I have a copy of the orders reassigning the Officers of F Co 123rd Maint Battalion dated 21 Oct 1977, orders number 263-2 in my file. My records show that the D Co 501st became the 61st AMC around July of 1985. I was stationed in Germany from Oct. 1974 (175th Attack Company) Illesheim APO 09140 to Aug 1977 at which time I transferred to Katterbach APO 09326, later APO 09250 and remained at that location until I retired in 1993.
CW4 Robert T. Quillen

INFORMATION ON ANSBACH AND ILLESHEIM UNITS:

1964 - 1966
In Feb 1964 Ansbach Army Airfield, Katterbach, Germany, was the home for:
EES* (AAFES*) as a Warehouse Depot
a nine hole golf course
A Company, 504th Aviation Bn, APO 09177
the aviation section for the 210th Artillery Group, and
a Detachment from B Co, 126th Maint Bn (Support Maintenance)

* EES = European Exchange System (*Army Air Force Exchange System, today)

A Co, 504th Aviation Battalion used hangar Number 1, Building 5801, for its maintenance, operation, and support of the aircraft. In front of the hangar across the ramp were located four Q-huts that we used to store our military vehicles. The unit was assigned 18 CH-34s.

On top of the hill at the end of the runway was a small hangar used by the 210th Artillery Group, the unit had OH-13’s, O1-Birddog and U6 Beaver.

B Co, 126th Maint Bn (Det) used half of hangar number 2, Building 5802 as their support maintenance hangar. The other half belonged to EES (AAFES).

EES used a 2½-ton World War 2 military truck painted blue to move the box cars around on the railroad tracks for loading or unloading. The truck was equipped with normal tires but had small train wheels that mounted on the chassis to allow movement on the rails without slipping off the tracks.

From the hangars looking south toward the back fence was where the 9 hole golf course was located.

The rest of the installation was used by EES (AAFES) as their Warehouse Depot up until about the middle /end 1965.

In 1965 A Co, 504th with the B Co Det. 126th took part in Operation Cold Winter 65, a NATO training exercise in Norway.

In Feb. 1966 A Co, 504th Aviation Company received the USAREUR Army Aviation Unit Award for 1965.

Due to the war in South Viet Nam A Co, 504th started losing its pilots and had to go into caretaker status. It was around this same timeframe that hangar #1 and #2 were declared unsafe and we moved from hangar No. 1 to hangar No. 7, Building 5807. All the aircraft except for three were placed in long-term storage under the supervision of B Co, 126th Maint Bn (Det) in hangar No.6, Building 5806, and were in storage in Sep. 1966. One of the aircraft that did not go into storage was CH-34C, serial number 55-4485 (58-463).

** Today the hangar numbers are backwards in reference to the Building numbers: hangar 1 is now Building 5807, hangar Number 2 is Building 5806,etc. Another item is that the old wooden hangars Number 3 and 4, Building numbers 5803 and 5804, are no longer standing -- they were torn down sometime in the 1980’s.

The personal from A Co, 504th Avn Bn and (Det) B Co, 126 th Maint Bn were housed at Hindenburg Kaserne, Ansbach, Germany, in Building 5351, third floor. The mess hall was Building 5392, the Enlisted Club Building 5363, NCO Club Building 5370 and the bowling alley was Building 5398. Hindenburg Kaserne is no longer part of Ansbach, in its place is now a College and a Shopping Mall. The college took over some of the old buildings to include Building 5351 as it was one of the Historical buildings that could not be torn down and replaced.

Headquarters Company, 504th Avn Bn, B Co 504th Avn Bn., and the Headquarters for B Co 126th Maintenance Battalion were located at Monteith Barracks, Fürth, APO 09696.

In 1966 I departed Germany and returned to the USA for further schooling.

Upon my return in late 1967 to Coleman Barracks, Mannheim, I learned that A Co 504th Avn Battalion had been renamed as the 349th Avn Co, APO 09177, located at Katterbach (Ansbach Army Airfield).

1974 - 1993
In Oct 1974 I was assigned to the 175th Attack Helicopter Company, Illesheim, Germany APO 09140 as a Technical Inspector 67W20.

In March 1975 the unit took part in an Army test for the future Combat Aviation Battalion. The 175th Attack Co. became Company B 3rd Combat Aviation Battalion (Provisional), 3rd Inf. Division, APO 09140 with our Headquarters located at APO 09031. This test ended about Aug 1975 and the 175th Attack Helicopter Company was again under its own name.

In 1977, I was reassigned from the 175th Attack Helicopter Company to F Company 123rd Maintenance Battalion, APO 09326, Ansbach Army Heliport, Katterbach, Germany. Headquarters for the 123rd was located at Montieth Bks, Fürth, APO 09696.

On 21 Oct 1977, Company F 123rd Maintenance Battalion, APO 09326 was redesignated as 501st Combat Aviation Battalion (Augmentation) (Carrier), APO 09326 with instruction that effective 21 Jun 1978 the unit would become Company D, 501st Combat Aviation Battalion, 1st Armored Division, APO 09326 located at Katterbach, Germany, Ansbach Army Heliport.

It was during this time that most of the units were renamed/redesignated between Oct. 77 and Jun 1978 (Official date per order number 263-2 was 21 June 1978).

---There was no unit with the name 501st Aviation Company prior to the activation of the 501st Aviation Battalion on Katterbach in 1977.

Redesignated Units (Formation of 501st CAB)
Aviation Company, 1st Armored Division = A Co, 501st CAB, Ansbach Army Heliport, Katterbach, APO 09326
D Trp. 1/1 Cavalry (Aviation Only) = B Co, 501st CAB, Ansbach Army Heliport, Katterbach, APO 09326
175th Attack Helicopter Company = C Co, 501st CAB, Stock Bks., Illesheim, APO 09140.
F Co 123rd Maintenance Company = D Co, 501st CAB, Ansbach Army Heliport, Katterbach, APO 09326

Units at Ansbach Army Airfield (Heliport), Katterbach, 1964- 1993