Battle of Gela 1943

2022-12-20T03:52:09Z

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{{Short description|1943 amphibious battle during the Allied Invasion of Sicily in World War II}}
{{Infobox military conflict
|conflict = Battle of Gela (1943)
|partof = the [[Allied invasion of Sicily]] in the [[Mediterranean and Middle East theatre of World War II|Mediterranean theatre]] of [[World War II]]
| image = USS Boise (CL-47) underway 1938.jpg
| image_size = 300
|caption = [[Brooklyn-class cruiser|''Brooklyn''-class cruisers]] {{USS|Boise|CL-47|2}} (pictured) and her [[sister ship]] {{USS|Savannah|CL-42|2}}, demonstrated the effectiveness of naval gunfire against tanks.
|date = 10–12 July 1943
|place = [[Gela]], [[Sicily]]
|result = American victory
|combatant1 = {{flag|United States|1912}} {{flag|United Kingdom}}
|combatant2 = {{flagcountry|Fascist Italy (1922-1943)}} {{flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}
|commander1 = {{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[Henry Kent Hewitt]] {{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[Eugene S. Sarsfield]]{{KIA}}<ref>[https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/sarsfield-playground/ Sarsfield Playground]</ref> {{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[George S. Patton]] {{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[Terry de la Mesa Allen Sr.]] {{flagicon|United States|1912}} [[Hugh Joseph Gaffey]] {{flagicon|United States|1912}} Charles Leslie Keerans Jr.{{KIA}}
|commander2 = {{flagicon|Fascist Italy (1922-1943)}} [[Alfredo Guzzoni]] {{flagicon|Fascist Italy (1922-1943)}} [[Arnaldo Rabellino]] {{POW}} {{flagicon|Fascist Italy (1922-1943)}} [[Domenico Chirieleison]] {{flagicon|Nazi Germany}} [[Fridolin von Senger und Etterlin]] {{flagicon|Nazi Germany}} [[Paul Conrath]]
|strength1 = [[1st Infantry Division (United States)]] [[2nd Armored Division (United States)]] {{USS|Savannah|CL-42|6}} {{USS|Boise|CL-47|6}} {{HMS|Abercrombie|F109|6}} {{USS|Shubrick|DD-639|6}} {{USS|Jeffers|DD-621|6}} {{USS|Maddox|DD-622|6}} {{USS|Butler|DD-636|6}} {{USS|Glennon|DD-620|6}}
|strength2 = Italian XVIII Coastal Brigade [[4th Infantry Division "Livorno"]] [[Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring]] [[Luftflotte 2]]
|casualties1 = '''U.S.:'''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/72-16/72-16.htm|title = WWII Campaigns: Sicily}}</ref> 2,300 casualties 1 destroyer sunk<ref>[https://uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/1785.html USS Maddox (ii) (DD 622)]</ref>
|casualties2 = '''Italian:'''<ref>Andrea Augello, «Uccidi gli italiani: Gela 1943, la battaglia dimenticata», Mursia, Milano 2009, p. 120.</ref> 3,350 killed 5,000 wounded 2,000 prisoners<ref>Part of the 5,000 wounded are also included among the 2,000 prisoners. Total casualties of the Livorno Division numbered 214 officers and 7,000 men, of whom 1,300 were taken prisoner (Alberto Santoni, ''Le operazioni in Sicilia e in Calabria'', Italian Army Historical Branch, 1989, p. 201).</ref> '''German:''' 630 killed, wounded, and prisoners 14 tanks
|notes =
|campaignbox =
{{Campaignbox Invasion of Sicily}}
}}
{{Campaignbox Italy}}
{{Campaignbox Mediterranean Campaign}}
The amphibious '''Battle of Gela''' was the opening engagement of the American portion of the Allied [[Invasion of Sicily]] during [[World War II]]. [[United States Navy]] ships landed [[United States Army]] troops along the eastern end of the south coast of [[Sicily]]; and withstood attacks by [[Luftwaffe]] and [[Regia Aeronautica]] aircraft while defending the beachhead against German [[tank]]s and Italian tanks of the [[4th Infantry Division Livorno|Livorno Division]] until the Army captured the [[Ponte Olivo Airfield]] for use by [[United States Army Air Forces]] planes. The battle convinced United States Army officers of the value of naval artillery support, and revealed problems coordinating air support from autonomous air forces during amphibious operations.<ref name=nhm>{{cite journal |last=Allard |first=Dean |year=1997 |title=The U.S. Navy Comes Ashore in the Med |journal=Naval History |volume=11 |issue=5 |pages=47&48 |publisher=[[United States Naval Institute]] }}</ref>

