Kradschützen Truppen - The Wehrmacht on two wheels!

[Combat Boots]

For those of you who love motorcycles as I do, below is presented a selection of my favorite photos of the Kradschützen Truppen or motorcycle troops that were the motorized, lightly armed and highly mobile infantry units of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen SS, usually incorporated into the Panzer Divisions..

But first a little background information garnered from the net. Enjoy and feel free to add your favorite motorcycle troop photos. Enjoy, Bob

The German army is perhaps the only army in the world that made use of the motorcycle for armed raids and attacks. The Germans converted their BMW and Zundapp machines to military use by an innovative addition. They mounted the side car of the motorbikes with a rotating rapid fire machine gun. While the bike was piloted by a driver, his buddy who sat in the side car manned the machine gun.
In the flat plains of Europe the motorcycle patrols were a great success and every regiment had its complement of motorcycle troops. The motorcycle troops were also excellent for scouting and terrorizing the villages of occupied Europe. It was not uncommon for these motorbike troops to enter a village square with bursts of machine gun fire and terrorize the villagers of occupied Europe.
The Motorcycle troops were also used in the assault on Russia. They were part of the infantry and moved with them. In the summer they served their purpose but with the onset of winter these machines faced severe problems and the causalities mounted. Many motorbikes got stuck in the massive mud and drift and were rendered useless. The Wehrmacht thus had to withdraw many motorcycle units from the Russian front.
In Eastern Europe and the west these bikes with the mounted machine gun served a definite purpose. Many captured bikes were also painted in the colors of the Wehrmacht and modified with side cars and machine guns and put to use with the German army. The BMW proved to be the best of the machines and its twin cylinder gave it plenty of power. However the allies and the Russians did not copy the German tactics and never fitted their bikes with machine guns. They put them to auxiliary use only.
Article written by Madan G. Singh










These guys are having too much fun!

[Combat Boots]

Here are a few more. Thanks for looking! Bob

[Peter93]

Nice photos, some of them are really interesting. Great idea.

I'm going to add this:

[Combat Boots]

Here is another favorite that Gunny Hartmann posted a while ago. Reminds me of the first time I sat on a motorcycle. Bob

[CBH]

Great photos thanks for sharing .

[Combat Boots]

Another group with a couple of photos of original restored machines. Bob

[Combat Boots]

Last submission for awhile. Please feel free to add your own photos. Thanks, Bob

[paulp4180]

Excellent thread thank - you.

My tuppence worth ...

[Combat Boots]

paulp, the soldier in that first photo is dressed for some serious cold weather. Makes you shiver just to see it.

[Combat Boots]

A bunch of Luftwaffe motorcycle troops (WL on the number plate) shown below plus a few others. Thanks, Bob










Battle fatigue has set in for this soldier!