G.I. Combat Vol 1 196

The Haunted Tank: "Dead Men Patrol"

Cover

The Haunted Tank: "Dead Men Patrol"

O.S.S.: "Operation: Slaughterhouse!"

Editors

Robert Kanigher

Previous Issue	Next Issue
G.I. Combat # 195	G.I. Combat # 197

We gotta fool the Krauts into thinking all our tanks are fully manned... so you and your dead buddies will save Patton's column!

— Lt. Jeb Stuart

G.I. Combat #196 is an issue of the series G.I. Combat (Volume 1) with a cover date of November, 1976.

Synopsis for The Haunted Tank: "Dead Men Patrol"

In Belgium, as night fades before the dawn, the ghost of General J.E.B. Stuart appears before his descendant, Lieutenant Jeb Stuart. Jeb is the only one awake at this early time, and was returning to the Haunted Tank after getting water down at the river. The ghost first shows his disapproval at the crew now manning a Sherman tank, the namesake of his enemy and the man who burned his beloved South, but then his words turn to a warning. The ghost tells him that on this day he will command dead men, and with that cryptic omen disappears into the morning air. Just then, the radio comes alive. On the other end is Skipper, ordering Jeb and his tank to rendezvous with the rest at the south edge of the woods. Jeb quickly wakes the others.

The Haunted Tank reaches the others as the sun begins to rise. Skipper tells him that Patton's division is running dry, and they've been worder to stop the Germans from seizing the fuel dump before the General can get his tanks there. With the Haunted Tank taking point, the patrol takes off. It's not long down the trail before they run into trouble, and they find themselves in the sights of a German 88 hidden in the woods. The patrol is split up by the barrage of cannon fire, and the Haunted Tank is separated from the rest of the patrol. They swing around, laying fire into the woods. One blast from their cannon hits the German's position, destroying the 88 and ending the firefight. But when the Haunted Tank returns, they find nothing but the dead bodies of their comrades killed by the concussion force of the blasts. Their tanks are still operational, but with only one crew left how will they be able to stop the Germans from taking the fuel dump?

Meanwhile, General Patton and his platoon continue in the direction of the fuel dump. With each mile they pas, more and more of their tanks run dry and have to be abandoned. Behind them, some distance away, the German tank platoon, commanded by Panzer leader Ernst Baumer, continue towards the fuel dump as well, determined to reach it first and gain victory over the Allies.

Back at the remains of the patrol, Jeb makes a decision. Be now realizes exactly what his ghostly ancestor meant by commanding "dead men". He orders each of his team to secure one of the dead upright in the hatches of the tanks, and then each take a position in the drivers seats. Jeb hopes by creating the illusion of a full squad, they'll be able to trick the Germans into thinking they're fully manned and armed for a fight. The others do as ordered, but the presence of their dead comrades around them make they feel very uncomfortable. The four tanks head out, reaching their destination just as the somber dusk begins to fall. As they approach, the soldiers manning the fuel dump walk out to greet them. Suddenly, before Jeb's horrified eyes, a shell explodes right at the gate of the fuel dump, killing the men coming out. Jeb can't see from inside the tank, so he pops out atop to get a look where the shell could have come from. Jeb radios the others that a Panzer division has appeared across the river from them, and orders them all to their guns in the hopes of fooling the enemy into thinking their fully manned. The four tanks take position and then fire! Now under attack, the Panzers and their leader Baumer think that Patton had reached the fuel dump before them. Baumer takes a closer look through his binoculars, and realizes that he's been fooled. He realizes that them men in the hatches are dead, and orders his Panzers to stop firing and risk hitting the fuel. They'll wait until dawn before they advance and destroy them.

