invasion of Normandy to begin.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War II
Once the allies had established a safe and secure beachhead to allow for heavy artillery to come ashore, the 119th Field Artillery Group landed in France on 26 June 1944 where they participated in the Normandy and Northern France Campaigns. The 119th Field Artillery Group crossed into Belgium on 8 September 1944 and then into the Netherlands five days later on 13 September 1944. The 119th Field Artillery Group participated in the Rhineland Campaign and entered Germany on 14 October 1944. As the war progressed the 119th Field Artillery Group also participated in Ardennes-Alsace and Central Europe Campaigns.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, World War II
From 5 April 1945 to 7 April 1945, the 119th Field Artillery Group was very briefly attached to the 95th Infantry Division where it helped in capturing the city of Hamm and the town of Kamen in Germany. On 7 May 1945, General Alfred Jodl, Chief of the Operations Staff for the German Armed Forces High Command, signed an unconditional surrender document that ordered all German troops to surrender on 8 May 1945 bringing an end to World War II on the European Western Front.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II
In August 1945, the 119th Field Artillery Group was stationed in the town of Ortenberg, Germany. The 119th Field Artillery Group arrived back in the United States on 16 November 1945 at the Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation. The Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 119th Field Artillery Group was inactivated on the same day at Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia. The 978th Field Artillery Battalion had arrived back in the United States ahead of the 119th Field Artillery Group at the Boston Port of Embarkation and was inactivated on 30 October 1945 at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts. The two inactivated units were consolidated, reorganized and federally recognized on 15 December 1946 as the 119th Field Artillery Battalion with headquarters at Lansing, Michigan. The newly consolidated 119th Field Artillery Battalion was assigned to the 46th Infantry Division.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II
The 979th Field Artillery Battalion had also arrived back in the United States ahead of the 119th Field Artillery Group at the New York Port of Embarkation and was inactivated on 29 October 1945 at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. An unrelated unit, the 943rd Field Artillery Battalion was inactivated on 28 November 1945 at Camp Shanks, New York. These two inactivated units were consolidated, reorganized, and federally recognized on 6 December 1946 as the 943rd Field Artillery Battalion with headquarters at Jackson, Michigan, and assigned to the 46th Infantry Division.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Combat Arms Regimental System
In the late 1950s, the United States Army was concerned about maintaining the continuity of distinguished combat units without restricting future organizational trends. Over the course of two world wars, the United States Army had broken up, reorganized, consolidated, or disbanded many units and many more new units were created while organizations with long combat records remained inactive. As a result, soldiers often served in units with little or no history. In order to preserve the history of distinguished combat units, Secretary of the Army, Wilber M. Brucker approved the Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS) on 24 January 1957.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Combat Arms Regimental System
In accordance with CARS, the 119th Field Artillery Battalion and the 943rd Field Artillery Battalion were consolidated on 15 March 1959 to form the 119th Artillery, a parent regiment under the Combat Arms Regimental System. The new 119th Artillery consisted of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Howitzer Battalions which remained elements of the 46th Infantry Division.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Combat Arms Regimental System
The Combat Arms Regimental System called for each artillery regiment to be assigned a headquarters at a permanent location to maintain the regimental history, traditions, and records while also displaying the regimental colors, trophies, and other properties of the regiment. However, the organization of regimental headquarters under CARS was suspended indefinitely, and each regimental headquarters remained at zero strength under the control of the Department of the Army. Pending the establishment of regimental headquarters in the future, the lowest-numbered or lettered active element in each regiment was to retain custody of the regimental colors and properties. Therefore, this duty fell to the 1st Howitzer Battalion of the new 119th Artillery and they maintained custody of the regimental colors and properties.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Combat Arms Regimental System
Over the next decade the 119th Artillery was downsized on two occasions. The first downsizing occurred on 15 March 1963. The 119th Artillery was reorganized to consist of only the 1st and 2nd Battalions (the 3rd Battalion was eliminated) and dropped the Howitzer designation while still remaining as elements of the 46th Infantry Division.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Detroit riots of 1967
During the 1960s, the United States Department of Defense investigated the manpower and redundancy involved in maintaining two reserve components of the Army: the United States National Guard and the United States Army Reserve. In 1967, Secretary of Defense, Robert S. McNamara, decided that 15 combat divisions in the Army National Guard were unnecessary and he reduced the number of divisions down to 8 but increased the number of brigades up from 7 to 18. This resulted in no change to the total strength of the Army National Guard.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Detroit riots of 1967
As a result of this restructuring the 46th Infantry Division was reduced to the 46th Infantry Brigade and it was assigned to the 38th Infantry Division. At the same time the 119th Artillery was downsized for the second time in the decade. The 119th Artillery was reorganized on 1 February 1968 to consist of only the 1st Battalion (the 2nd Battalion was eliminated). The 119th Artillery was still attached to the 46th Infantry even though it had downsized from a division to a brigade. Therefore, the 119th Artillery was assigned to the 38th Infantry Division by means of being attached to the new 46th Infantry Brigade. Four years later on 1 February 1972, the 119th Artillery was redesignated as the 119th Field Artillery.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Detroit riots of 1967
In 1984, the United States Army expanded the Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS) to include the non-combat arms branches of the Army. This new system was branded United States Army Regimental System (USARS) and the Combat Arms Regimental System ceased to exist. In accordance with USARS, the 119th Artillery was reorganized and redesignated on 20 February 1987 as the 119th Field Artillery Regiment.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post World War II, Detroit riots of 1967
On 24 March 2001, the 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery deployed as an entire battalion out of state for the first time in over two decades. Over 300 members from the 1st Battalion deployed to the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California for a 20-day Division Capstone Exercise. The exercise called for the 119th Field Artillery to act as the opposing force (OPFOR). This exercise was also the first time the 119th Field Artillery had to interpret coded digital battle orders instead of using traditional voice communications.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11
The day after the 11 September attacks, about 100 soldiers out of Lansing Michigan of the 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery were called up to provide security for the two international border crossings in Detroit; the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel. Elements of the 1st Battalion were also called upon to assist the United States Customs and Border Protection with security at the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron, Michigan. The soldiers of the 1st Battalion were tasked with the mission of searching trucks crossing the border on either of the two bridges or via the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. The soldiers of the 1st Battalion were stationed on the Canada–United States border until July 2002.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11
In response to the demands of the War on Terror, the United States Army reorganized its divisions including those of the United States National Guard. The plan was to create lighter formations that could be deployed to areas of conflict more rapidly than before. The 119th Field Artillery Regiment was reorganized on 1 September 2003 to consist of the 1st Battalion and now became an element of the 42nd Infantry Division.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base has been leased perpetually from Cuba since 1903 when it was established. In 2002, a detention camp was built on the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base to house over 600 prisoners from the War on Terror. The duties of providing security at United States military facilities had been traditionally handled by the Military Police Corps; however, ever since the 11 September attacks, the demand for military security had risen to the point where there were no more military police units available. Therefore, American military units with specialties not currently in need were retrained to provide security. The 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery Regiment was one of those units whose artillery skills were not currently in demand so they were retrained to provide security.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
On 3 December 2003, over 200 soldiers from 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery departed Michigan for deployment at Fort Dix, New Jersey. After arrival at Fort Dix, the soldiers of 1st Battalion underwent mission-specific training and in-processing for over a month in preparation for their final destination, Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The soldiers of 1st Battalion arrived at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in January 2004 and joined Joint Detention Operation Group in providing security at Camp Delta.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
The soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery Regiment were assigned the duty of moving the prisoners to and from recreation and shower areas. The soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery Regiment were required to cover their name tags and unit patches with tape to prevent the prisoners from identifying them. The soldiers were not assigned to patrol the same area two days in a row to minimize the chance of being identified by the prisoners. The 119th Field Artillery Regiment was deployed at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base until November 2004 when they returned to Michigan.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, Operation Iraqi Freedom
The Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 119th Field Artillery Regiment deployed to Iraq on 19 December 2004 in support of the 18th Military Police Brigade who had arrived earlier on 30 November 2004. The Headquarters and Headquarters Battery was recognized for their exceptionally meritorious service during their deployment which lasted until 3 November 2005. The Department of the Army awarded the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery with a Meritorious Unit Commendation. The citation reads as follows:


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, Operation Iraqi Freedom
"For exceptionally meritorious service, during the period 30 November 2004 to 3 November 2005, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 18th Military Police Brigade and its subordinate units displayed exceptionally meritorious service in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The unit achieved outstanding success in multiple complicated missions by providing convoy and main supply route security throughout Iraq. In addition, the unit equipped, mentored, and established a federally recognized highway patrol and conducted detention operations for the two largest detention facilities in the Global War on Terror, as well as for all high-value detainees and protected persons throughout Iraq. Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 18th Military Police Brigade's outstanding performance of duty is in keeping with the finest traditions of military service and reflects great credit upon the unit, Multi-National Corps-Iraq, and the United States Army."


