On June 13, 1944, the 803rd Tank Destroyer Battalion arrived in France via Omaha Beach and entered combat in the hedgerows of Normandy equipped with M10 tank destroyers. In August 1944, after the Normandy breakout, the battalion raced across France to Belgium and the Netherlands. In October and November 1944, the 803rd fought in the Battle of Aachen and the Battle of Hürtgen Forest. In December 1944, the battalion participated in the Battle of the Bulge. Company C earned a Distinguished Unit Citation for actions in combat from November 16 to December 4, 1944. In February 1945, the 803rd converted from the M10 to the M36 tank destroyer. Crossing the Rhine River on March 23, 1945, the battalion participated in the elimination of the Ruhr Pocket and then moved southeast towards Austria and Czechoslovakia.