Plebanek, Frank Anthony, PFC

TO THE BEST OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE, WHAT INFLUENCED HIS/HER DECISION TO JOIN THE ARMY?
Having just turned 18 years of age I knew I was eligible to be drafted, but didn't know when that time would come. My buddy and I went to the Naval Recruiting office and told them we would like to become pilots on an aircraft carrier.

He arranged for us to go to Kansas City, MO for testing and physicals on Dec. 31, 1942 and Jan. 1, 1943. We both passed the tests and physicals and were told to return home, that we would receive a letter within 30 days to report to Pensacola, Florida for induction into the US Navy.

We did receive a letter about three weeks later that informed us that enlistments for 18 year olds had been canceled and we could wait to be drafted and then transfer into Naval Aviation. We didn't like that idea, so went to the Army Air Corp and then the US Marines and they told us the same thing.

We had both quit our jobs and decided to go to the local draft board and tell them we wanted to enlist and would like to go out on the next draft call from our city. We were told to report for induction on Mar. 9, 1943.

TO THE BEST OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE, PLEASE DESCRIBE THE DIRECTION OR PATH HE/SHE TOOK IN HIS/HER MILITARY SERVICE. WHERE DID THEY GO FOR BASIC TRAINING AND WHAT UNITS, BASES OR SQUADRONS WERE THEY ASSIGNED TO? WHAT WAS HIS/HER REASON FOR LEAVING?
I volunteered to be drafted March 1943. Trained with 78th Lightning Division, in D Co. of 309th Regiment. I was trained in Use and Tactics of Heavy Water Cooled 30. Cal. Machine Gun.

I was sent as POR to England and Joined the 82nd Airborne Division about ten days before D-Day. I was being held as Reserve Status and assigned to 325th Glider Regiment. I was placed in E Co. in a Mortar Squad. when the Unit was returned from combat in July of 1944.

I participated in Operation Market Garden as Second Gunner on 60mm. Mortar Squad. I was wounded on Oct. 1, 1944 near Mook, Holland. Then sent to England to recuperate and was returned to duty in Feb. 1945 to rejoin my Unit which was near Schmidthof, Germany.

I was placed as Gunner on 30 Cal. Light machine gun. In May 1945 while holding the West Bank of the Rhine river in Cologne, Germany the CO needed a jeep driver, and I became his driver even after the hostilities ceased in May of 1945. The first week of August, 1945 we were sent to Berlin, Germany for Occupational Duty. In early Nov. of 1945, I had acquired enough points to be able to return to the States to be demobilized on Dec. 23, 1945 and returned to my family about 6:30 p.m on Christmas Eve.

IF HE/SHE PARTICIPATED IN ANY MILITARY OPERATIONS, INCLUDING COMBAT, HUMANITARIAN AND PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS, TO THE BEST OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE, PLEASE DESCRIBE THOSE YOU FEEL WERE THE MOST SIGNIFICANT TO HIM/HER AND, IF LIFE-CHANGING, IN WHAT WAY.
On Sept. 23, 1944 leaving an airfield near Leicester, in central England, being towed by a C-47, and crossing the southern part of the North Sea we arrived over Holland and almost went completely over it before we landed not too far from Nijmegen.

While flying across Holland, we were being fired at from German forces on the ground. We could see tracers coming up at us. Many planes and gliders didn't make the trip to our landing zone. Flying at about 600 feet altitude, we cut loose from the tow-plane and made a circle and landed. Our glider landed after tearing down three barbed wire fences separating canals and roads, in a plowed field, with the furrows perpendicular to our flight path and landing pattern.

The rough plowed ground managed to break off the left landing wheel and struts. One of the struts happened to pierce the exit door, right next to where I was sitting, We were unable to exit from our side of the glider and had to wait until the troops sitting on the opposite side of the glider exited. There was no one sitting where the strut pierced the exit door. We were very lucky that no one was hurt from our landing. After all the gliders had landed we were assembled and moved to a safe area to spend the night before we were assigned our sectors on the front lines. We were relieving the Paratroopers, who had taken the area six days before. We spent 8 days on the Front Line, and lost 15 men KIA and I don't know how many were wounded, before being pulled back for R&R. I came so close to being killed so many times.

A German soldier had my head in his sights when he fired his rifle. If his aim would have been 2 inches higher he would have shot me right between the eyes. The bullet landed in the dirt, right in front of my nose and about 2 inches below the top of the dirt around my foxhole. The dirt the bullet kicked up filled my eyes and I was unable to see anything for over an hour, while I tried to clean the dirt from my eyes, with water from my canteen.