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
In March 2014, the 119th Field Artillery Regiment conducted cold-weather training in extreme sub-zero temperatures of negative 30 degrees Fahrenheit (negative 34 degrees Celsius) at Camp Grayling, Michigan. During the mission, the soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery Regiment sling-loaded their M777 155mm howitzers underneath CH-47 Chinook helicopters being operated by the 147th and 238th Aviation Regiments and then were transported in UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters to their firing points to conduct live-fire training. Due to the arctic-like weather, the soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery Regiment had to overcome machinery that would not operate at 30 degrees below zero.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
The temperature was so cold that the diesel the soldiers rely on to fuel their vehicles gelled up and froze. A warming bay had to be brought in to allow the soldiers to draw fuel. For their efforts, the soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery Regiment earned cold weather operation training certificates and they learned how to adapt and overcome unexpected situations. The 119th Field Artillery Regiment conducted another round of cold weather training during the winter of 2015.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
For two weeks in March 2015 and another two weeks in April 2016, the 119th Field Artillery Regiment deployed to the Adazi Training Center near Riga, Latvia joining over 1600 soldiers from Canada, Finland, Germany, Latvia, and Lithuania for the Summer Shield XII and XIII exercises. During the exercises, the soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery not only trained together but bunked together, to build friendships and continue to strengthen partnerships.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
During the first three weeks of August 2016, the 119th Field Artillery Regiment participated in Exercise Northern Strike 16 at Camp Grayling, Michigan. The exercise brought together 5,000 service members from the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Special Operations Command from 20 different states and three coalition countries. During training, the soldiers of the 119th Field Artillery Regiment slept in the field close to their weapons so they could be ready to provide artillery fire at a moments notice day or night.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
Soldiers of 1-119 FA conduct live-fire training alongside their Latvian counterparts at Adazi Training Center, Latvia, during exercise Summer Shield XIII.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
Soldiers of 1-119 FA sling-load an M777 155mm howitzer beneath a CH-47 Chinook at Camp Grayling Michigan on 1 March 2014.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Post 9/11, State funeral of Gerald Ford
A M114 155 mm howitzer is loaded during training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri in 1941


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Campaign and unit award streamers
The Department of the Army awards streamers to military units in recognition of a display of heroism or meritorious service that is the result of a group effort or to indicate campaign service during a war. National Guard units are only eligible to be awarded streamers during those times when they are called into active federal duty. A company or battery unit is eligible for a streamer for war service credit only when the rest of the battalion did not participate in the same theater or area of operations during the same war or conflict.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Campaign and unit award streamers
The Croix de guerre was awarded by commanders in the French Army and was awarded to individuals and military units of their choice. Military units that were awarded the Croix de guerre are authorized to display streamers with the color and pattern of the medal they were awarded. Each streamer is embroidered with the name of the military campaign and the year(s) of service.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Campaign and unit award streamers
The 119th Field Artillery Regiment was awarded multiple streamers. The Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st battalion, 119th Field Artillery Regiment was awarded streamers in addition to those awarded to the entire regiment. The list of streamers is as follows:


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Structure
The 119th Field Artillery Regiment is subordinate to the 272nd Regional Support Group, a component of the Michigan Army National Guard which is a component of the Michigan National Guard. As a parent field artillery regiment, the 119th Field Artillery does not have a headquarters and it is a regiment in name only under the United States Army Regimental System. The 119th Field Artillery Regiment is composed of one battalion consisting of four batteries (equivalent to companies in an infantry battalion). The structure of the regiment is as follows:


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry
The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 119th Field Artillery Regiment on 17 April 1925. The coat of arms was approved on the following day on 18 April 1925. Both the coat of arms and the distinctive unit insignia were redesignated for the 119th Artillery Regiment on 2 September 1960. They were both again redesignated for the 119th Field Artillery Regiment on 11 July 1972.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Description of shield
The shield is used on both the coat of arms and the distinctive unit insignia. From The Institute of Heraldry:


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Description of shield
Note: In the explanation below, left and right are given from the viewer's point of view, in contrast to the view of the person holding the shield, in which case left and right are reversed. Colors were often capitalized in the description.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Description of shield
In plain English: The background color of the shield is "Gules" which means red. The area of the "sinister chief" is the top right of the shield. The "sinister chief" is covered in "the badge" of the "First Corps of the Spanish–American War" in the color "Argent" which means white the color of silver. The "base" is the bottom part of the shield. The "base" has "issuant a demi-lion rampant" which is the top half of a lion standing on one hind foot with one foreleg raised above the other and the head in profile.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Description of shield
This "demi-lion rampant" is in the color "Or" which means yellow, the color of gold. The shield has a "canton" which by default is a rectangle placed in the upper left corner of the shield unless otherwise specified. This "canton" is in the color of "the last" which is the last mentioned color "Or", yellow. On this "canton" there is a "bend" which is a diagonal stripe from the upper left to the lower right of the "canton". This "bend" is the color of "the first" meaning the first color mentioned which was "Gules", red. This "bend" is "charged", an emblem is placed, consisting of three "alerions" which are eagles depicted without wings or a beak. These "alerions" are in the color of "the third" which is the third color mentioned "Or", yellow.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Symbolism of shield
Explanation: After being federalized for the first time, the 119th Field Artillery Regiment saw its first major military action on 16 June 1918 in World War I near the village of Xivray-et-Marvoisin in the Toul-Boucq Sector as described in the section above on World War I. The Toul-Boucq sector referred to the line that stretched from the town of Toul to the village of Boucq. This area is in the Lorraine Region of France. The flag of Lorraine consists of a yellow background with a red diagonal stripe with three white alerions. This flag is represented on the top left portion of the shield.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Symbolism of shield
The Headquarters Battery of the 119th Field Artillery Regiment can trace its lineage as far back as the American Civil War and the Battle of Bull Run. However, the first international conflict the Headquarters Battery participated in was the Siege of Santiago during the Spanish–American War when they were a part of the United States First Army Corps. The silver badge of the First Army Corps during the Spanish–American War is depicted in the "sinister chief", top right of the shield.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Symbolism of shield
The area around the city of El Paso, Texas was known as Ponce de Leon's ranch predating the foundation of the United States of America. The area was settled and colonized by a group of Ponce de Leon's followers and they named their new home after their leader. The "demi-lion rampant" on the bottom part of the shield was taken from the crest of Ponce de Leon to represent the first time the 119th Field Artillery Regiment was federalized and sent to the Mexican-American border near El Paso, Texas during the Mexican Expedition.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Description of crest
The crest is used only on the coat of arms. It is the part above the shield. From The Institute of Heraldry:


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Description of crest
In plain English: The 119th Field Artillery Regiment is a regiment in the Michigan Army National Guard and therefore they use the crest of the Michigan Army National Guard above the shield on their coat of arms. The "wreath" also called a torse, is the horizontal braided band that runs across the top of the shield. The colors of the "wreath" are "Argent and Gules", white and red. Above the "wreath" is a "griffin segreant" which is a mythical bird called a griffin in the same position as a "lion rampant" but with its wings extended. The color of the "griffin segreant" is "Or", yellow.


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Motto
The motto appears below the shield on the Distinctive Unit Insignia. The Institute of Heraldry states


119th Field Artillery Regiment, Heraldry, Motto
VIAM PRAEPARAMUS is Latin for the phrase WE PREPARE THE WAY.


119th Fighter Squadron
The 119th Fighter Squadron is a unit of the New Jersey Air National Guard 177th Fighter Wing located at Atlantic City Air National Guard Base, New Jersey. The 119th is equipped with the F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft.