==Background==
The invasion of Sicily followed the [[Tunisia Campaign|Allied capture of Tunisia]] in north [[Africa]] and preceded the [[Allied invasion of Italy]] as a means of diverting Axis forces from the eastern front with the [[Soviet Union]] until the Western Allies were prepared to invade [[occupied Europe]] through [[France]]. Ground forces under overall command of General [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] were transported by naval forces under overall command of Admiral [[Andrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope|Andrew Cunningham]].<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 2–7</ref> The invasion was constrained by marginally effective air cover from 670 Allied [[Fighter aircraft|fighters]] operating at maximum range which limited patrolling time over one hundred miles of invasion beaches and prevented proportional response to incoming raids. There were three [[Wing (military aviation unit)|wings]] (twenty [[Squadron (aviation)|squadrons]]) of [[Supermarine Spitfire]]s operating from airfields on [[Malta]] and two [[Group (military aviation unit)|groups]] of [[Curtiss P-40 Warhawk]]s from airfields on [[Pantelleria]] and [[Gozo]].<ref name=g&s107>Garland & Smyth, p. 107</ref> Allied air forces refused to provide air support for Allied ground forces until Axis air forces had been neutralized; and, since Axis bombing continued through 12 July, the role of Allied aircraft was negligible in the fighting at Gela.<ref name="nutter">{{cite web|url=http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/husky/plans.aspx|title=Operation Husky: The Allied Invasion of Sicily, 1943|publisher=Thomas E. Nutter|access-date=2012-03-17}}</ref> Pre-invasion strategic bombing reduced [[Luftflotte 2]] strength to 175 planes in Sicily,<ref name="deste">de Ste. Croix pp. 84–85</ref> but 418 additional ''Luftwaffe'' and 449 ''Regia Aeronautica'' aircraft remained serviceable at bases in Italy to be flown in as required.<ref name="m&g">Greene & Massignani (1998) pp. 288–289</ref>

Allied ground forces had no idea when, where, in what numbers, or under what circumstances they might see Allied aircraft.<ref name=g&s107/> Unlike the earlier invasion of North Africa and later invasion of Italy, the United States invasion fleet included no aircraft carriers.<ref name="m&g"/> Carriers which had supported the American landings during [[Operation Torch]] had been reassigned without replacement. The [[escort carrier]] {{USS|Santee|CVE-29|6}} was defending [[UG convoys]] from [[U-boat]]s<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/s5/santee-ii.htm|title=Santee|publisher=United States Navy|access-date=2012-04-05}}</ref> while the other three [[Sangamon class escort carrier]]s had been transferred to the Pacific to support the [[Guadalcanal campaign]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/|title=Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships|publisher=United States Navy|access-date=2012-04-05|archive-date=30 January 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060130095752/http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/|url-status=dead}}</ref> and the fleet carrier {{USS|Ranger|CV-4|6}} was training new pilots on the United States Atlantic coast.<ref>Cressman (2003) p. 322</ref>

===Setting===
The fishing town of [[Gela]] was on a [[limestone]] plateau<ref>Atkinson (2007) p. 75</ref> at {{convert|150|ft|adj=on}} elevation behind a beach with a {{convert|900|ft|adj=on}} pier.<ref name=web>{{cite web|url=http://www.historynet.com/world-war-ii-39th-combat-engineer-regiment-in-the-battle-for-gela.htm|title=39th Combat Engineer Regiment in the Battle for Gela|date=12 June 2006|publisher=Rex A. Knight|access-date=2012-03-16}}</ref> Plains cultivated for grain extended inland behind the community of 32,000. The mouth of the Gela River was {{convert|1|mi}} east of the pier and the mouth of the Acate River was {{convert|5|mi|0}} east of the Gela River.<ref name=g&s901>Garland & Smyth, pp. 99, 101</ref> The sand and stone beach between the rivers was from {{convert|10|-|30|yd|m|0}} wide and backed by {{convert|900|yd|m}} of dunes.<ref name=lm&l>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 56–61</ref> The drainage divide between the two rivers was the {{convert|400|ft|adj=on}} Piano Lupo highland {{convert|7|mi}} northeast of Gela with a strategic junction of roads including the coastal highway between Gela and [[Scoglitti]] and roads leading inland to [[Niscemi]] and [[Caltagirone]].<ref name=g&s901/>

===American forces===
The [[52d Troop Carrier Wing]] of 222 [[Douglas C-47 Skytrain]]s from North Africa carried the airborne [[505th Infantry Regiment (United States)|505th Infantry Regiment]] for a parachute drop over Piano Lupo. A western task force of 601 ships (including 130 warships and 324 landing craft and [[Troopship|transports]] with 1,124 [[LCVP (United States)|shipboard landing boats]]) under the command of Vice Admiral [[Henry Kent Hewitt]] carried the [[Seventh United States Army]] under the command of Lieutenant General [[George S. Patton]]. Both officers sailed aboard the flagship transport {{USS|Monrovia|APA-31|6}}. Patton commanded three times as many soldiers as Hewitt had landed eight months earlier at [[Morocco]] during Operation Torch. Americans had not previously sustained so many combat troops over beaches without a port; so the amphibious shipping included nine new types of landing boats, five new types of landing ships, and project Goldrush pontoon causeways untested under combat conditions. The invasion was the European combat premier of [[Landing Ship, Tank|tank landing ships (LST)s]] only a week after the Pacific [[Operation Cartwheel]].<ref>Atkinson (2007) pp. 33, 55, 60</ref> The western task force was divided into Task Force C to land the [[3rd Infantry Division (United States)|3rd Infantry Division]] near [[Licata]] (sector ''Joss'') on the western flank, Task Force K to land the [[45th Infantry Division (United States)|45th Infantry Division]] near Scoglitti (sector ''Cent'') on the eastern flank, and Task Force H to land the [[16th Infantry Regiment (United States)|16th]] and [[26th Infantry Regiment (United States)|26th Regiments]] of the [[1st Infantry Division (United States)|1st Infantry Division]] with the [[Engineer Special Brigade (United States)#1st Engineer Special Brigade|531st Engineers]] and the [[1st Ranger Battalion (United States)|1st]] and [[4th Ranger Battalion (United States)|4th Rangers]], with the 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion attached <ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.4point2.org/hist-83.htm#sicily|title = Rounds Away: History of the 83rd Chemical Mortar Bn}}</ref> near Gela (sector ''Dime'').<ref>Rohwer & Hummelchen (1992) p. 222</ref> The reserve force of the [[2nd Armored Division (United States)|2nd Armored Division]] and [[18th Infantry Regiment (United States)|18th Regiment]] of the 1st Infantry Division was landed on the first day of fighting to support the 1st Infantry Division.<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 4–7, 149</ref>