While trying to awaken a man to relieve me on guard duty one night a sniper was trying to hit me while i was looking for the man in his hole. He must have fired three or four times at me until the firing woke another man and he fired back at the sniper. I believe the sniper was in the attic of the nearby farmhouse. He was just firing at the sounds I was making. I believe he was the same sniper that killed Verl Miller earlier that afternoon.

Later, on another occasion, as I looked around the corner of a fireplace protruding from the rear of a house, a German stood there with a flame thrower about 25 feet from me. He immediately fired the flame thrower and as the ball of flame was coming toward me, I went around the corner of the house and dove into an empty foxhole. I couldn't return fire at him as he was out of my line of sight. One of our Sergeants, along with five other men and I were trying to recover the mortar we had lost the day before, when we'd been attacked and didn't have time to bring it with us.

We were proceeding in single file as we were walking along the dirt road and the man (Closen), directly in front of me, was hit with machine pistol fire from a German gunner. Closen was riddled with bullets across his lower chest and fell forward to the ground and squirmed his way into the hedgerow trying to take cover. He only got about half way into the hedges when he stopped, lying perfectly still. We all knew that he was killed in action. He had been through Africa, Sicily, Italy and Normandy without being injured and it seemed such a shame that he had to die in Holland.

Late afternoon on the third day,while Payne and I were in our foxhole, the Germans made a small counter-attack with a half-track and a few troops following it. We heard it coming, but couldn't see it, and when it came into view, the gunner on top, with a machine gun, opened fire at Payne and I. We dropped to the bottom of our foxhole, without being hit. The gunner kept us pinned down, until some of our troops fired a bazooka round at it. It was hit in the radiator and backed away toward their own lines. When all the firing stopped we raised up out of our hole and found that all the dirt around our foxhole had been scooped away by the machine gunners bullets.

Another day, while it was raining, I tried to have a cigarette, but couldn't keep it lit. I decided to go into a small shed about 30 yards away. As I entered the shed I found it dry inside, so sat down and had a cigarette and candy bar. It wasn't long before a few guys decided to join me in the shed for a smoke. When the fifth man arrived, I thought to myself, 'this is not good, too many people in one location.' I explained this to the men in the shed. When the sixth man arrived, I decided to leave and mentioned that they should too.

Then four of them left and there was only one man in the shed. The Germans had spotted all the men gathering at the shed and probably had it zeroed in for their mortars. Before the last man left, a mortar round landed about five feet from the shed and blew it all apart. They then placed machine gun fire on the spot where the shed had been. The last man didn't make it out and was wounded and killed.

On another occasion, I was digging a foxhole and had it about knee deep, when I noticed some leaves move near my hole while I was standing in. I immediately dropped into the hole as a mortar shell exploded not two feet from me. I wasn't wounded as all the fragments went over me. I couldn't hear anything for about two hours, until my hearing returned from the concussion of the blast.

After we lost the mortar I was assigned to be first gunner on a light machine gun. One time, a German machine gunner was returning my fire but he couldn't lower his fire enough to hit me. I was concentrating on firing my own weapon and didn't realize how close I'd come to being hit until I discovered the severed leaves he'd shot from the trees about six inches above my head. I was really ticked off at the Germans for shelling our bivouac area.

Our Company was pulled off the line to go to the rear to get some R & R.for two days. My Buddy and I dug a slit trench to sleep in or take cover if we were shelled. We covered it with logs and dirt because it was raining. We'd left just enough room to get into and out of the hole.

While we slept, at about 10:30 p.m. we were shelled and an artillery shell exploded in the tree just above us and the entire top of the tree trapped us in the slit trench. We were both wounded in the lower legs and were trapped inside until the medics could remove the tree and help us from the slit trench. It just didn't seem right that I was wounded while in a two foot deep slit trench, below ground level and protected by dirt and logs over 2/3rds of the hole. Of course if it hadn't been for the logs and dirt over our bodies, we both may both have been killed.

We were taken by ambulance to a field hospital in Nijmegen in the morning. Then the next day to a hospital in Brussels. The next day I was airlifted back to England in a C-47 ambulance plane. After being airlifted back to England, I spent about four months in the hospital before being returned to my Unit, which had already moved into Germany near Aachen.

OF ALL THEIR DUTY STATIONS OR ASSIGNMENTS, ARE YOU AWARE OF ANY HE/SHE HAD FONDEST MEMORIES OF AND WHY? WHICH WAS THEIR LEAST FAVORITE?
Berlin, Germany. The 82nd Airborne Division was assigned as occupational duty forces, after the German forces surrendered. It was nice to know we wouldn't have to do any more fighting on this side of the world. We didn't know if we would be sent to help the Pacific forces invade Japan.