119th Fighter Squadron
The squadron is a descendant organization of the World War I 5th Aviation School Squadron (later 119th Aero Squadron), established on 5 June 1917. It was reformed on 30 January 1930, as the 119th Observation Squadron, and is one of the 29 original National Guard Observation Squadrons of the United States Army National Guard formed before World War II.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, Origins
The 119th Fighter Squadron is one of the oldest units in the United States Air Force, its origins beginning in June 1917 as the World War I 5th Aviation School Squadron at Langley Field, Virginia. In September 1917 it was redesignated as the 119th Aero Squadron. Not deployed overseas, the unit was inactivated in May 1919.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, Origins
The squadron was reactivated in 1930 when it was reorganized as the 119th Observation Squadron, New Jersey National Guard, at Metropolitan Airport, Newark, New Jersey as an air arm of the 44th Division Aviation and received federal recognition in January 1930.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, Origins
In 1934, aircraft of the 119th Observation Squadron were dispatched to the scene of the "Morro Castle", a ship burning off the coast of Asbury Park, New Jersey. Many hours were spent flying over the ship and adjacent water assisting in the direction of rescue efforts and locating survivors.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, Origins
The 119th Observation Squadron fell victim to the "draft" on 16 September 1940, when it was inducted into active service. The unit continued as the 119th until 12 April 1948, at which time it became the 490th Fighter Squadron. The 490th was disbanded in May 1944 while still at Thomasville, Georgia.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
The wartime 490th Fighter Squadron was reconstituted on 21 June 1945. It was then re-designated as the 119th Fighter Squadron, and was allotted to the New Jersey Air National Guard, on 24 May 1946. It was organized at Newark Airport, New Jersey and was extended federal recognition on 9 June 1947. The 119th Fighter Squadron was entitled to the history, honors, and colors of the 490th. The squadron was equipped with F-47D Thunderbolts and was allocated to the First Air Force, Continental Air Command by the National Guard Bureau.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
The 119th moved to the former Atlantic City Naval Air Station, now known as the William J. Hughes Technical Center, on 5 August 1958. This change of station also brought about a change in aircraft to the F-84F. The 119th was called to active duty again in October 1961, for the Berlin Crisis. The unit remained at home station; however, the pilots were periodically rotated to Chaumont Air Base, France.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
On 15 October 1962, the 119th was authorized to expand to a group level, and the 177th Tactical Fighter Group was established by the National Guard Bureau. The 119th TFS becoming the group's flying squadron. Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 177th Headquarters, 177th Material Squadron (Maintenance), 177th Combat Support Squadron, and the 177th USAF Dispensary. The 119th transitioned into F-86H aircraft. Two years later, the unit transitioned into F-100 "Super Sabres".


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
In January 1968, a new crisis, the seizure of the American ship USS Pueblo by North Korean forces, and again the 119th was called to active duty. In May 1968, the squadron was activated to federal service, and its personnel were assigned to the 113th Tactical Fighter Wing, Myrtle Beach AFB, South Carolina. Personnel were spread throughout the United States, Taiwan, Korea, and Vietnam with the main unit stationed at the 113 TFW. The 119 TFS returned to Atlantic City, New Jersey, in June 1969, and transitioned into the F-105 "Thunderchief" in 1970.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
In 1972, Headquarters Air Force announced that the 119th TFS would be assigned to the Aerospace Defense Command and be responsible for protecting the United States from airborne attacks, and so was reorganized as the 177th Fighter Interceptor Group and 119th Fighter Interceptor Squadron. In 1973, the unit transitioned into the F-106 "Delta Dart" and assumed alert status the following year. The Aerospace Defense Command then came under TAC as the Air Defense Tactical Air Command (ADTAC), and then again changed to a numbered Air Force, 1st Air Force. During 1988, the unit transitioned into the F-16A/B, "Fighting Falcon", and received an "excellent" rating during its first Operational Readiness Inspection with the F-16 in October 1989.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
From 1 May through 13 June 1998, the squadron deployed five F-16C Fighting Falcon aircraft and 46 personnel to Howard AFB, Panama, in support of OPERATION CORONET NIGHTHAWK. 130 personnel rotated on a two-week basis during the six-week deployment. Operating as part of a joint interagency task force, the wing’s role was to detect and identify suspected drug smuggling aircraft. Once identified, the suspected aircraft are turned over to law enforcement agencies for apprehension.


119th Fighter Squadron, History, New Jersey Air National Guard
Since October 2001, the unit has had an active involvement in Operation Noble Eagle, Operation Southern Watch, Operation Northern Watch, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Freedom's Sentinel, and Operation Inherent Resolve.


119th Fighter Squadron, References, Bibliography
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website .


119th Guards Rifle Division
The 119th Guards Rifle Division was formed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in September 1943, based on the 11th Guards Naval Rifle Brigade and the 15th Guards Naval Rifle Brigade and was one of a small series of Guards divisions formed on a similar basis. Although the two brigades had distinguished themselves in the fighting south of Stalingrad as part of 64th Army they were moved to Northwestern Front in the spring of 1943 before being reorganized.


119th Guards Rifle Division
After serving briefly in 22nd Army the division was moved to reinforce the 3rd Shock Army within the large salient that Army had created behind German lines after a breakthrough at Nevel in October. In the following months it fought both to expand the salient and defend it against German counterattacks in a highly complex situation. In January 1944 it was transferred to the 7th Guards Rifle Corps of 10th Guards Army, still in the Nevel region, after which it advanced toward the Panther Line south of Lake Peipus.


119th Guards Rifle Division
During operations in the Baltic states that summer and autumn the 119th Guards was awarded both a battle honor and the Order of the Red Banner for its operations in Latvia. In March 1945 it joined the Kurland Group of Forces of Leningrad Front on the Baltic coast containing the German forces encircled in northwest Latvia. Following the German surrender it was moved to Estonia where it was disbanded in 1946.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation
By mid-1943 most of the Red Army's remaining rifle brigades were being amalgamated into rifle divisions as experience had shown this was a more efficient use of manpower.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 66th Naval Rifle Brigade
This brigade was formed from October to November 1941 in the Volga Military District, with a cadre from the Pacific Fleet and the Amur Military Flotilla. In December it was assigned to the reserves of Karelian Front and later to the 32nd Army of that Front. In June 1942 it was moved to the Reserve of the Supreme High Command and joined 1st Reserve Army which soon was redesignated as 64th Army west of Stalingrad.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 66th Naval Rifle Brigade
In this Army it joined the 154th Naval Rifle Brigade (below) and the two served closely through most of the battle of Stalingrad. The 66th NRB was originally positioned west of the Don River south of its junction with the Chir near Nizhne-Chirskaia but was forced to retreat to the east bank by July 27 after suffering up to 50 percent losses.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 66th Naval Rifle Brigade
In the face of the advance of 4th Panzer Army south of the city in early August the 64th Army took up a defense along a line from Logovskii on the Don to Tinguta Station on August 12 with the 66th along the Myshkova River. This proved ineffective when the offensive was renewed on August 20. On the night of August 30 the brigade withdrew to the Erik River with the 157th Rifle Division but by September 2 the two units were fighting in encirclement. Orders arrived from Stalingrad Front authorizing a further withdrawal to the Peschanka line.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 66th Naval Rifle Brigade
The battle for the city itself had begun in the third week of August but 64th Army was still attempting to guard the southern approaches. After Elkhi was lost on September 4 the 66th NRB was designated for a counterattack, but this did not succeed. The fighting on the approaches reached its climax on September 12; at this time it was holding the Army's left flank with the 154th NRB and the 36th Guards Rifle Division to the boundary with 57th Army and refitting. Its combat strength on September 10 is given as 1,134 men.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 66th Naval Rifle Brigade
By the beginning of October the brigade was in the Beketovka bridgehead south of Stalingrad and went over to the attack at 0430 hours on October 2 with five rifle divisions on an 8km-wide sector in an effort to break through to the isolated 62nd Army but made no significant gains and the effort was called off on October 4.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade
The 154th Naval was formed in early December 1941 at Moscow in the Moscow Military District, based on recruits from the Moscow Naval School and originally designated as 1st Moscow Separate Naval Group. By the beginning of January 1942 it was assigned to the Moscow Defense Zone and on February 5 was re-assigned to Northwestern Front. It marched some 250km through heavy snow to reach the Demyansk area where it took part in the fighting that cut off the German II Army Corps in a pocket. In June the brigade was pulled out of Front reserves and moved to the Reserve of the Supreme High Command.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade
The 154th was first sent to North Caucasus Front where it was under direct command of the Front as of July 7. Two weeks later it was in 64th Army and positioned west of the Don. When 4th Panzer Army began its advance toward Abganerovo on July 31 the brigade was sent southward to the Nizhne-Yablochnyi region (25km north of Kotelnikovo) to help block the German advance. Within days it was forced to fall back to the Aksay River near Novoaksaysky from where it had to withdraw another 5-10km on August 4.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade
By August 12 it was in the Army's second echelon behind the Myshkova–Tinguta line and as fighting continued on August 20 the Army commander, Maj. Gen. M. S. Shumilov, withdrew the brigade, along with the 138th Rifle Division, to new defensive positions about 5km to the rear. An Army report of September 1 stated that the 154th NRB was by now down to a strength between 500-1,000 personnel and the next day was reported as located in the Elkhi region.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade
On September 4 the brigade was forced to abandon Elkhi although Shumilov reported that he was organizing a counterattack with his reserve 66th NRB. By September 12 the two brigades were defending in tandem on the Army's left flank while refitting in what was to become known as the Beketovka bridgehead on the west bank of the Volga south of the encircled 62nd Army. The brigade had 876 men on strength on September 10.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
Stalingrad Front launched its part in the encirclement of German 6th Army and 4th Panzer Army on November 20. The 66th and 154th NRBs were still in 64th Army in the Beketovka bridgehead and had been partly rebuilt over the preceding weeks. On the first two days General Shumilov held them in reserve with orders to reinforce the Army's shock group's successes.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
At 2000 hours on November 22 the German IV Army Corps was ordered to fall back to a new defensive line anchored at Tsybenko and continuing east along the Karavatka Balka to Elkhi which was held by units of the 297th Infantry Division. This line would remain in German hands for many weeks. The next day the two brigades closed up to the line and for the rest of the month limited their activities to raiding and reconnaissance.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
By the beginning of January 1943 the 64th Army had been transferred to Don Front which was responsible for the final liquidation of the encircled German forces, beginning on January 10. Shumilov organized his main attack on a 6km-wide sector from south of Hill 111.6 east to Elkhi while holding the 29th Rifle Division and the 154th NRB in second echelon. 66th NRB was one of the formations deployed in defensive positions from Elkhi northeastward to the Volga.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
In the initial attack Tsybenko was encircled and Hill 111.6 captured but the advance seemed to stall, prompting Shumilov to commit the 154th west of Tsybenko as of the morning of the 12th, temporarily under control of 57th Army. During the day it captured the meat canning factory east of Kravtsov. On January 13 the brigade returned to 64th Army control and repulsed a weak counterattack by IV Army Corps reserves near Hill 119.7. At this point the combined assault by 64th and 57th Armies had gained up to 7km northward.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
But German resistance at Elkhi prevented major gains the following day, prompting the decision to commit the 66th NRB to the general advance scheduled for January 15. On January 27, as Don Front closed in on the German remnants still holding out in Stalingrad, both brigades were ordered to be withdrawn into the Reserve of the Supreme High Command for redeployment to other strategic axes.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
They were moved by rail to the reserves of Kalinin Front where, during February and March the 66th was converted to the 11th Guards Naval Rifle Brigade while the 154th became the 15th Guards Naval Rifle Brigade. They were soon assigned to 22nd Army and helped form the 44th Rifle Corps, remaining under that command through the summer.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
On September 30, 1943 the combined brigades officially became the 119th Guards in the Northwestern Front; as they were already Guards formations there was no presentation of a Guards banner. Once the division completed its reorganization its order of battle was as follows:


119th Guards Rifle Division, Formation, 154th Naval Rifle Brigade, Operation Uranus and Operation Ring
The division was placed under the command of Col. Sergei Ivanovich Aksyonov, who had previously commanded both the 170th and 171st Rifle Divisions in the Staraya Russa area. 44th Rifle Corps also contained the 32nd and 46th Rifle Brigades and 22nd Army was positioned south of Kholm, facing the II Army Corps of German 16th Army.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia
On October 20 Northwestern Front was redesignated as 2nd Baltic Front and by November 1 the 119th Guards had left 44th Corps and was serving as a separate division in 22nd Army. On the same date Colonel Aksyonov was transferred to command of the 185th Rifle Division and was replaced by Maj. Gen. Pavel Mendelevich Shafarenko, who had previously commanded the 25th Guards Rifle Division.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia
The 3rd and 4th Shock Armies of Kalinin Front had achieved a surprise breakthrough of the German front on October 6 and liberated the town of Nevel before expanding into the rear of 16th and 3rd Panzer Armies over the following days, creating a deep salient. The offensive was renewed from within the salient on November 2; in an early morning fog 3rd and 4th Shock Armies penetrated the defenses of the left flank of 3rd Panzer Army southwest of Nevel.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia
After the breakthrough, which opened a 16km-wide gap, 3rd Shock turned to the north behind the flank of 16th Army while 4th Shock moved southwest behind 3rd Panzer Army. As the offensive continued the Front commander, Army Gen. M. M. Popov, fed in reserves in an effort to encircle and destroy the German forces holding the deep salient running south from Novosokolniki to the initial gap that had been forced on October 6. In mid-November the 119th Guards was assigned to 3rd Shock Army. Supported by 118th Tank Brigade and flanked on the left by 146th Rifle Division it liberated the village of Podberezye and directly threatened to sever the Novosokolniki–Pustoshka rail line:


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia
It seemed as if yet another effort – the mission assigned to us by the front commander – had been fulfilled. The army's forces had created a bridgehead for a deep flank attack on the Idritsa-Novosokolniki enemy grouping from the south in the direction of Idritsa and Sebezh, which would allow us to sever the withdrawal routes of a considerable force of Hitlerites.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia
The Soviet advance was aided by warm and dry weather and local partisan detachments. The situation so concerned the German command that six infantry battalions were brought in from 18th Army to reinforce the approaches to Pustoshka, which effectively halted the push toward that city as torrential rains began on November 15. Popov ordered his forces over to the defense on November 21.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia
When December began the 119th Guards was under the command of 3rd Shock Army's 93rd Rifle Corps. It was holding along the east side of the Soviet salient toward Pustoshka in conjunction with the 326th Rifle Division; 93rd Corps was facing the 23rd and 290th Infantry Divisions of the I Army Corps. On December 9 the STAVKA ordered Popov to pierce the defenses at Pustoshka, capture Idritsa, and destroy the German forces in the salient between Novosokolniki and Nevel using 3rd Shock and 6th Guards Armies. This attack began on December 16 but made little progress. The 119th Guards and 326th were joined by the 21st Guards and 20th Rifle Divisions plus the 118th Tank Brigade and dented but failed to penetrate the positions of the 290th Infantry, which was reinforced by the 122nd Infantry Division. The effort was halted after several days.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia, Novosokolniki Pursuit
After this failure the division was transferred to the 100th Rifle Corps, still in 3rd Shock Army, where it joined the 21st and 46th Guards Rifle Divisions. On December 16 Hitler had finally conceded the impossibility of closing the gap at Nevel and cutting off the Soviet forces inside the salient, rendering his own salient south of Novosokolniki useless. About a week earlier the STAVKA had ordered Western Front to transfer 10th Guards Army to 2nd Baltic Front to take part in a further attempt to wipe out the German salient.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia, Novosokolniki Pursuit
This redeployment took time both due to the seasonal conditions and the need to replenish 10th Guards' formations. In the event the Soviet plans were preempted when Army Group North began to withdraw northward on December 29. This took General Popov by surprise and he hastily organized a pursuit which included the 100th Corps pressing in from the west and following up the withdrawal of the 290th Infantry in cooperation with two divisions of 93rd Corps and three tank brigades.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Into Western Russia, Novosokolniki Pursuit
By January 6, 1944 a new German line had been established from Idritsa to south of Pustoshka to Novosokolniki and northward to Lake Ilmen. While this strengthened the German position it turned out to be temporary as the Red Army's offensive at Leningrad and Novgorod later that month would force 16th Army to wheel its defenses back to Pskov.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
Later in January the 119th Guards was transferred to the 10th Guards Army, still in 2nd Baltic Front, joining the 7th Guards and 21st Guards Rifle Divisions in 7th Guards Rifle Corps. The division would remain under these commands for the duration of the war. Over the following months the 10th Guards Army closed up to the Panther Line east of Pskov and Ostrov.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
On May 10 General Shafarenko exchanged commands with Maj. Gen. Ivan Vladimirovich Gribov when he took over Gribov's 33rd Rifle Division; Shafarenko would go on to command the 23rd Guards Rifle Division and in the postwar period the 48th Guards Rifle Division before being promoted to the rank of lieutenant general in 1962.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
Near the end of June, as the destruction of Army Group Center was going on in Belarus, the 119th Guards was northeast of Novorzhev on the Sorot River, moving south from Porkhov. During July it took part in the fighting that breached the Panther Line and later that month crossed the border into the Baltic states. Shortly thereafter the division was awarded a battle honor for its part in the liberation of Rezekne, Latvia:


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
REZEKNE... 119th Guards Rifle Division (Major General Gribov, Ivan Vladimirovich)... The troops who participated in the liberation of Daugavpils and Rezekne, by the order of the Supreme High Command of 27 July 1944, and a commendation in Moscow, are given a salute of 20 artillery salvoes from 224 guns.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
By the beginning of August, 10th Guards Army was redeployed somewhat northwards to the area of Kārsava, from where it advanced westward into Latvia over the next six weeks, reaching Lubāna by mid-August. The lowlands of the Aiviekste River and Lake Lubāns define the terrain in the Lubāna region and the division had to cross many waterways during its advance toward Madona, which was liberated on August 13.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
During the course of this advance three men of the 341st Guards Rifle Regiment distinguished themselves sufficiently to become Heroes of the Soviet Union. The 1st Battalion was commanded by Maj. Andrei Yegorovich Chernikov and was the first to break through the German rearguards and reach the Aiviekste near Barkava on the night of August 3/4. Using captured rafts and boats Chernikov led his men in establishing and expanding a bridgehead, in the course of which over 100 German soldiers were killed or wounded while 18 artillery pieces and 28 machine guns were captured.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
Sen. Sgt. Akram Iskandarovich Valiev was a squad leader in Chernikov's battalion who led his men across by swimming. As his squad held off counterattacks he captured three boats and proceeded to make six crossings, ferrying more men into the tenuous bridgehead under mortar and machine gun fire. Sen. Sgt. Osip Andreevich Denisov captured a boat after killing a sentry. Taking advantage of confusion in the German ranks he led 25 of his men to the west bank in it, after which he personally killed or wounded 14 German soldiers while helping to expand the bridgehead.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
All three men were decreed as Heroes on March 24, 1945 and all survived the war. Chernikov remained in the army and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel before his death in Moscow in 1950. Valiev reached the rank of lieutenant before being moved to the reserve in 1946 when he returned to his home village in Tatarstan, dying there in 1975. Denisov was demobilized in November 1945 and moved to Ulan-Ude where he lived until his death in 1957.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Baltic Offensives
By the start of October the 119th Guards was on the approaches to Riga, north of the Daugava River, and distinguished itself in the fighting for this city from October 13-15; in recognition, on November 3 it was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. General Gribov became the deputy commander of 10th Guards Army on October 15; he would later command both the 19th and 15th Guards Rifle Corps and would reach the rank of lieutenant general before his retirement in 1957. He was replaced by Col. Andrian Maksimovich Ilyin who had previously served as deputy commander of the 7th Guards Rifle Division.


119th Guards Rifle Division, Postwar
The 10th Guards Army moved to the Kurland Group of Forces in Leningrad Front in March 1945, where it remained for the duration. On March 7 Col. Anatolii Ivanovich Kolobutin took over from Colonel Ilyin; the former had been serving as deputy commander of 7th Guards Rifle Corps. Following the German surrender the division carried the full title: 119th Guards Rifle, Rezekne, Order of the Red Banner Division. (Russian: 119-я гвардейская стрелковая Режицкая Краснознаменная дивизия.) Maj. Gen. Mikhail Grigorevich Makarov took over command in September and led the division for the rest of its existence. It was stationed at Pärnu still with 7th Guards Corps of 10th Guards Army before being disbanded in 1946.


119th Helicopter Brigade
The 119th Helicopter Brigade (Serbian: 119. хеликоптерска бригада / 119. helikopterska brigada) was a transport aviation unit of Yugoslav and FR Yugoslav Air Force established in 1945 as the 1st Transport Aviation Regiment (Serbo-Croatian: 1. vazduhoplovni transportni puk / 1. ваздухопловни транспортни пук).


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 1st Transport Aviation Regiment
The regiment was established in the first half of August 1945, in Zemun, as Yugoslav Air Force main transport air unit. The regiment was under direct command of Yugoslav Air Force HQ. It was equipped with Soviet Lisunov Li-2 and captured Luftwaffe Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft and other types.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 1st Transport Aviation Regiment
By 1948, the regiment was renamed, like all other units of the Yugoslav Army, becoming the 119th Transport Aviation Regiment.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 1st Transport Aviation Regiment
The commanders of the regiment in this period were Dimitrije Kovijanić, Vladimir Simić and Berislav Supek.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 119th Transport Aviation and Support Aviation Regiment
The 119th Transport Aviation Regiment remained at Zemun until 1963, when it has been dislocated to newer Batajnica Air Base. In this period regiment received US-built C-47 Skytrain transport aircraft. First operational helicopters of Yugoslav Air Force were Westland-Sikorsky WS-51 Mk.1B which were attached to new formed 5th Squadron (later designated as 27th Helicopter Squadron) of 119th Regiment located at Pančevo, since 1954. By the middle 1950s Regiment in its organization had five transport squadrons, one helicopter squadron and one liaison squadron.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 119th Transport Aviation and Support Aviation Regiment
In 1961 regiment was renamed to 119th Support Aviation Regiment (Serbo-Croatian: 119. puk pomoćne avijacije / 119. пук помоћне авијације). Same year due to the application of the "Drvar" reorganization for the Air Force, new type designation system is used to identify squadrons, so the squadrons of 119th Regiment have become 675th, 676th, 677th, 678th and 679th Transport Aviation Squadron, 783rd Helicopter Squadron and 890th Liaison Aviation Squadron.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 119th Transport Aviation and Support Aviation Regiment
It was reorganized by late 1961, when three of its squadrons were reassigned to form new Regiments of Support Aviation Regiments – 677th Squadron formed 81st Regiment, 678th first was at first independent but later in 1964 it has formed 97th Regiment and 679th Squadron formed 111th Regiment.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 119th Transport Aviation and Support Aviation Regiment
The 119th Support Aviation Regiment was disbanded in 1966. It's 676th Transport Aviation Squadron was also disbanded, 675th Transport Aviation Squadron was reassigned to 138th Transport Aviation Regiment, 783rd Helicopter Squadron become part of 107th Support Aviation Regiment while 890th Liaison Aviation Squadron remain as independent under Yugoslav Air Force Command.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, 119th Transport Aviation and Support Aviation Regiment
The commanders of the regiment in this period were Nikola Rodić, Dimitrije Kovačević, Mido Rakočević, Nikola Đurđević and Matija Macut.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
The 119th Transport Helicopter Regiment was formed by order from December 10, 1967, on May 2, 1968, at Niš military airport. It was a completely new unit formed from two new helicopter squadrons – 787th and 789th Transport Helicopter Squadron. It continued the tradition of former 1st Transport Aviation Regiment and 119th Transport Aviation Regiment. Its two squadrons were equipped with new Soviet-made Mil Mi-8T transport helicopters, being the first unit of Yugoslav Air Force equipped with this type.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
In 1973 it was renamed to 119th Support Aviation Regiment and the 677th Transport Aviation Squadron equipped with C-47 Skytrain cargo aircraft was moved from the 107th Support Aviation Regiment to 119th Regiment. US-made Skytrains were replaced by 1976 with Soviet-made Antonov An-26 and Polish-build Antonov An-2 transport aircraft. Regiment was again renamed in 1978 to 119th Transport Aviation Regiment. By the early 1980s Yugoslav Air Force has modernized its helicopter fleet with French-licensed domestic made helicopters SOKO Gazelle helicopters. In 1981 712nd Anti- Armored Helicopter Squadron was formed armed with new Gazelle helicopters equipped for anti-armored fighting. Due to the organizational changes, Regiment has become 119th Aviation Brigade  (Serbo-Croatian: 119. avijacijska brigada / 119. авијацијска бригада).


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
In 1988 another one squadron of Gazelle helicopters, 714th has been formed at Kraljevo-Lađevci Airport as part of brigade. The 789th Transport Helicopter Squadron was disbanded in 1990 and its personnel and equipment were assigned to 787th Squadron, being from then the only squadron of brigade equipped with Mi-8T helicopters.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
The units of 119th Aviation Brigade have taken part in combat operations during the 1991 and 1992 in Croatia and Bosnia. Mainly it was used for transport of elite 63rd Paratroop Brigade. It also took part in evacuation of Yugoslav People's Army personal and civilians, MEDEVAC and combat search and rescue operations.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
Just during the first five months of 1992 787th Transport Helicopter Squadron has made 830 flight hours and have evacuated 5610 members of Yugoslav Air Force, 683 members of their families, 767 Yugoslav People's Army soldiers and 213 wounded flying from Željava Air Base, Pale, Kumbor, Zalužani, Batajnica Air Base and Udbina airport. In same period two Anti- Armored Helicopter Squadrons, 712th and 714th, have made 535 combat flights and 370 flight hours and transported 590 persons flying from Banaj Luka and Batajnica. During the 1991 the 677th Transport Aviation Squadron was reassigned to 138th Transport Aviation Regiment and brigade was reorganized into 119th Transport Helicopter Regiment.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
After Yugoslav People's Army was officially dissolved in May 1992, the regiment has joined the newly formed Military of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia as part of its Air Force Aviation Corps. Later in 1996 it was again renamed, in to 119th Helicopter Brigade (Serbian: 119. хеликоптерска бригада / 119. helikopterska brigada). In that period the unit and its squadrons have got its official badges.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
Brigade took operations during the Kosovo war in 1998 and 1999 and NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. Several helicopters have been destroyed on ground in NATO airstrikes. Beside air superiority of NATO alliance helicopters of 119th Helicopter Brigade have made several flights with out any of them being shot down. Again main tasks were transport of 63rd Paratroop Brigade and evacuation.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
In post-war period whole Air Force which has suffered heavy losses of equipment destroyed on ground and damaged infrastructure. Brigade had problem with old equipment, lack of spare parts and fuel, which have reduce the number of flight hours which were already low during the 1990s economical crisis due to the sanctions. Main problem was with Mi-8T transport helicopters, which from many were withdrawn due age and heavy exploitation during the wars. In 2006 after dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro Serbian Air Force has been reorganized with many units being disbanded.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
In 2007 the 98th Air Brigade was formed on June 13, 2007, with 714th Anti- Armored Helicopter Squadron as part of it and with other two squadrons of 119th Helicopter Brigade being merged in to single 119th Mixed Helicopter Squadron which is continuing the tradition of disbanded Brigade/Regiment with same number.


