Red Ball Express facts for kids
The Red Ball Express was a famous system of truck convoys that delivered supplies to Allied forces. This happened during World War II in 1944, after the Allies broke out from the D-Day beaches in Normandy, France. To quickly get supplies to the front lines, trucks marked with red balls followed special routes also marked with red balls. These routes were closed to regular cars. The Red Ball trucks also had priority, meaning they went first on other roads.
This important supply system was planned in a fast 36-hour meeting. It started on August 25, 1944. Most of the soldiers driving these trucks were African-American. At its busiest, the Express used almost 6,000 trucks. They carried about 12,500 tons of supplies every day! The Red Ball Express ran for 83 days, until November 16, 1944. By then, the port in Antwerp, Belgium, was open, many French train lines were fixed, and special fuel pipelines were set up.
How the Red Ball Express Started
The name "Red Ball" was used for fast cargo service even before World War II. Around 1892, the Santa Fe railroad used it for urgent freight like fresh food. Their special trains and tracks were marked with red balls. The term became very popular by the 1920s.
During World War II, a fast transport service was badly needed in Europe. This was after the successful Allied invasion at Normandy in June 1944. Before D-Day, the Allies had bombed the French railway system. This was done to stop the German army from moving troops and supplies easily.
When the Allies landed, most of the usual French ports were not working. So, after the D-Day invasion, the Normandy beaches became a temporary port. This port had to supply the Allied march towards Germany. Special temporary docks, called Mulberry Harbours, were brought from England. By the end of June, these docks had unloaded 170,000 vehicles, millions of gallons of fuel, and 500,000 tons of supplies.
About 28 Allied army groups needed supplies all the time. During attacks, each group used about 750 tons of supplies daily. This was about 100 pounds for each soldier! In total, this meant about 21,000 tons of supplies were needed every day. The only way to deliver all these supplies was by truck. This is how the Red Ball Express was born.
Running the Red Ball Express
At its busiest, the Red Ball Express used 5,958 trucks. They carried about 12,500 tons of supplies each day. Colonel Loren Albert Ayers, who his men called "Little Patton", was in charge. He had to find two drivers for every truck. He also got special equipment and trained port workers to be long-haul drivers. Soldiers from other units who weren't busy were also made drivers. Almost 75% of the Red Ball drivers were African-American.
In just 36 hours of planning, 132 existing military trucking groups were combined. The main trucks used were 2.5-ton GMC "Jimmys" and 1.5-ton Dodges. Dodge trucks were known for being reliable. GMC trucks often broke down, but there were many more of them. General Dwight D. Eisenhower helped plan the larger idea of the Express and its routes. This plan was based on a French model. It even influenced Eisenhower's work on the U.S. Interstate Highway System in the 1950s.
To keep supplies moving without delays, two routes were opened. These routes went from Cherbourg (Cherbourg-en-Cotentin since 2016) to the main supply base at Chartres. The northern route was used for delivering supplies. The southern route was for trucks returning empty. Both roads were closed to regular cars.
The roads in France were usually good, but not very wide. The fast-moving armies needed them badly. So, main roads leading to the front were quickly made into "one-way" roads. All civilian and local military traffic was banned from them. Tens of thousands of truckloads of supplies moved forward in a constant stream. After unloading, the trucks returned empty to Arromanches, Cherbourg, and other landing places using other one-way roads. Even the French train system worked in a similar way, with loaded trains moving forward almost bumper to bumper.
The Red Ball Express was part of a larger system of supply routes. The Green Diamond operated near Cherbourg. The White Ball went from Le Havre to Paris. The Lions Express ran between Bayeux and Brussels. The ABC Express went eastward from Antwerp.
Only groups of at least five trucks were allowed to travel together. They were escorted by a jeep in front and behind. But often, single trucks left Cherbourg as soon as they were loaded. It was also common for drivers to remove speed limiters from their engines. This allowed them to drive faster than 56 miles per hour (90 km/h).
German planes, called the Luftwaffe, often targeted these convoys. But by 1944, German air power was so weak that these easy targets were rarely attacked. The biggest problems for the Express were keeping trucks in good shape, finding enough drivers, and drivers not getting enough sleep.
Mud was a big natural enemy of the Express. The trucks had 11-inch (28 cm) wheels that could easily get stuck. Trying to get out of the mud could burn out the truck's transmission. Dried mud could also stop the brakes from working.
To control traffic and keep the route safe, the 793rd Military Police Battalion was sent to the Red Ball from August to December 1944. This battalion was started in December 1942. The early history of the battalion is shown on their special badge. It has two red balls on a yellow diagonal line, with a green background. Green and gold are the colors of the U.S. Army Military Police.
Images for kids
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Red Ball Express trucks moving through a Regulating Point, 1944
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A Red Ball Express truck stuck in the mud, 1944
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Commemorative stone in the village of La Queue-lez-Yvelines
See also
- Military history of African Americans