Jeb has now become even more worried and desperate. With Patton's division still too far away to give them any help, he has to come up with another plan fast. He orders his men to load up their leathers with 75mm shells and meet him across the river on the other side. The four quietly tread the water without being noticed, then plant each of the shells in the mud along the shore so only their tips stick up out of the ground. Once finished, they try to get away, but the clouds part and the moonlight exposes them to the German troops near their position. They are fired upon, and Rick is hit in the back. He tells them to leave him behind, but Gus puts him over his shoulder and they escape across the river. They reach the other side, and Gus puts the unconscious Rick down onto the ground. He then sits next to him and prays

At first light, Jeb watches the road through his binoculars when he spots Patton's tanks a ways down, having run out of fuel and stalled. He orders Slim and Gus to grab as many cans of fuel as they can and the three begin running down the road towards them. However, the Germans can see them, and begin to fire. The three quickly drop their cans of fuel and run back to the fuel depot. Jeb has another plan, they'll kick and roll the drums of fuel down the hill towards the tanks! In his jeep, Patton watches as the barrels roll down towards them, and quickly orders his men to stop and grab them before they get away. Panzer leader Baumer orders his tank to begin their assault. The enemy tanks reach the edge of the water, and hitting the shells buried along the shore begin to explode one by one! The remaining Panzers open fire. With the enemy's ranks now depleted, the Haunted Tank appears from out of the water hoping to hope off the enemy to give Patton's forces to arrive and help out. The plan works, and the other tanks arrive in time to take care of the remaining Panzers.

The battle now over and the day saved, the Haunted Tank can turn to mending their own wounds. Rick is now bandaged up and awake, and starts to freak out when Slim won't stop staring at him. Slim smiles, and tells him he's just glad he'll be all right. Patton asks Jeb how he managed to hold off the Panzers, and Jeb tells him "with a lot of ammo and prayin'!"

Appearing in The Haunted Tank: "Dead Men Patrol"

Featured Characters:

Haunted Tank

Supporting Characters:

General J.E.B. Stuart

Antagonists:

German Panzer Leader Ernst Baumer
German Infantry soldiers

Other Characters:

American Artillery soldiers
American Infantry soldiers
General George S. Patton

Locations:

Belgium

Items:

German 88 mm Anti-tank Artillery gun
75mm Artillery shells
Fuel cans
Steel fuel drums

Vehicles:

The Haunted Tank
American Willys MB Jeep
German Panzerkampfwagen IV tank

Synopsis for O.S.S.: "Operation: Slaughterhouse!"

At O.S.S. Headquarters in London, Control briefs a meeting of high ranking Allied generals on the latest mission for the organization. The German battleship Leipzig has been turning the North Atlantic into a slaughterhouse for Allied convoys. The enemy ship is at the time sitting inside a grotto in a fjord in enemy-occupied Norway, safe from any land, air or sea attack. Their only chance lies with the O.S.S. frogmen, carrying high explosives from a sub at the bottom of the sea outside the fjord.

In the Norwegian waters, two frogmen, Agents "Joe" and "Gerry", are already at work, having been dispatched from the sub. They come across their first obstacle, a huge sub torpedo net blocking the way into the fjord. While Joe keeps watch, Gerry attepts to cut a hole in the net for them to slip through. He gets a surprise when he finds the net electrified, and the shock kills him. It's now up to Joe to find a way. He is distracted, when nearby he sees a porpoise being attacked by a shark. He swims in to help. He tries to stab the shark with his knife, but the creature's hide is too tough. It does manage to scare the shark off, and it swims away. He then returns to trying to find a way through the net. The porpoise follows him, and grateful for being saved it begins to butt the frogman down below the net where a trench leading dafely under the net is found. Joe swims through and to the other side, and thanks the friendly porpoise.

Now inside the fjord, Joe finds the target of his mission, the Leipzeg. He places his plastic explosives along the bottom of its hull. But before he can swim away to safety, he is spotted by a German frogman and attacked. They struggle, and Joe is hurt. He manages to cut the enemy's air hose and break free, but is too injured to swim away. Just then, the porpoise appears and begins to help him, carrying him away and back down through the trench. They get away just as the explosion rips the battleship in two. They're not out of danger yet, as the shark has returned to finish them both off. The porpoise lets go of Joe, and swims towards the shark. It rams the monster, then swims away to lead the shark away from Joe.

A little while later, Joe reaches the safety of the Allied sub now on the surface of the sea. As he is brought aboard by the other sailors, they see in the distance a porpoise jump out of the water. They point and wonder what's wrong with the animal, but Joe knows that he's just signaling his victory... to a pal.

Appearing in O.S.S.: "Operation: Slaughterhouse!"