===Axis forces===
[[File:Tratto costa gelese.jpg|left|thumb|21st century view of Gela from the west.]]
The Gela invasion beaches were defended by the Italian XVIII Coastal Brigade. The town itself was defended by the Italian 429th Coastal Battalion (Major Rubellino) using [[barbed wire]], concrete [[pillbox (military)|pillboxes]], and [[anti-tank]] guns.<ref name=web/> The beach on either side of the Gela pier was [[land mine|mined]] and defended by [[machine gun]]s on both flanks and artillery batteries {{convert|7000|yd|m|-1}} inland, on Cape Soprano to the west, and on Monte Lungo to the north. The sand and stone beach on the east side of the Gela River was defended by three machine gun nests at the east end and by artillery batteries {{convert|9000|yd|m|-2}} to the north and {{convert|10000|yd|m|-2}} to the northwest.<ref name=lm&l/> The Italian [[4th Infantry Division "Livorno"]] was positioned near Niscemi and supported by the Italian Mobile Group "E" at Ponte Olivo with obsolete [[Renault R35|R35]] tanks to respond when invasion points became known.<ref name="g&s7">Garland & Smyth, pp. 147–162</ref> They were joined on the afternoon of the first day by 9,000 German combat troops<ref>Atkinson p. 94</ref> of the [[1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring]] with 46 [[Panzerkampfwagen III]] and 32 [[Panzerkampfwagen IV]] tanks from Caltagirone, reinforced with a regiment of the [[15th Panzergrenadier Division (Wehrmacht)|15th Panzergrenadier Division]] with the 215th Panzer Battalion with 17 [[Tiger I]] tanks attached.<ref name="nutter"/>

Air support was available from one ''staffel'' of [[Jagdgeschwader 53]] [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]]G-6 fighters at [[Catania]], two ''staffeln'' of [[Jagdgeschwader 77]] Bf 109G-6 fighters at [[Trapani]], another Jagdgeschwader 77 staffel at [[Sciacca]], two ''staffeln'' of [[Schlachtgeschwader 2]] [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190]]F-2 ground attack fighter-bombers at [[Castelvetrano]], and two ''staffeln'' of [[Schnellkampfgeschwader 10]] Fw 190A-5 fast bombers at [[Gerbini Airfield]]. [[Junkers Ju 88]]A and [[Savoia-Marchetti SM 79]] medium bombers could reach Gela from bases in Italy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uncleted.jinak.cz/pdf/Aeronotes3.pdf|title=Deployments & OOBs|publisher=Uncle Ted|access-date=2012-03-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150724125126/http://uncleted.jinak.cz/pdf/Aeronotes3.pdf|archive-date=24 July 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Prelude==
[[File:Gela 11 lug 43.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Map of Gela and surrounding area show troop movements.]]
The larger transports sailed from [[Oran]] on 5 July as convoy NCF 1 and were screened by [[destroyer]]s as they hugged the African coast eastbound while the gunfire support [[cruiser]]s sailed on a parallel course as a covering force to the north. The LSTs, [[Landing Craft Infantry|LCIs]], [[Landing craft tank|LCTs]] and patrol craft sailed directly from Tunisia as convoys TJM 1 and TJS 1. The convoys were spotted and all German forces on Sicily were alerted at 18:40 on 9 July.<ref name="ssa69">Morison (1954) p. 69</ref> [[Beaufort scale]] force 7 winds created {{convert|12|ft|adj=on}} seas causing widespread seasickness among the embarked troops.<ref>Atkinson (2007) pp. 64, 66</ref> Winds moderated on the evening of 9 July as ships divided into task forces C, H, and K and proceeded to assigned anchorages off the Sicilian coast. As the ships anchored, airborne troops of the 505th Infantry Regiment were scattered by wind and aircraft navigation errors.<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 10–13</ref> Fewer than 200 of the 3,400 paratroopers were able to reach the strategic Piano Lupo highland before the defending Livorno Division arrived.<ref>Garland & Smyth, pp. 117, 119</ref>