119th Helicopter Brigade, History, Re-establishment of the 119th Regiment
The commanders of the regiment and brigade in this period were Nikola Petrović, Svetozar Popović, Jovan Nikolić, Vojislav Milić and Miroslav Đurić.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment
The 119th Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Service
The 119th Illinois Infantry was organized in Quincy, Illinois beginning in September 1862 and mustered in for three years service on October 7, 1862 under the command of Colonel Thomas Jefferson Kinney.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Service
The regiment was attached to District of Jackson, Tennessee, XIII Corps, Department of the Tennessee, to December 1862. District of Columbus, Kentucky, XVI Corps, to January 1863. 3rd Brigade, District of Jackson, XVI Corps, to March 1863. 4th Brigade, 1st Division, XVI Corps, to May 1863. 4th Brigade, District of Memphis, Tennessee, 5th Division, XV Corps, to January 1864. 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, XVI Corps, to December 1864. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, Detachment Army of the Tennessee, Department of the Cumberland, to February 1865. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, XVI Corps, Military Division West Mississippi, to August 1865.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Service
The 119th Illinois Infantry mustered out of service August 26, 1865.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Detailed service
Ordered to Columbus, Kentucky, then to Jackson, Tennessee, and duty along Mobile & Ohio Railroad until December 1862. Company G captured at Rutherford Station and Company K at Dyer's Station December 21, 1862. Duty at Columbus, Kentucky, and at Union City, Tennessee, until February 1863. Moved to Humboldt, Huntington, and Memphis, Tennessee, and guarding railroad near Memphis until May 30. Moved to Memphis and post duty there until January 1864. Ordered to Vicksburg, Mississippi, January 21, 1864. Meridian Campaign February 3-March 2. Queen Hill February 4. Meridian February 14–15. Red River Campaign March 10 May 22. Fort DeRussy March 14.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Detailed service
Occupation of Alexandria, Louisiana, March 16. Battle of Pleasant Hill April 9. Natchitoches April 20–21. About Cloutiersville April 22–24. At Alexandria April 26-May 13. Bayou La Mourie May 7. Retreat to Morganza May 13–20. Mansura May 16. Yellow Bayou May 18. Moved to Vicksburg, Mississippi, then to Memphis, Tennessee, May 21-June 10. Lake Chicot, Arkansas, June 6. Defeat of Marmaduke. Smith's Expedition to Tupelo, Mississippi, July 5–21. Camargo's Cross Roads, near Harrisburg, July 13. Harrisburg, near Tupelo, July 14–15. Old Town (or Tishamingo) Creek July 15. Smith's Expedition to Oxford, Miss., August 1–30. Tallahatchie River August 7–9. Abbeville August 23.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Detailed service
Mower's Expedition to Brownsville, Ark., September 2–10. Marched through Arkansas and Missouri in pursuit of Price September 17-November 19. Moved to Nashville, Tennessee, November 21-December 1. Battle of Nashville December 15–16. Pursuit of Hood to the Tennessee River December 17–28. Moved to Eastport, Mississippi, and duty there until February 1865. Movement to New Orleans, Louisiana, February 8–26. To Dauphin Island March 6. Campaign against Mobile and its defenses March 17-April 12. Siege of Spanish Fort and Fort Blakely March 26-April 8. Assault and capture of Fort Blakely April 9. Occupation of Mobile April 12. Marched to Montgomery April 13–25. Returned to Mobile and duty there until August.


119th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Casualties
The regiment lost a total of 157 men during service; 2 officers and 22 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded, 3 officers and 130 enlisted men died of disease.


119th Infantry (The Mooltan Regiment)
The 119th Infantry (The Mooltan Regiment) was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment originated in 1817, when it was raised as the 1st Battalion, 10th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry.


119th Infantry (The Mooltan Regiment)
The regiment's first action was in the Battle of Ghazni in the First Afghan War. After Afghanistan it took part in the Siege of Multan in the Second Anglo-Sikh War. It returned to Afghanistan in the Second Afghan War and took part in the Siege of Multan. During World War I it was attached to the 6th (Poona) Division and served in the Mesopotamian campaign. It fought in the Battle of Basra, the Battle of Qurna, the Battle of Es Sinn before suffering a setback at the Battle of Ctesiphon, after which it withdrew to Kut. Trapped in the city in the Siege of Kut the regiment was forced to surrender after 147 days. A second battalion was raised from men on leave and reinforcements, and sent to Mesopotamia.


119th Infantry (The Mooltan Regiment)
After World War I the Indian government reformed the army moving from single-battalion to multi-battalion regiments. In 1922 the 119th Infantry (The Molten Regiment) became the 2nd (Mooltan Battalion), The 9th Jat Regiment. After independence it was one of the regiments allocated to the Indian Army.


119th Infantry Division (German Empire)
The 119th Infantry Division (119. Infanterie-Division) was a formation of the Imperial German Army in World War I. The division was formed on March 25, 1915, and organized over the next several weeks. It was part of a wave of new infantry divisions formed in the spring of 1915. The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I.


119th Infantry Division (German Empire)
The division was formed primarily from the excess infantry regiments of regular infantry divisions which were being triangularized. The division's 237th Infantry Brigade staff was formerly the staff of the 19th Infantry Brigade of the 10th Infantry Division, which came to the new division along with the 46th Infantry Regiment. The 46th Reserve Infantry Regiment was formerly part of the 10th Reserve Division. The 58th Infantry Regiment came from the 9th Infantry Division. The division was primarily recruited in the V Army Corps area (Posen and Lower Silesia).


119th Infantry Division (German Empire), Combat chronicle
The 119th Infantry Division initially fought on the Eastern Front in World War I, entering the line in April as part of "Combined Corps Kneussl" (Kombiniertes Korps Kneussl) and then fighting in the battle of Gorlice-Tarnów and the ensuing Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive. In August 1915, it participated in the attack on Brest-Litovsk. From September 1915 to March 1916, the division occupied the line between the Servech and Shchara Rivers, near Baranovichi. It remained in the line in Russia until May 1917, when it was transferred to the Western Front, where it was initially stationed on the Belgian/Dutch border.


119th Infantry Division (German Empire), Combat chronicle
It went into the line in Flanders in May and fought in the Battle of Messines and the Battle of Passchendaele. It was removed from the line to rest in October and returned to line to face the Allied attack in the Battle of Cambrai. In 1918, the division participated in the German spring offensive, fighting in the First Battle of the Somme (1918), also known as the Second Battle of the Somme (to distinguish it from the 1916 battle), and the Battle of the Lys, also known as the Fourth Battle of Ypres. It later fought in the Second Battle of the Somme (1918), also known as the Third Battle of the Somme. It remained in the line until the end of the war. Allied intelligence rated the division as second class.


