Feldherrnhalle panzermann

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I have had the great honor to have interviewed Lt. Voss, I have visited his home and read his book. He has invited me 3 years in a row to the Panzer reunion in Munster, Germany. There I have made great contacts with former enemies of my father from the Salerno invasion. I am proud to call Lt. Voss my friend. He retired from the Bundeswehr Reserve as a colonel. I met his wife on the train returning from the Paratrooper reunion. What a great guy. He was a panzermann in Russia. On Oktober 13, 1944 (Friday) his Mk IV had engine trouble and was left by the other tanks as they retreated. 4 Panzer Grenadiers were riding on the tank. As they tried to break through the lines that the Russians were establishing, they were knocked out. Two of the Grenadiers surrendered immediately and the rest of the crew jumped from the tank and ran like crazy with rounds whizzing by them. One man was wounded but they all got away. He was sent to OCS and became a 2nd Lt. in the closing days of the war. In April 1945 they were trapped in the Harz Mountains with the Russians in the east and the Americans/British in the west. He was given a platoon, which was armed with panzerfausts, MP44s, and grenades. They were told to ride their bicycles to a specific town and stop the British army. When they arrived, the British had long since taken the town. He told his troops that it was every man for himself and to try and get home. He walked for months and actually made it home in uniform avoiding capture in occupied Germany. He later became a Colonel in the Bundeswehr and was a liaison officer with the Americans. 

I met Heinz three years in a row at the German Panzer reunion in Munster. He was just a boy when drafted from the Hitler Youth into the Feldherrnhalle Division. He saw quite a bit of combat for his age. He was ordered to defend Berlin against the Russians. He talked about shooting panzerfausts into groups of attacking Russians. One time when he stood up to shoot, they shot him in the side of the stomach. He spent some time in the hospital and still has the bullet they pulled out of him.

I met Gustav at a German Panzer reunion for the Feldherrnhalle Division in Schmallenberg. He was there with his son. Below is his military history. He was a very nice man to chat with. A lot of fun to be with... He fought my dad's division in the Voges mountains in the southern bulge.   Gustav Schäfer was born 09.09.1926 May 1943 radio training touch and radio in the WE camp in the Eifel Nov. 1943 pre-military training SA standard Feldherrenhalle Dec. 1943 Reich Labor Service March 1944 3 days parachute school Dresden March 1944 Pz troop replacement and training department Elbingen Aug. 1944 conversion course from tanks 4 on Panzer 5 (Panther) in Bielefeld Aug. 1944 formation of Pz Brig. 106 FHH in Mielau Sept. 1944 deployment at the front in Luxenburg, Alsace Lorraine March 6, 1945 deployment in Cologne and in American captivity Feb. 1946 release.