The transports {{USS|Joseph T. Dickman|APA-13|2}},<ref group="note" name="uscg">Ship manned by [[United States Coast Guard]] crew. (Willoughby(1957) p. 221)</ref> {{HMS|Prince Charles|1941|2}}, ''Prince Leopold'', {{USS|Oberon|AKA-14|2}}, {{USS|Barnett|APA-5|2}}, ''Monrovia'', {{USS|Lyon|AP-71|2}}, {{USS|Samuel Chase|APA-26|2}},<ref group="note" name="uscg"/> {{USS|Betelgeuse|AKA-11|2}}, {{USS|Thurston|AP-77|2}}, {{USS|Elizabeth C. Stanton|AP-69|2}}, {{USS|Orizaba|ID-1536|2}}, and {{USS|Chateau Thierry|AP-31|2}} anchored approximately {{convert|6|nmi|km mi|lk=in}} off the mouth of the Gela River with LCIs, LSTs, and salvage vessels slightly further offshore; and the destroyers {{USS|Murphy|DD-603|6}}, {{USS|Glennon|DD-620|2}}, {{USS|Maddox|DD-622|2}}, {{USS|Bernadou|DD-153|2}}, and {{USS|Dallas|DD-199|2}} screened the seaward side of the anchorage. The light cruiser {{USS|Savannah|CL-42|6}} and destroyer {{USS|Shubrick|DD-639|6}} patrolled a gunfire support area west of the anchorage, while {{USS|Boise|CL-47|6}} and {{USS|Jeffers|DD-621|2}} patrolled a similar gunfire support area east of the anchorage.<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 60, 65</ref> The Army hoped for surprise, and declined Navy suggestions for pre-invasion bombardment.<ref name="p&n">Potter & Nimitz (1960) pp. 589–591</ref>

==Battle==
===10 July===
[[Image:USS Maddox (DD-622).jpg|right|thumb|{{USS|Maddox|DD-622|6}} was bombed and sunk on the first day of the invasion.]]
The transports started unloading shortly after midnight, and General Guzzoni declared an emergency at 01:00.<ref name="ssa69"/> The first assault wave from ''Barnett'', ''Lyon'', ''Thurston'' and ''Stanton'' landed about 02:45. ''Shubrick'' destroyed two XVIII Coastal Brigade searchlights illuminating the first wave and fired on several XVIII Coastal Brigade artillery positions. Initial waves had landed on all beaches by 03:35.<ref name=l&m68>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 62–68, 81–82</ref> The Rangers landed on either side of the Gela pier. The 26th Regiment landed on the east side of the Gela River, and the 16th Regiment landed east of the 26th Regiment. Three hundred men of the 45th Division's 180th Regiment accidentally landed among the 16th Regiment on beaches west of the [[Acate River]].<ref>Garland & Smyth, pp. 100, 136</ref>

The 12th Air Support Command planned to provide air cover of 12 fighters over Gela during daylight hours, but the number actually available was never more than eight and sometimes as few as two.<ref>Morison (1954) p. 100</ref> Axis air raids took place around the clock; so no Allied fighters were present when most Axis aircraft arrived. The first Allied fighters arrived at 05:01 before sunrise at 05:46; but Axis bombers had arrived before first light. Bombs and flares began falling at 04:21 and ''Maddox'' sank at 04:58 with 212 of her crew less than two minutes after being hit by a bomb dropped by an Italian Stuka.<ref>Junkers Ju 87 over the Mediterranean, John A Weal, p. 53, Delprado Publishers/Ediciones de Prado, 1996</ref><ref>"The first victim of the air attack was USS Maddox (DD-622), which was steaming alone on antisubmarine patrol when she was hit by a bomb dropped by an Italian Ju 87 Stuka at 0421. One of the bombs exploded Maddox's aft magazine, causing the ship to roll over and sink within two minutes, taking 210 of her crew with her. The Stuka returned, strafing the 74 survivors before departing." Michael G. Walling. Bloodstained Sands: U.S. Amphibious Operations in World War II, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2017. p. 270</ref>''LST-345'' and submarine chaser ''PC-621'' were damaged by collision while maneuvering to avoid bombs.<ref name="cressman">Cressman (2000) p. 168</ref>''Savannah'' shot down a Ju 88 at 05:14. Absence of fighter cover during the initial Axis bombing attack created an enduring shipboard perception they were responsible for their own air defense and should prioritize aircraft destruction above identification. Axis fighters and fighter-bombers were able to make undetected low-level approaches from Catania under the fleet's [[radar]] horizon by flying down the [[Acate River]] canyon at the eastern edge of the Gela beachhead. Allied fighters patrolling at altitude to engage medium bombers were perceived as dive bombers and subjected to friendly fire losses when they attempted to engage low altitude air raids.<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 5–6, 19, 62, 67, 71, 89, 92</ref> Ships were using [[proximity fuze]]d anti-aircraft ammunition for the first time in the European theater.<ref name="p&n"/>
[[File:British and U. S. Troops Landing at Gela Sicily.jpg|thumb|left|U.S. and British troops landing near Gela.]]