Seeing Berlin almost completely demolished from the bombing and shelling, was an awesome sight. Being the CO's jeep driver we had to travel in the British and French zones. Trying to get around we sometimes had to travel 3 or 4 miles to find routes to get to where we wanted to go that was only a mile away.

Our Company was quartered in Mariendorf, which is a small section of the southern area of Berlin. We were due south from the Brandenberg Gate and the Templehof Airport. Spandau was west of downtown Berlin. A group of about 10 from our company, a Lieutenant, myself and 8 others were assigned to assist the British, in Spandau, to help get all the DP's (Displaced Persons) and German Soldiers back to their home locations. This took about six weeks before all the holding pens were emptied. I met many British soldiers, and German girls (typists) while doing the sorting of thousands of German soldiers and civilians.

I think we spent more time in Berlin than any of the places we were stationed, while in combat. We were constantly moving from one place to another through England, Holland, France, Belgium and Germany. Seemed we were constantly going back and forth from France to Germany.

As troops were being sent back to the U.S. to be demobilized, we were given points to accumulate, the men with the highest number of points were being sent home first. My number group was called about the middle of November and we left Berlin, returned to France and left Marseille to go through the Mediterranean, past Gibraltar and on to New York.

So to me, my whole overseas adventure was to leave Boston, land in England, go to Holland, go to Belgium, return to England (in hospital), back to France, then to Germany, back to France, back to Germany, back to France, back to Germany, back to France, then leave France to go by ship to New York. I was able to visit all the Capitals, London, Paris, Brussels, Berlin.

FROM THEIR ENTIRE MILITARY SERVICE, DESCRIBE ANY PERSONAL MEMORIES, YOU MAY BE AWARE OF, WHICH IMPACTED HIM/HER THE MOST.
I was in the hospital near Whitney, England when I learned that my Unit was called to duty to help halt the German counter-attack in Dec. 1944 at the Huertgen Forest. I regretted that I was not able to be with my Unit when it really needed the most able bodied men. They had advanced on into Germany by the time I was able to return to duty.

While I was in the hospital about eleven days before Christmas 1944, a man walked into our ward and wanted to know who had been in the ward the longest time. After a discussion of all the patients there I was the one who had been there the longest. The man introduced himself as Rudolph Belarski and that he was a sketch artist from the USO. He asked me if I would like to have a sketch drawn and sent to my Mother for a Christmas present. I agreed and he posed me and said not to move until he had finished drawing the sketch. He asked me my name and outfit I was from and wrote that on the sketch. The sketch was drawn on Dec. 14, 1944 and my Mother received it before Christmas along with a negative and positive print.

The sketch was framed when I got home and has been hanging on the wall of my den ever since. I found out on April 1, 1945 when we were finally being paid our back pay to bring us up to date, that I had been promoted from Private to Private First Class on the day I had been wounded. That was six months earlier. which was on Oct. 1st, 1944. No one had ever told me after I had returned back to my unit about the middle of Feb. 1945. It was only when I was paid that they told me I was drawing a PFC's pay. Quite a surprise to me.

WHAT PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS DO YOU BELIEVE HE/SHE WAS MOST PROUD OF FROM HIS/HER MILITARY SERVICE?
I was awarded the Bronze Star for service during the Rhineland Campaign in Feb. 1944. I was unaware that I'd received the medal until Sept 1963.

OF ALL THE MEDALS, AWARDS, FORMAL PRESENTATIONS AND QUALIFICATION BADGES HE/SHE RECEIVED, WHICH WERE THE MOST MEANINGFUL TO HIM/HER AND WHY?
Earned the following Medals and awards, European,African, Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with one invasion spear-head and four campaign stars; Army of Occupation WW II Medal; Presidential Unit Citation Badge; Combat Infantryman Badge; American Campaign Medal; Victory WW II Medal; Good Conduct Medal; Bronze Star Medal; Purple Heart Medal; French Fouragere Lanyard Belgian Fouragere Lanyard; Netherlands Orange Lanyard; All equally important to me.

IF KNOWN, PLEASE LIST ANY INDIVIDUAL(S) FROM HIS/HER TIME IN THE MILITARY WHO STOOD OUT AS HAVING THE MOST POSITIVE IMPACT ON THEM AND WHY?
I do believe it would have to be our Company Commander, Captain Jones. While training in the States with the 78th Div, I had training on driving and maintaining motor vehicles. I had no idea that I would eventually become a driver. Later I was with E Company, of the 325 Glider Infantry, 82nd Airborne Division. When the Company Commander needed a driver they looked through the records of all the company personnel and found that I had been qualified as a driver.

