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What happened to the GAF in Africa?

Dili

Member
The numbers are huge more than 3000 infantry in Tripoli 3000 in Zuara, more than an hundred batteries, a couple thousand in Cirenaica.

Were they - specially infantry - employed as replacements for AS divisions?

i know that in 42 was formed a GAF regiment.
 
Dili
The answer is extremely complex and complicated. Simply put, after the initial beating given by the British to the 10th army in AS, the GAf turned into a sort of "stolen ace" where the royal army seized with fullness all that it could have from that weapon that was born to defend the patriotic boundaries ended up becoming an endless well where it was possible to draw resources and replacements for the Royal Army, while also preserving at the same time the characteristics that have always been held by the static guard on the borders and infrastructure of the army and homeland. In practice over the years from 1941 to 1943 many units of artillery from the motherland were transported to AS. Once they arrived in AS they were gradually diverted to training centers to be in many cases transformed into front-line units either as real replacements or as stand-alone units that remained GAF but placed at the service of Big Line Units. Most of these were pieces of 65/17, 75/27, 100/17 and 149/12 although there was no lack of different calibers but only a small part. Many units were dissolved and split as replacements as war demands demanded it but others remained with new GAF orders in the battle orders of the Royal Army. As for the infantry units they also underwent more than nominal transformations but retaining their main characteristic of being divided into Sectors rather than in the traditional regiments and battalions, even if the exceptions were not lacking. It was not until 1943 that once the Tunisia reached the GAF units almost all ended up being used in the Mannerini Group under the 1st army.
All the best
Maurizio
 

Dili

Member
Does the GAF machine guns listed belong to infantry? i have 395 machine guns and 3400 infantry GAF , that is 8.6 men per machine gun. If so it seems most GAF infantry was manning those machine guns
 

Dili

Member
24 February 1941 numbers are for Tripoli

for Zuara 3000 for 215 machine guns 13.95 men per MG
 
Hi
Unfortunately, since the first reorganization of the beginning of 1941, the tables of the Royal Army regarding the AS front no longer make any distinction in the armament of the GAF with that of the Royal Army. This is because, as I have already said, the GAf was used by the Royal Army as a sort of large replacement unit. Therefore, after 1940, the organic situations report for example the totals of the various defense squares (Tripoli, Zuara etc) but in total and therefore also including traditional support units to the GAF (colonial and CCNN) and also those of garrison gradually used by the army. Therefore, giving a disaggregated figure for those dates is very difficult. This thing, however, does not concern the pieces and the GAF artillery units which (in part) continue to be totaled separately.
All the best
Maurizio
 
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