The Rangers attacked the town of Gela hoping to capture the Gela pier for offloading the LSTs. Italian defenders destroyed the masonry pier with demolition charges at 02:40;<ref name="g&s7"/> but the Rangers captured the town by 08:00 with three [[8 cm FK M. 5]] artillery pieces and 200 prisoners of the XVIII Coastal Brigade defenders. The 429th Coastal Battalion had lost 194 men killed or wounded, 45% of its force.<ref>[https://books.google.it/books?id=P_xmEKsVD9UC&pg=PT96&lpg=PT96&dq=429+coastal+battalion+gela&source=bl&ots=aEDplCI9XD&sig=1OI2EZq5y2fK5b0zYJIfV3IHyzw&hl=it&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwibt9Hs97nLAhVID5oKHUceC7kQ6AEIMzAD#v=onepage&q=429%20coastal%20battalion%20gela&f=false The Battle of Sicily: How the Allies Lost Their Chance for Total Victory]</ref> The 1st Infantry Division hoped to capture the Ponte Olivo Airfield within 24 hours of landing. The 26th Regiment was prepared to assist the Rangers in capturing Gela; but, when that proved unnecessary, began moving inland to take the high ground west of Ponte Olivo. The 16th Regiment intended to join the 505th airborne regiment assumed to be in control of the Piano Lupo highland east of Ponte Olivo. There they planned to defend against attacks from Niscemi and prepare for a coordinated attack with the 26th Regiment against Ponte Olivo.<ref>Garland & Smyth, pp. 100, 136, 139</ref> The 16th Regiment encountered heavy resistance from the machine gun nests at the east end of their landing beach; and XVIII Coastal Brigade artillery and mortars were targeting the beach as LCIs began landing support troops east of the Gela River at 04:30.<ref name=l&m68/>

After sunrise, minesweepers began clearing mines near the beach so the LSTs could start landing vehicles at 08:00. ''LST-338'' was straddled by Italian shellfire as soon as it beached. Italian artillery intensified firing at the eastern beach from 07:10 until ''Boise'' and ''Savannah'' temporarily silenced the batteries at 09:40. Landing craft temporarily stopped using the beach when Italian artillery resumed firing at 10:10 and destroyed some landing craft and supplies offloaded onto the beach. [[Half-track]]s attempting to move inland from the eastern beach encountered an Italian minefield.<ref name=l&m6&8>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 62–63, 83–84, 88</ref> [[Teller mine]]s destroyed trucks, [[DUKW]]s and five navy [[bulldozer]]s. [[Mine detector]]s were unreliable after exposure to salt water during the landing,<ref>Atkinson (2007) p. 80</ref> and the first path through the minefield was not cleared until 12:12.<ref name=l&m6&8/> By noon, not a single piece of Allied artillery had been landed, and none of the ten tanks assigned to the 1st Division were ashore. Landing craft had to wait up to four hours to be unloaded while the beach was congested by vehicles waiting to move inland. Unloading was frequently interrupted by air attacks and artillery fire; and a shortage of landing craft developed as nearly 200 were disabled by shellfire or broaching in the surf. Unexpected [[sand bar]]s paralleled the beach {{convert|150|yd|m|0}} offshore and prevented some landing craft (including LSTs carrying tanks) from getting ashore to offload their cargo.<ref name="g&s7"/> Some soldiers landing on the sandbars in darkness drowned wading toward the beach with their heavy packs.<ref>Atkinson (2007) p. 78</ref> In the confusion ashore, some of the 1st Infantry Division's supporting artillery was diverted to the Licata beaches to the west and the Scoglitti beaches to the east; and was significantly delayed traveling overland to Gela.<ref name="g&s7"/>

[[File:SOC scoutplane is hoisted on board, during recovery by USS Philadelphia (CL-41).jpg|right|thumb|Cruiser launched [[Curtiss SOC Seagull]]s had a short life expectancy without fighter cover—four were shot down and all others disabled during the battle.]]
[[Image:USS Shubrick (DD-639) 0563902.jpg|right|thumb|{{USS|Shubrick|DD-639|6}} earned a Ranger's praise: "It's pretty accurate work when a destroyer some 2 or 3 miles offshore knocks out three tanks some 7 or 8 miles inland."<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) p. 149</ref>]]
''Boise'' and ''Savannah'' launched [[Curtiss SOC Seagull]] observation seaplanes at 06:00 to locate targets and perform [[gunnery spotting]]. [[Messerschmitt Bf 109|Bf 109s]] had shot down both ''Savannah'' planes by 07:30 as the Italian Livorno Division launched a three-prong counterattack to recapture Gela. The Italian counterattack was reported by an American newspaper: "Supported by no less than forty-five tanks, a considerable force of infantry of the Livorno Division attacked the American troops around Gela. The American division beat them back with severe casualties. This was the heaviest response to the Allied advance."<ref>[[The New York Times]], 13 July 1943, page 2</ref>
An infantry column from [[Butera]] approached Gela from the west while a second infantry column preceded by 13 [[Fiat 3000]] tanks approached Gela along the road from Ponte Olivo, and a third infantry column preceded by about 25 Fiat 3000 tanks approached the beachhead east of the Gela River from Niscemi.<ref name=g&s15>Garland & Smyth, pp. 150–152</ref> ''Savannah'' launched its two remaining SOCs at 08:30 as Rangers directed ''Shubrick'' gunfire destroying three of the tanks approaching Gela along the Ponte Olivo Road. Surviving tanks entered the town of Gela while the Italian infantry was immobilized by gunfire from ''Shubrick''. The Rangers destroyed three of the tanks before the remaining seven retreated with their accompanying infantry. The Rangers used the captured 8 cm Italian artillery to repel the Livorno Division infantry column approaching Gela from Butera.<ref name="g&s7"/>