We were in Cologne, Germany, holding the west bank of the Rhine, while they were clearing out the Ruhr Pocket which they had encircled on the east bank. My CO asked me if I would like to be relieved from being a gunner on the 30. Cal Light Machine gun and become his regular Jeep Driver. Without too much hesitation, I agreed and continued as his driver until I was sent home on points.

ARE YOU AWARE OF ANY PARTICULAR INCIDENT FROM HIS/HER SERVICE, WHICH MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE BEEN FUNNY AT THE TIME, BUT STILL MADE THEM LAUGH LATER ON?
On the eve of my 21st. birthday we had a Company party while we were occupying Berlin. I was the CO's jeep driver at the time. I went to the Company party with intentions of drinking enough until I passed out. After we had dinner I took 7 double shots of Cognac, a wine glass full of Gin, a bottle of Champagne and 3 and a half glasses of beer. All this in about a 4 hour period.

My buddy Tom Graves from Service Company hauled me up three flights of stairs and put me to bed. I was supposed to take the CO to Regimental HQ at 9 AM. I never got up after three times being awakened and told to go get my jeep. They had someone bring the jeep to the Company area and finally got me up so I could drive him to HQ.

The Captain got in the jeep and asked me if I thought I could make it. I told him I thought I could. When we got to the corner and I had to make a right turn, I almost fell out of the jeep. He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me back. When I had to make a left turn I fell over into his lap and he helped me straighten out again.

We made it to HQ and I stayed in the jeep and slept until he came out about two hours later. I felt much better after getting more sleep, and we made it back to our Company area with no further incidents. He then told me to get my Assistant Driver to take over the driving duties until the next day. I was lucky not to have been written up. It was certainly a milestone birthday to remember.

IF HE/SHE SURVIVED MILITARY SERVICE, WHAT PROFESSION(S) DID HE/SHE FOLLOW AFTER DISCHARGE?
I was a Automobile Service Station Manager for about 20 years. I then operated my own Service Station for 5 years. I finally gave up my lease during the first gas shortage because the government was telling me how much gas I could sell and how much money I could make. It all became too much because I had to cut my operating hours and couldn't make enough money to support my family.

I then went to work for another dealer for about five years as an Auto Mechanic. Then gave that up and started working at General Dynamics as a Maintenance Mechanic, then transferred to Machine Tool Rebuilder. After 12 and a half years I retired from there in Jan 1990. Still retired after 21 years.

IF KNOWN, WHAT MILITARY ASSOCIATIONS WAS HE OR SHE A MEMBER OF, IF ANY? ARE YOU AWARE OF ANY SPECIFIC BENEFITS THEY DERIVED FROM THEIR MEMBERSHIPS?
82nd Airborne Division Association; 325th Glider Infantry Association; American Airborne Association; Military Order of the Purple Heart; Disabled American Veterans; Combat Infantryman's Association. I derived no specific benefits from any of them. Went to reunions of the 325th and the 82nd. I am mentioned in the following three books: 'LET'S GO' by Wayne Pierce 1997- The story of the men of the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment. 'GLIDE TO GLORY' by Jerry Richlak, Sr.-Unedited personal stories of Airborne Glidermen of WW II. 'ALL AMERICAN ALL THE WAY' By Phil Nordyke-The Combat History of The 82nd Airborne Division in World War II.

IF HE/SHE SURVIVED MILITARY SERVICE, IN WHAT WAYS DO YOU BELIEVE HIS/HER SERVING IN THE MILITARY INFLUENCED THE WAY THEY APPROACHED THEIR PERSONAL LIFE, FAMILY LIFE AND CAREER?
Personally experiencing the daily life of a Soldier gave me a greater base of knowledge of how to deal with problems, organize and determine what's truly important. I developed the realization that I had to rely on my own resourcefulness to succeed. I had to literally grow up in the trenches.

IF THEY WERE HERE TODAY, WHAT ADVICE DO YOU THINK HE OR SHE WOULD GIVE TO THOSE WHO FOLLOWED IN THEIR FOOTSTEPS AND RECENTLY ENTERED MILITARY SERVICE?
Stay with the rules and behave. Do your job.

HOW EFFECTIVE HAS TOGETHERWESERVED.COM BEEN IN HELPING YOU RECORD YOUR REMEMBERED PERSONS MILITARY SERVICE? DO YOU HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS OR SUGGESTIONS YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE?
I have found lost friends after 50 years. It's another vehicle to document history of service.

KC 10/29/18