119th Infantry Division (German Empire), Order of battle on formation
The 119th Infantry Division was formed as a triangular division. The order of battle of the division on March 25, 1915, was as follows:


119th Infantry Division (German Empire), Late-war order of battle
The division underwent relatively few organizational changes over the course of the war. Cavalry was reduced, artillery and signals commands were formed, and combat engineer support was expanded to a full pioneer battalion. The order of battle on March 10, 1918, was as follows:


119th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The 119th Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The unit was an organic element of the 30th Infantry Division ("Old Hickory") of the United States Army.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Recent history
The 1st Battalion, 119th Infantry was a longtime unit of the 30th Infantry Brigade (Mechanized). It was nicknamed the Swamp Dragon Battalion due to the nature of the terrain in its home area of eastern North Carolina. By the early 2000s Company A was located at Roanoke Rapids. The battalion was alerted for deployment in March 2003 and went to Iraq with the brigade.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Distinctive unit insignia
A Silver color and metal enamel device 1 3/16 inches (3.02 cm) in height overall consisting of a shield blazoned:  Per fess Azure and Argent, upon a mound in base Vert a lion rampant passant counterchanged, eyed, langued and armed Gules. Attached below and to the sides of the shield is a Silver scroll turned Blue inscribed "UNDAUNTED" in Blue letters.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Distinctive unit insignia
The blue is the color of the Infantry. The functions of the organization are allegorically implied by the ferocious lion, heraldically being the lively image of a good soldier who must be valiant of courage, strong of body and a foe to fear. The motto alludes to the symbolism of the shield and is expressive of the characteristics of the personnel.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Distinctive unit insignia
The distinctive unit insignia was approved on 4 February 1943. It was amended to change the description on 29 March 1953.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Coat of arms, Blazon
Per fess Azure and Argent, upon a mound in base Vert a lion rampant passant counterchanged, eyed, langued and armed Gules.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Coat of arms, Blazon
That for the regiments and separate battalions of the North Carolina Army National Guard:  On a wreath of the colors Argent and Azure, a hornet’s nest hanging from a bough beset with 13 hornets all Proper. Motto:   UNDAUNTED.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Coat of arms, Symbolism
The blue is the color of the Infantry. The functions of the organization are allegorically implied by the ferocious lion, heraldically being the lively image of a good soldier who must be valiant of courage, strong of body and a foe to fear.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Coat of arms, Symbolism
The crest is that of the North Carolina Army National Guard.


119th Infantry Regiment (United States), Coat of arms, Background
The coat of arms was approved on 4 February 1943. It was amended to change the blazon on 29 March 1953.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery
The 119th Light Anti- Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, (119th LAA Rgt) was an air defence unit of the British Army during World War II. Initially raised as an infantry battalion of the Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment (QORWK) in 1940, it transferred to the Royal Artillery in 1942. It served with 79th Armoured Division and then 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, with which it fought in Normandy (Operation Overlord) and through the campaign in North West Europe until VE Day.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 10th Battalion, Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment
The unit was originally formed in January 1940 as a company of 14th (Holding) Battalion at Tonbridge in Kent, as part of the rapid expansion of the Army with wartime conscripts. When 14th (H) Battalion was disbanded in May 1940, the company was expanded into 50th Holding Battalion, Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment (QORWK), and converted to a normal infantry battalion on 9 October that year as 11th Battalion, QORWK. On 8 November it joined 221st Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) when that static defence formation was organised at Chatham, Kent. On 26 February 1941 the brigade was temporarily attached to 2nd Division, at that time serving in the East Riding of Yorkshire as part of I Corps. On 19 March the brigade came under the new Yorkshire County Division formed for coast defence in that area.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 10th Battalion, Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment
221st Brigade was broken up at the end of the year and on 1 February 1942 10th QORWK was transferred to the Royal Artillery (RA) to begin retraining as a light anti-aircraft (LAA) regiment equipped with Bofors 40 mm guns.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment
The unit was designated 119th Light Anti- Aircraft Regiment with 390, 391 and 392 LAA Batteries. After initial training it joined Anti- Aircraft Command in February, but left in May before it had been assigned to a brigade.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment
The regiment joined the newly formed 79th Armoured Division in Yorkshire on 10 September 1942. However, the British Army had already begun to suffer manpower shortages and had more divisions than it could support. 79th Armoured was therefore converted into a holding formation for specialised armour units and gave up its artillery component. On 18 May 1943, 119th LAA Rgt was transferred to 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division. This was a second-line Territorial Army formation that was being brought up to full establishment as part of Second Army in 21st Army Group preparing for the Allied landings in Normandy (Operation Overlord).


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Overlord training
In September 1943, 15th (S) Division moved from Northumberland to a training area in the West Riding of Yorkshire and began a series of training exercises through the winter. In mid-February the whole division participated in a 12-day training exercise (Exercise Eagle) in the Yorkshire Wolds along with the other divisions assigned to VIII Corps. On 14 March 1944 the regiment's three batteries were augmented to a strength of four troops each when 69–71 Trps joined from 340 LAA Bty of 103rd LAA Rgt, which had been broken up.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Overlord training
This brought the establishment of Bofors guns up to 72, but before D-Day some LAA regiments began exchanging some of their Bofors for multiple-barrelled 20 mm guns (usually Oerlikons or Polstens). In the case of 119th LAA Rgt, the additional troop to each battery (X, Y and Z) was equipped with 20 mms. In April 1944 the division moved to its concentration area in Sussex to prepare for embarkation.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
The assault formations of 21st Army Group landed on D Day (6 June). The advanced parties of the regiment (under Lieutenant-Colonel John 'Sailor' Young, who remained  in command until the end of the war) began moving off from Lancing, West Sussex, to their marshalling area. On 16 June they embarked at London Docks: RHQ and 391 Battery HQ (BHQ) with A, B, and C Trps aboard Motor Transport 76 (S81), 392 BHQ, I Trp and few others aboard S59; G and F Trps followed in a later convoy.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
The transports sailed to Southend-on-Sea and joined a convoy that arrived off Courseulles-sur-Mer (Juno Beach) on the evening of 17 June. Although parts of 15th (S) Division had begun landing on 13 June, the weather deteriorated and the parties of 119th LAA Rgt had to wait aboard ship, subjected to some night bombing, until 23 June when they transferred to a Landing Ship, Tank, and disembarked, losing a few vehicles drowned in the process. RHQ was initially at Esquay-sur-Seulles, then established at Cully next day. A mixed party under the second-in-command was still carrying out reconnaissance and clearing battery positions on 26 June when the division was committed to its first action in the Battle of the Odon (Operation Epsom).