The Italian column from Niscemi pushed through a 505th Regiment roadblock to reach the Piano Lupo road junction before troops from the 16th Regiment arrived.<ref name=g&s15/> ''Boise'' opened fire at 09:10 after their SOCs observed the Italian column approaching along the Niscemi Road and radioed coordinates before being chased off by Bf 109s.<ref name=l&m67>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 62–63, 84–87</ref> The Livorno infantry remained in previously prepared defensive positions to avoid the naval gunfire while the tanks continued toward the beachhead until they encountered the two forward battalions of the 16th Regiment.<ref name=g&s15/> Bf 109s shot down another ''Savannah'' SOC and the last SOC returned to the ship damaged. ''Boise'', ''Savannah'' and the British monitor {{HMS|Abercrombie|F109|6}} fired on the Italian column from 10:47 to 11:08.<ref name=l&m68/> The 16th Regiment occupied Piano Lupo as the tanks and infantry from Niscemi withdrew under combined pressure from naval gunfire and the 16th Infantry Regiment.<ref name=g&s15/> ''Boise'' launched the last operational SOC at 12:19 and it was shot down by Bf 109s as ''Boise'' fired on the Italians from 12:45 to 12:51.<ref name=l&m68/> The naval artillery destroyed two tanks<ref name="g&s7"/> and the 16th Infantry destroyed two others.<ref name=g&s15/>

Axis bombing raids hit the beach at 13:20 and 14:30 in support of the Hermann Göring Division armored regiment counterattack against the eastern beachhead. A high-altitude bombing attack at 15:30 was followed by intermittent attacks for the remainder of the day.<ref name=l&m69>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 63, 89–90</ref> The Hermann Göring Division approached Piano Lupo from Niscemi while 15th ''Panzergrenadiers'' supported by 17 [[Tiger I]] tanks approached from the Acate River. After some difficulty maneuvering the Tiger tanks through olive groves, the 15th ''Panzergrenadiers'' overran the 1st battalion of the 45th Division's 180th infantry regiment before being stopped by the 3rd battalion. The Hermann Göring Division pushed through the 16th Infantry Regiment in Piano Lupo, but paused as they encountered naval gunfire when moving off the Piano Lupo highland toward the beachhead. After waiting through the remaining daylight for a rendezvous with the stalled 15th ''Panzergrenadiers'', the Hermann Göring Division withdrew at dusk to regroup.<ref>Garland & Smyth, pp. 154–155</ref> As the Hermann Göring Division withdrew, the reserve force of the 2nd Armored Division and 18th Infantry Regiment began landing at 17:00 over the beaches being vacated by the 26th Infantry Regiment. ''LST-313'' was attempting to offload anti-tank artillery when three or four fighters dropped bombs on the pontoon causeway being used to offload the LSTs. One bomb struck ''LST-313'', killing 21 men, damaging embarked vehicles, and igniting a gasoline fire causing a series of ammunition explosions. The burning LST, with the 26th Infantry's anti-tank artillery,<ref name=a100>Atkinson (2007) p. 100</ref> was abandoned at 18:24; and continuing explosions scattered the pontoons, causing nearby ''LST-312'' to broach, and prevented the offloading of more LSTs. The 1st Infantry Division requested extended air cover after being bombed from 17:30 to 19:30, and Axis bombing continued at a rate of 275–300 sorties per day with half arriving during hours of darkness.<ref name="deste"/> Gunfire support ships provided covering fire as the 1st Infantry Division began retreating back toward the beach at 21:50 under cover of darkness. Only three LSTs (carrying half-tracks but no tanks) had been unloaded when the 1st Infantry Division requested immediate tank support at 22:15. Axis bombing of beaches and ships intensified at 2245.<ref name=l&m69/>

The ''Luftwaffe'' had flown 370 sorties on 10 July and lost 16 aircraft destroyed or missing. According to Italian sources, 141 sorties were flown by the ''Regia Aeronautica'' which lost 11 aircraft on the first day of the landings.<ref>Aircraft of World War II in combat, Robert Jackson, p. 87, Amber Books, 2008</ref> That evening, Italian Stukas<ref>"Witness Describes Hospital Ship Loss; Injured Paratrooper Relates How Italian Plane Bombed Fully Lighted ''Talamba''", ''The New York Times'', 19 July 1943</ref> or Reggiane Re.2002s<ref>[https://plane-encyclopedia.com/ww2/reggiane-re-2002-ariete/ Reggiane Re.2002 Ariete]</ref> sank the Indian hospital ship ''[[SS Talamba|Talamba]]'' {{cvt|3|-|5|nmi|km mi|0}} off the beaches of Sicily with heavy loss of lives.<ref>"The only serious casualty was the sinking, with heavy loss of life, of the hospital ship Talamba, which was lying, fully illuminated, five miles off the beaches." The War at Sea, 1939-1945: part 1. The offensive, 1st June 1943-31st May 1944, Stephen Wentworth Roskill, p. 131, H.M. Stationery Office, 1960</ref><ref>[https://tyneareasc.org.uk/2012/10/sunk-by-enemy-action-s-s-talamba/ Sunk By Enemy Action – SS Talamba]</ref>

