Evening star., 1943-08-16
Surprise Achieved
In Sici|ian Landinq
Surprise 10 Allies
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN
NORTH AFRICA. Aug. 16.-The
Allied high command scored a sur
prise in Sicily. and the possibility
of surprising the Axis when land
ings are made in Europe is equally
good, Mai. Gen. Walter B. Smith.
chief of staff at Allied headquarters,
said yesterday.
He indicated the invasion of Sicily
in some ways might have been a
more difficult problem than invasion
of the European mainland.
The islands position seemed to
preclude the possibility Of deceiv-
ing the German and Italian COM
manders as to the place and direc-
ton of the main Allied thrust.
Furthermore, there was sufficient
Axis strength concentrated in Sicily
to have foiled the landings, and
more than enough to throw the
American and British troops back
into the sea during the first hours
after the landings.
Landing Equipment Excellent.
Gen. Smith said three main fac
tors were responsible for the success
of the Allied campaign:
/. There was the tactical victory
that prevented the enemy from
committing his reserves until too
late.
2. The excellence Of the American
and British landing equipment as
well AS tanks, heavy artillery, and
transport-all of which were found
ideally adapted to overseas opera
ton.
3. The fighting qualities of the in
dividual American and British SOL
dier.
The general placed special en-
phasis on the type Of battle dis
cipline taught at various British
military schools, methods which are
being copied and adapted to Amer
lean training grounds.
The Allied soldier today is taught
self-reliance and initiative. He Is
trained to fight efficiently with or
without the presence of officers.
Some Ships Loaded Three Months.
Gen. Smith said recruits were
trained by Junior and noncommis-
stoned officers and emphasis In
training now is placed on making
the individual soldier capable of
reaching his own decisions in battle.
AS an example, he cited one Amer
lean division previously trained this
way. 1t entered the Sicilian cam
paign with virtually no combat ex-
perience, but has been fighting with
extraordinary success by contrast
with some American units that
learned their lessons "the hard way"
in Tunisia.
The difficulty in planning over
seas operations the size of the
Sicilian invasion, which entailed use
OF 1920 ships, is almost beyond be-
lief. Some ships were loaded three
months ahead of invasion day.
Carrying equipment which would
come into action after the landings,
the ships whole operation had to be
planned and synchronized down to
the smallest detail like a vast rail-
road timetable.
Their arrival and unloading was
on virtually split second schedule
and, because of the size of the opera
ton. it was necessarily less flexible
than the Allied high command
might have wanted.
Harbors along the whole coast of
North Africa were jammed with
ships long before the invasion date.
The chances of surprising the Axis
appeared virtually nil, Gen. Smith
said.
He indicated the enemys surprise
surprised the Allied command.
Gen. Smith, whose home is in In
dianapolis, Ind, was assistant sec
retary. then secretary of the War
Department general staff from Oc-
tober, 1889, to February, 1912, and
from then until September 3, 1912.
was United States secretary of the
combined chiefs of staff in WASH
ington. He was appointed chief of
staf to Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower
on September O 1910