To make up the difference, he outfitted his main combat force, known as Panzerbrigade 150, with a collection of about 70 German tanks camouflaged to look like American armored vehicles.Ī knocked out Ersatz M10 with both its hull and turret American markings displayed. Skorzeny received much less American equipment than expected: only a few dozen jeeps, trucks, and halftracks, and one Sherman tank. Hitler promised unlimited support, but like most of his claims about the Ardennes Counteroffensive, this was an overstatement that fell flat. With just six weeks to prepare, he had much work to do. Skorzeny established his command at Grafenwöhr, Germany.

He assured his loyal commando that posing as Americans would only violate the laws of war if the German soldiers engaged in combat while disguised. Hitler told Skorzeny that the Allies had used this same ruse in recent battles. To do this, Skorzeny would rely on deception, employing English-speaking troops in US Army uniforms and equipment. In addition to seizing at least one bridge over the Meuse, the commandos would use espionage and sabotage to sow chaos in the Allied rear.

He was to equip and train a unit of commandos that would advance alongside the 6th Panzer Army-the vanguard of the offensive’s northern thrust. Skorzeny had led secret missions for Hitler before, including the rescue of Benito Mussolini, but this would be his largest and most complex. Hitler called Skorzeny to his headquarters in October 1944 to give him his orders in person. To avoid this, Hitler entrusted Obersturmbannführer (Lieutenant Colonel) Otto Skorzeny with a special mission known as Operation Greif. If the Germans failed to seize an intact bridge over the Meuse, the resulting delay would give the Allies time to recover from their surprise and enable them to amass forces west of the river before the Germans could cross. Speed was essential to Hitler’s plan, given its ambitious aims of driving a wedge between the US and British armies, crossing the Meuse, and driving to the coast at Antwerp. When developing his strategy for the Ardennes Counteroffensive, Adolf Hitler knew it was essential to capture at least one intact bridge over the Meuse River.

German tanks in battle of the bulge