vrijdag 4 maart 2016

(X-SCM) - RED BALL EXPRESS


The Red Ball Express was the codename for one of World War II's most massive logisitics operations, namely a fleet of over 6,000 trucks and trailers that delivered over 412,000 tons of ammunition, food, and fuel (and then some!) to the Allied armies in the ETO between August 25 and November 16, 1944.



The Red Ball Express was a famed truck convoy system that supplied Allied forces moving quickly through Europe after breaking out from the D-Day beaches in Normandy in 1944. In order to expedite cargo to the front, trucks emblazoned with red balls followed a similarly marked route that had been closed to civilian traffic. These trucks were also given priority on regular roads.[citation needed]
The system originated in an urgent 36-hour meeting and began operating on August 25, 1944, staffed primarily with African-American soldiers.[1] At its peak, the Express operated 5,958 vehicles, and carried about 12,500 tons of supplies a day.[1] It ran until November 16, when the port facilities at AntwerpBelgium, were opened, some French rail lines were repaired, and portable gasoline pipelines deployed.

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