US WWII SOLDIER WITH CAL 50 MACHINE GUN

The American infantry, in its activities and tactics, especially during the fighting in the Mediterranean (1942-1945) and during the fighting in North-Western Europe (1944-1945), attached a relatively large role to machine guns. In the American squad from 1943, which numbered 12 soldiers, there was one soldier armed with a BAR manual machine gun. On the other hand, at the company level, the so-called weapons platoon armed inter and others, one 12.7mm M2 and three 7.62mm M1919s. At the infantry battalion level, there was also an organic unit with machine guns - the so-called weapons company with a total of 11 machine guns. Machine guns - from squad to company level - were also seen as the primary and necessary support in an attack by US infantry. It was also an important element in the conduct of defensive operations, and its role in these actions in the American infantry tactics was even greater. However, it is often assumed that the tactic of using machine weapons in defense by the American troops was inferior to that used by the German army during World War II.