Armored train with AAA, part of Ploesti defence

Any info or/and pictures about/with the armored train who participate in defence of Ploesti zone?

Iama

Source: www.modelism.ro

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The armored flak train was nicknamed the "Caterpillar". It had 10 wagons and one engine. It had 36 light and medium AA guns on board and was camouflaged as a freight train. The wagons had fake walls, which would come down to reveal the arsenal inside. The most deadly pieces onboard proved to be two 4x20 mm guns, which could rotate 360 degrees. Out of the 10 wagons, only 6 were firing platforms. The rest were sleeping quarters, kitchen and mess hall, communications center and even a club wagon. Everything it needed. It was put under the command of Hauptmann Joseph Brem.

General Gerstenberg had ordered the Caterpillar to be positioned north of Ploiesti in order to catch the bombers, which would have just come out of the target area by surprise. Instead it caught by surprise the 77 B-24Ds of the 93rd and 98th bomber Groups approaching Ploiesti from the north, as planned. "Killer" Kane, the CO of the 98th (CMO), estimated he lost 7 aircraft to the flak train and many other were damaged. A bomb took out the train's engine and it eventually derailed.

After 23 August 1944 the train retreated northwards from Ploiesti firing on the oil wells in its way. It was stopped by a 7 men team, which blew it up near Baicoi.

Victor its a very interesting point you made......therefore I need to pose the quotestions:

- Was there any knowledge or previous intelligence reports at the Roumanian
and German INTEL sides about the possibility of an attack at the magnitude of
the Tidalwave but perhaps was no specific knowledge about the date and hour ?

- From all my records it looks that US Intelligence was aware about the flack trains
though not as sophisticated as you stated ( 360 degree movement)

- From what you state it looks that HAIL COLUMBIA with his group was flying straight into it ?

- I still find it incredible that TEGGIE ANN carrying wasnt discovered , attached
or intercepted

Finally is there any chance you would post some larger photos on the flack camouflaged train?

Many thanks again

Alex

Hello Victor

I looked into my records of the Tidalwave and I found a very interesting photo I didnt pay much attention to before . It says the gunners of TEGGIE ANN of the 376th Bmb fire at a train carrying tanks .....I looked a little better , it doesnt look to me that the trains were carrying tanks, could it be the caterpillar ...what is your opinion ? The photo is from THE BLACK SUNDAY ...were the caterpillars equipped with radars or linkend to the radar sites for track and aquisition purposes.....I guess the trains were mainly for very low altitude targetting rather mid , also do you have any details or photos on the 7 planes lost to it by the Pyramiders ?

Let me know thanks
Alex

This post has been edited by alexkdl on December 18, 2004 12:51 pm

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I think that train is a fuel train - the weagons look round exactly like the ones that transport oil - they also have a "capac" on the upper side just like the fuel wagons.

This post has been edited by D13-th_Mytzu on December 18, 2004 12:45 pm

This what I was thinking too ( Tren Cisterna, Tren Petrolifier) though I am not certain is one

Alex

This post has been edited by alexkdl on December 18, 2004 12:49 pm

I have one question related to this photo: can you see the corn or "grau" on the ground (the one on the left side) - does it look like that because the picture is fuzzy or because of the propeller thrust ? (don't know if it is the correct term)

from the original photo looks like prop effect .....though is an old photo and I might be wrong

Here is a AA Defense chart drown in the comemoration of the TIDALEWAVE to honour the commander of the German/Roumanian flack batteries who defended Ploesti .The drawing depicts the shooting down locations of 31 Liberators and the aproximate crash sites of all 31 Liberandos . It was drawn by a Luftabwehr Unteroffizier Schutze later on for its commanding officer before leaving Roumania .

From German language " Zum Befelshaber seine Flakartilerie zu Gedenken an die erfolgreiche Abwehr des Grossangriffes amerikanischer Bomber auf Ploesti am 1.8.1943 ( abschuss von 31 Liberators) .

Alex

This post has been edited by alexkdl on December 18, 2004 02:37 pm

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Alex do you have a larger picture ?

Yea send me by PVT your EMAIL address I gonna send it in large scale

ALEX

This post has been edited by alexkdl on December 18, 2004 02:36 pm

Here is what "Killer" Kane told Ioan Grigorescu in an interview about the "Caterpillar"

Source: Bine ati venit in infern by Ioan Grigorescu, Nemira, 1995

Victor many thanks, did I.Grigorescu wrote a book about Tidalwave? where and when was it published and how and when did he manage to interview "Killer" Kane when in fact he died many years ago and when Roumania was still under Ceausescu at that time .Where this book can be obtained

Thanks
Alex