Attached Cavalry Units

The job of the cavalry units attached to the 103rd Infantry Division was to scout ahead of the division and provide reconnaissance, information, and the best route forward for the advancing troops behind them. This job was often extremely dangerous, as these units were lightly equipped and their vehicles were thinly armored to make them more mobile. Due to this light armament and the desire to maintain the element of surprise, reconnaissance troops normally tried to avoid heavy or prolonged contact with enemy forces.

Along with the small arms such as rifles, carbines, and submachine guns that all American troops were equipped with, some cavalry units such as the 117th Cavalry Recon Squad were outfitted with M5 Light Stuart Tanks. These tanks, while having a smaller main gun and lighter armor then the M4 Sherman Medium Tank, were helpful with providing additional firepower and support to cavalry troops. These light tanks were also beneficial when the cavalry units attached to the 103rd Infantry Division were asked to step in as additional infantry units during some assaults.

The two cavalry units that were attached to the 103rd Infantry Division, the 115th Cavalry Group and the 117th Cavalry Recon Squad both had their starts in the pre-war years as National Guard Units, like many of the units that made up the 103rd Infantry Division. The 115th Cavalry Group was activated for federal service out of Wyoming, while the 117th Cavalry Squad was originally from New Jersey. For both the 115th and 117th, service in World War II forced a monumental jump in technology. Prior to entry into World War II, U.S. Army Cavalry units were comprised of soldiers on horseback. After witnessing the staggering effectiveness of the German Blitzkrieg with tanks and mechanized troop carriers in the late 1930s and early 1940s, the U.S. Army began to plan to modernize its own cavalry. The attack on Pearl Harbor made the Army shift that modernization into high gear as the Army completely overhauled the training and equipment of the cavalry in short order, to make the units a mechanized and mobile force that could function on the modern battlefield.