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
After the weather delay, Second Army began the 'Epsom' offensive on 25 June, with VIII Corps (including 15th (S) Division) attacking at 07.30 next day to force crossings of the Rivers Orne and Odon. The infantry attacked through fields of crops with tank support behind a Creeping barrage and fought their way into the villages of Cheux and St Manvieu but the Odon bridges were still 2 miles (3.2 km) away at the end of the first day.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
The party of 119th LAA Rgt preparing positions had been caught by mortar fire, losing one man killed and one officer and three other ranks (ORs) wounded. RHQ moved up to Putot-en-Bessin. Further gains and a narrow bridgehead over the Odon were achieved by bitter fighting next day, by the end of which 15th (S) Division had created a deep salient into the German positions (known as 'Scottish Corridor') without reaching the Orne. Over following days the Germans made repeated attempts to overwhelm the corridor.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
On 28 June B Trp had to fight as infantry to deal with snipers, killing three and capturing another. On that day a self-propelled (SP) Bofors of G Trp received a direct hit from a mortar with three ORs killed and one wounded. During one attack at Cheux on 29 June, the regiment's forward subunit had to withdraw to the British anti-tank lines, returning to its previous position next day after the attack had been broken by British artillery.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
On 30 June guns from the regiment hit a Messerschmitt Bf 109 (Me 109), which was believed to have crashed. One role for frontline LAA units was to provide 'refuge strips' for Air Observation Post (AOP) aircraft spotting for the field guns: a Bofors troop deployed with Local Warning (LW) radar and ground observers could alert the pilot to the presence of enemy aircraft and provide protection for him. Two Trps of 392 Bty moved forward in this role on 30 June. Ultimately the Germans could not take the pounding from concentrated Allied firepower and had to stop their attacks.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
However, Operation Epsom caused a quarter of all the casualties suffered by 15th (S) Division in the North West Europe campaign. Casualties were understandably much lighter for the LAA regiment, which was only marginally involved. Nonetheless, between 27 June and 2 July 119th LAA suffered casualties of 1 officer and 4 other ranks (ORs) killed, 1 officer and 5 ORs wounded.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
For the next two months the division fought its way slowly through the Bocage country, capturing Éterville, retaking Gavrus and advancing to Évrecy in Operations Jupiter and Greenline. Since the Allies had achieved air superiority over the beachhead, there was little call for AA defence, and AA units became increasingly used to supplement the divisional artillery to support ground operations. LAA units fired tracer to guide night attacks onto their objectives, and the Bofors guns were much in demand for infantry support.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
They could give useful close-range fire to help infantry working from cover to cover in the bocage; their rapid fire was good for suppressing enemy heavy weapons, the 40 mm round's sensitive percussion fuze providing an airburst effect among trees. It was also used for 'bunker-busting', though the lack of protection made the gun detachment vulnerable to return fire.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
German mortar fire was a particular hazard in the bocage, and 119th LAA Rgt's CO, Lt-Col 'Sailor' Young, was instrumental in setting up a divisional counter-mortar (CM) organisation based initially on the guns of 119th LAA and the communications and 4.2-inch mortars of the divisional machine-gun battalion, 1st Bn Middlesex Regiment, later widened to include other artillery. When incoming fire was received the CM group brought down immediate heavy retaliation against suspected German mortar positions.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
119th LAA Regiment spent mid-July with the divisional artillery in the St Manvieu area, occasionally under shellfire, while it practised the CM scheme and the last parts of the regiment arrived from England. On 11 July A Trp shot down two Me 109s near Verson. On 23 July 15th (S) Division was moved westwards to take part in Operation Bluecoat, aiming to strike southwards from Caumont towards Vire. The attack was launched on 30 July and made good progress, getting onto the Estry and Perrier Ridges to support the advancing armour. 119th LAA Regiment suffered three killed and nine wounded in a clash with an enemy patrol on 1 August. Later, on 6 August, the division supported 43rd (Wessex) Division's seizure of Mont Pinçon.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Normandy
21st Army Group's manpower shortage and the lack of German aircraft activity led to the divisional LAA regiments being reduced. On 5 August 119th LAA Rgt had to send 54 ORs to a reinforcement holding unit, then it was ordered to send the 20 mm troops (X, Y and Z) and one Bofors troop from each battery (B, D and H) back to England. This left each battery with just two troops of Bofors guns, one towed, one SP.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The breakout from the Normandy beachhead had now been achieved, and after the German forces trapped in the Falaise Pocket had been dealt with, 21st Army Group was able to drive east towards the River Seine. 15th (S) Division spearheaded XII Corps' advance, 'Operation Gallop', with one troop of 119th LAA Rgt attached to cover each infantry brigade, the divisional artillery, and divisional HQ along the column.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The regiment also had C Trp of 364 Bty and G Trp of 366 Bty from 112th (Durham Light Infantry) LAA Rgt (the corps LAA regiment) attached to it for this operation to cover 67th (Suffolk) Medium Rgt and the field regiment attached to 4th Armoured Bde. Driving from east of Falaise through Beaumont-le-Roger the column reached the river at Louviers on 27 August. Despite the risks inherent in attacking in daylight, 15th (S) Division pushed its first troops across at 19.00 before German defences could solidify in the far bank.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The attack was covered by Bofors guns firing at ground targets across the river, and after dark the bridging operation on the river was illuminated by B Trp of 344 Searchlight Bty operating in a 'Moonlight Battery' role under command of 119th LAA Rgt. The division then held the bridgehead while the rest of the corps rushed on to the River Somme. Responsibility for AA defence of the packed road columns passing through the bridgehead remained with 119th LAA Rgt, but despite ideal cloud conditions for surprise attacks by fighter bombers there was no interference from the Luftwaffe. This responsibility was passed over to 73rd LAA Rgt of 80th AA Bde.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
On 1 September the regiment was ordered to increase its petrol reserves in preparation for a long move. The batteries were allocated to the various sections of the divisional column:


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The move began on 3 September, with 15th (S) Division starting a 120 miles (190 km) journey to take over defence of the Somme bridgeheads. 2nd Tactical Air Force (2nd TAF) was overhead, so AA fire was prohibited during daylight. By the end of 4 September 119th LAA Rgt was concentrated in the grounds of the Chateau de Selincourt, near Hornoy-le-Bourg, west of Amiens, where it was 'grounded' and most of its vehicles (23 3-tonner trucks and 10 gun tractors) used to provide a supply transport column, while a 40-man detachment with wireless-equipped light vehicles was employed on traffic control.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The rest of the division continued through Lille, sweeping the country, dealing with rearguards and rounding up prisoners, until it reached the Albert Canal on 9 September. From that night all AA fire was forbidden because of an expected airborne operation, but this was cancelled on 12 September. Next day the regiment's vehicles returned and it began the long drive to catch up, after which the guns were deployed to protect the artillery, with a few ready for ground fire across the canal (though no targets presented themselves).


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The division then moved to hold the Gheel bridgehead across the Meuse–Escaut canal; here there were numerous targets for ground firing, including enemy machine gun nests and observation posts, and in support of infantry attacks. For a night operation by 227th Bde, E Trp used the tracer of its Bofors to direct the attack. On 17 September the regiment laid out fluorescent strips to mark its positions when the Allied aircraft carrying I Airborne Corps flew over to launch Operation Market Garden.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
15th (S) Division's role in Market Garden was to hold the Gheel bridgehead and then advance in parallel with XXX Corps' main thrust. The division advanced towards Eindhoven on 21 September, with 119th LAA Rgt's three SP Trps accompanying for ground fire, while the tractor-drawn Trps protected bridges along the route. It took the division several days to get across the Junction Canal at Aart, and eventually it adopted an easier route as it moved up the western flank of XXX Corps' narrow thrust.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
It took five days' hard fighting to capture Best, but by 27 September 119th LAA Rgt was guarding the bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal at Son, having suffered its first battle casualties since Normandy. It periodically exchanged fire with German positions at 1,200 yards (1,100 m), employing both direct and indirect (observed) fire. By 4 October the exhausted division had been relieved and 119th LAA Rgt was resting at Gemert.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The division was back in the line on 22 October for Operation Pheasant, advancing towards Tilburg against little opposition, held up only by rearguards and broken bridges, with guns of 119th LAA Rgt engaging ground targets. The town was liberated on 28 October. Next day, 119th LAA Rgt was in Helmond when it engaged enemy aircraft after dark, being bombed in its turn, with damage to several vehicles. The division was then switched to help deal with a German counter-attack at Meijel.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
It relieved the 7th US Armored Division and 25th Field Regiment, RA, which had been fighting desperately at Asten, and then counter-attacked, with 119th LAA Rgt contributing ground fire. While three troops were thus engaged, the other three troops providing AA defence for the divisional artillery were joined by three troops from 112th (DLI) LAA Rgt. They were linked to a GL Mk II gun-laying radar (normally Heavy AA equipment) so that the AA Operations Room (AAOR) could order pre-arranged AA barrages and improve the LAA's effectiveness at night. Seven troops of 119th and 112th LAA Rgts were ordered to provide harassing fire in support of an attack by 227th Bde on 16 November, but the Germans had pulled out of Meijel. The regiment suffered a number of casualties from schu-mines.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
The division next fought its way over the bleak moorlands of De Peel to close up to the River Maas in Operation Nutcracker (19–27 November). 119th LAA Regiment was engaged in ground fire against enemy observation posts (OPs), harassing fire, and occasional AA fire against fighter-bombers. It received a few reinforcements from the division's anti-tank regiment (97th A/T Rgt), which was being disbanded, but these men were quickly removed and sent for infantry training.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
Next, the division carried out a set-piece assault on the German bridgehead at Blerick in Operation Guildford (3 December), with massive support by guns of every calibre. For 119th LAA Rgt the fire programme began on 2 December when the guns were registered with the help of an AOP aircraft on likely enemy supply routes that would be subjected to harassing fire. The regiment also had one gun from a super heavy regiment attached to it to deal with a tower that was a probable enemy OP, and destroyed it with 7–8 rounds. When the attack went in on 3 December the ground firing troops continued the fireplan until they ran out of ammunition, suffering six casualties from return fire. They then returned to the AA lines.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
15th (Scottish) Division spent the winter along the Maas as operations went on elsewhere. 119th LAA Regiment's batteries adopted a routine of two weeks in the line followed by one week in maintenance and training, mirroring the brigades to which they were attached. While in the line one trp per battery was giving LAA protection to the field gun areas, while one was at divisional HQ, and one in readiness for groundshooting tasks. The regiment was forced to give up a draft of 32 younger men to be retrained as infantry.


119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 119th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, North West Europe
Meanwhile, the Luftwaffe was active with fighter-bombers and reconnaissance aircraft in twos and threes, and there were several LAA engagements. When the Luftwaffe launched its Operation Bodenplatte against Allied airfields on 1 January 1945, GHQ AA Troops for 21st Army Group reported that '40 mm LAA had the time of its life'. 119th LAA Regiment claimed six of the low-flying Fighter-bombers shot down during the morning. The new divisional A/T Rgt, 102nd (Northumberland Hussars), confirmed that three of these had landed near its HQ (later VIII Corps confirmed five 'kills' and one shared). Otherwise the regiment was engaged in occasional ground fire against houses and enemy SP guns, or to test repaired guns. Between 19 and 28 January 15th (S) Division was relieved and went back to Tilburg for training.