===11 July===
[[Image:USS Barnett APA-5.jpg|right|thumb|{{USS|Barnett|APA-5|6}} was hit by a bomb on the morning of 11 July.]]
Tugs refloated LST-312 around midnight.<ref name="w&l">LaMonte & Lewis (1993) pp. 90–93</ref> The first American tanks were landed at 02:00 and these [[67th Armor Regiment]] vehicles promptly became stuck in soft beach sand.<ref name=g&s159>Garland & Smyth, p. 159</ref> Bent steel matting intended to support the tanks' weight became entangled in their treads and bogey wheels.<ref name=a100/> {{USS|Butler|DD-636|6}} replaced ''Shubrick'' as the western gunfire support destroyer at 05:30 and ''Glennon'' replaced ''Jeffers'' as the eastern destroyer at 06:20. Twelve SM 79s bombed the transport anchorage at 06:35 holing ''Dickman'' and ''Orizaba'' with near miss bomb fragments and striking ''Barnett'' with a bomb, killing seven army personnel, wounding 35 more, and starting a fire. It was the first of 14 Axis air raids on the beachhead that day, and covered a coordinated Axis attack.<ref name="w&l"/> While the Livorno Division attacked the Rangers at Gela in three columns from the west side of the Gela River, the Hermann Göring Division attacked the 1st Infantry Division beachhead on the east side of the Gela River. Sixty [[Panzer III]] and [[Panzer IV]] tanks surviving the previous day's naval gunfire advanced in two columns. The 1st Battalion advanced from Niscemi and the 2nd Battalion from the Ponte Olivo Airfield while the 15th ''Panzergrenadiers'' again advanced down the Acate River valley to the east. The German forces from the east planned to meet the Italian forces from the west at the Gela beachhead.<ref name="g&s8">Garland & Smyth, pp. 163–174</ref> The German 2nd Battalion swept past the 3rd Battalion of the 26th Infantry Regiment at 06:40; and the 26th began retreating toward the beach, while the 16th Infantry Regiment delayed the German 1st Battalion until naval gunfire began to take effect at mid-morning.<ref>Atkinson (2007) pp. 97–100</ref>

While the sixty tanks landed earlier still wallowed in the dunes, five American tanks landed from ''LST-2'' at 08:45 immediately went into action without being dewaterproofed. By that time, the German tanks were within {{convert|2400|yd|m|-2}} of the beachhead. Every man on the beach, including yeomen, electricians, carpenters, and intelligence and supply officers of the Advanced Naval Base Group, was hastily armed and formed a firing line along the dunes with engineers of the Army shore parties. Ships began gunfire support requested by shore parties at 09:15, and ''Boise'' fired on the tanks from 10:40 to 11:42.<ref name="w&l"/> Army observers reported 13 tanks destroyed by ''Boise'',<ref name="cressman"/> but after the war it was claimed that majority of these had been destroyed by the four mobile tanks of [[Combat Command|CCB]], 2nd Armored Division.<ref>McDaniel, Alva T., Lieutenant Colonel, Cooch, Francis A. 3rd, Major, Labadie, George V., Major, Piburn, Edwin W. Jr, Captain, Porta, James R., Captain, The Armored Division as an Assault Landing Force, A Research Report Prepared Committee 34, Officers Advanced Course 1951–1952, The Armored School, Fort Knox, Kentucky May 1952, p. 33</ref> The 15th ''Panzergrenadiers'' in the Acate River valley were stopped by the 505th airborne infantry troops who had landed 36 hours earlier; and the westernmost column of the Livorno Division was stopped by the 3rd Infantry Division. ''Savannah'' fired 500 rounds of 6-inch (150 mm) shells, killing more than half of the Italian infantry advancing on Gela and leaving human bodies hanging from trees. Rangers took 400 prisoners from the dazed survivors.<ref name="g&s8"/> Although unable to reach Gela, Lieutenant-Colonel Dante Hugo Leonardi's 3rd Battalion from the 34th ''Livorno'' Infantry Regiment took a number of prisoners from forward elements of the US 26th Infantry Regiment.<ref>"At around 8:00 am, the Battalion reached its first objective line. The US infantry encountered [probably, Company K, 3rd Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment] was not solidly entrenched and made no further attempts to stand; it swiftly fell back, leaving several prisoners and weapons in Italian hands." [https://web.archive.org/web/20100304032028/http://www.comandosupremo.com/Flesh.html Flesh vs. Iron]</ref> The [[Sarasota Herald Tribune]] confirmed on 12 July that no less than seven determined counterattacks against the US beachhead on 10 and 11 July had been carried out on the part of the ''Livorno'' Division, "The heaviest of seven Italian counter-attacks was met and beaten back by American troops in the Gela area. The attack was launched by the Italian's Fourth Livorno Division with 45 tanks in support."<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1755&dat=19430712&id=Ta4qAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lmQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5834,604843&hl=en Allies' Mighty Invasion Force Beats Back Seven Italian Counter Attacks, Sarasota Herald Tribune, 12 July 1943]</ref>

[[Image:SC180476.jpg|left|thumb|Liberty ship ''Robert Rowan'' explodes after being bombed on 11 July.]]
While American forces ashore stopped the Axis advance, [[Minelayer]]s spent the afternoon placing a protective minefield offshore of the anchorage. Axis bombing of the anchorage resumed at 12:35 and continued intermittently with repeated attacks from 13:51 to 15:35. A 15:45 attack by 35 Ju 88s with escorting Bf 109s hit the [[Liberty ship]] ''Robert Rowan''. The Liberty Ship's [[ammunition]] cargo detonated at 17:30; but the sunken ship was not submerged in the shallow anchorage, and fires illuminated the anchorage for a heavy bombing attack from 19:47 to 19:52 followed by a series of dive-bombing attacks beginning at 21:34 and lasting past midnight. Many ships were damaged by near misses, but only one LST remained to be unloaded at 16:00. ''Boise'' fired at Niscemi from 18:26 to 19:37. Surviving Axis tanks began to withdraw under cover of darkness at 22:35.<ref name="w&l"/>

===12 July===
The invasion convoy was 90 percent unloaded before dawn; and the 1st Infantry Division captured the Ponte Olivo airfield at 08:45, approximately 27 hours later than planned. Allied fighters successfully broke up an Axis bomber raid at 09:36 and the daily number of Axis bombing sorties was halved by the end of the day. Ships continued to provide gunfire support, and ''Butler'' fired on tanks near Ponte Olivo airfield from 11:26 to 11:35. General Patton left ''Monrovia'' at 17:00 to establish headquarters ashore.<ref>LaMonte & Lewis (1993) p. 94</ref> The [[Twelfth Air Force]] [[27th Fighter Bomber Group]] landed [[North American A-36 Apache]] ground support aircraft at Ponte Olivo as soon as the airfield was declared secure for operations, and provided air support for continuing operations against German and Italian forces.

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

==Citations==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==References==
* {{Cite book |last=Atkinson |first=Rick |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/85019241 |title=The Day of Battle : The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 |date=2007 |publisher=[[Henry Holt and Company]] |isbn=978-0-8050-6289-2 |edition=1st |location=New York |oclc=85019241 |author-link=Rick Atkinson}}
* {{Cite book |last=Brown |first=David |url=https://archive.org/details/warshiplossesofw0000brow_n3r3/page/n5/mode/2up |title=Warship Losses of World War Two |date=1995 |publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]] |isbn=978-1-55750-914-7 |edition=1st |location=Annapolis, MD |oclc=231683373 |url-access=registration}}
* {{Cite book |last=Cressman |first=Robert |url=https://archive.org/details/TheOfficialChronologyOfTheUSNavyInWorldWarII |title=The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II |date=2000 |publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]] |isbn=978-1-55750-149-3 |location=Annapolis, MD |oclc=41977179 |url-access=registration}}
* {{Cite book |last=Cressman |first=Robert |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/51848555 |title=USS Ranger : The Navy's First Flattop From Keel to Mast, 1934-46 |date=2003 |publisher=[[Brassey's]] |isbn=978-1-57488-720-4 |edition=1st |location=Washington, D.C. |oclc=51848555}}
* {{Cite book |last=Wood |first=Tony |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/3758769 |title=Hitler's Luftwaffe : A Pictorial History and Technical Encyclopedia of Hitler's Air Power in World War II |date=1977 |publisher=Crescent Books |isbn=978-0-517-22477-9 |location=New York |oclc=3758769}}
* {{cite book |last1=Garland |first1=Albert N. |last2=Smyth |first2=Howard McGaw |title =U.S. Army in World War II – Mediterranean Theater of Operations – Sicily and the Surrender of Italy |publisher =United States Government Printing Office |date =1965 |location =Washington, D.C. |url=https://history.army.mil/html/books/006/6-2-1/CMH_Pub_6-2-1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927072315/https://history.army.mil/html/books/006/6-2-1/CMH_Pub_6-2-1.pdf |archive-date=27 September 2022}}
* Greene, Jack & Massignani, Alessandro ''The Naval War in the Mediterranean 1940–1943'' (1998) Sarpedon {{ISBN|1-885119-61-5}}
* Kafka, Roger and Pepperburg, Roy L. ''Warships of the World'' (1946) Cornell Maritime Press
* Karig, Walter, CDR, USNR ''Battle Report: The Atlantic War'' (1946) Farrar & Rinehart
* La Monte, John L. & Lewis, Winston B. ''The Sicilian Campaign, 10 July – 17 August 1943'' (1993) United States Government Printing Office {{ISBN|0-945274-17-3}}
* Macintyre, Donald ''The Naval War Against Hitler'' (1971) Charles Scribner's Sons
* Morison, Samuel Eliot ''Sicily-Salerno-Anzio: January 1943–June 1944 (History of United States Naval Operations in World War II: Volume IX)'' (1954) Little, Brown & Company
* Potter, E.B. and Nimitz, Chester W. ''Sea Power'' (1960) Prentice-Hall
* Preston, Antony ''Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II'' (1996) Random House {{ISBN|0-517-67963-9}}
* Rohwer, Jurgen and Hummelchen, Gerhard ''Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945'' (1992) Naval Institute Press {{ISBN|1-55750-105-X}}
* Ruge, Friedrich ''Der Seekrieg'' (1957) United States Naval Institute
* Silverstone, Paul H. ''U.S. Warships of World War II'' (1968) Doubleday & Company
* Willoughby, Malcolm F. ''The U.S. Coast Guard in World War II'' (1957) United States Naval Institute

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[[Category:Conflicts in 1943]]
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[[Category:Naval aviation operations and battles]]
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[[Category:Allied invasion of Sicily]]
[[Category:Battles in Sicily]]
[[Category:Gela]]
[[Category:1943 in Italy]]
[[Category:July 1943 events]]

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Battle of Gela 1943