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M4 Carbine Bayonet issued in 1944 to Glider Pilot


warpath
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Having heard for years that there is no evidence that M1 Carbines with bayonet lugs ever made it to the WWII combat zones, it is nice to know that the M4 bayonets did find their way to the front even though they were used as combat knives and not as bayonets. Thanks for posting.

Marv

 

Also interesting is the M8 scabbard which has the short hanger, but had the belt hook added. Nice M4 and scabbard.

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I thought I also saw the something that Marv did. When you measure the overall length of the sheath, does it come out at very near 12 inches or closer to just short of 13 inches? From the picture it looks like it might be the original M8 webbing with a riggers modified addition of the M1910 hook. But looks can be deceiving.

 

I can't find an Irudell K. "Ike" Dye on my glider pilots roster. Only one Dye on the whole list is Gerald A. Maybe forum member "Gliderman" will see this thread and be able to shed more light.

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All I have from my source (an early Airborne historian and author who acquired this from the veteran) is that Dye served in Italy in 1944, flew in Southern France and later Holland and Operation Varsity over the Rhine. If anyone finds additional details it would be appreciated. Thanks. Ed

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Might be worth asking if he might have known which Troop Carrier Group or the squadron he was assigned to.

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gliderman1

I can not verify that his nic-name was "Ike", nor that there was not an Irudell K. Dye somewhere in the US Army.

 

There was a glider pilot MOS 1026 name of Idellus K. Dye in the USAAF, Troop Carrier. This man graduated Advanced Glider pilot training at Victorville, class 43-3. This class graduated 5-Capt, 6-1Lt and 6-2Lt (Dye was one of the 2Lt), trained in-grade, along with 130+ F/O. All GP flight trainees were volunteers. He flew a glider in SoFrance, Market and Varsity; Air Medal and two OLC, Orange Lanyard (1982). He was variously attached to TCS/TCG; 44/316; 14/61 and 76/435 (Mkt). When these assignments occurred would have to be determined by additional research of TCG records which I do not hold.

 

http://www.ww2gp.org/index.php

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Thanks for the details...I had typed his name incorrectly...This is the information provided by the owner who got the bayonet from Dye in the 60s or early 70s. It seems he had an interesting career.

 

" Ike was from WV, had a pre-war flying license via the Civilian Pilot Training
Program, and was a National Guardsman called to active duty in early 1941. He was rejected for
Army Pilot training because he was too small (5'5"?), so he became a gunnery instructor. He
answered the call for GPs, but was initially rejected because he already was a 1Lt; but a month or
so later, the GP HQ decided that it could use him after all. He often flew as co-pilot on C-47s,
and was an instructor in Infantry weapons for GPs prior to VARSITY. His weapon(s) of choice were
Thompsons and for VARSITY a .30 cal. MG plus TSMG and .45. He was recalled to active duty with
Berlin airlift and stayed. He was the public affairs officer for NASA Cape Canaveral in the 1960s."

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Bruce Canfield has a picture of glider troops shaving their heads w/ M4s just prior to the Varsity Operation.

shaving with m4 bayonts 001.jpg

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Glad to see that Gliderman1 saw this and was able to fill in some more information. When it comes to Glider Pilots it's harder to find one who's career wasn't interesting. :)

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Saw a History Channel show years ago that was about WW2 Gliders, and pilots. One pilot stated, " that there was about 20 things that could happen with a glider, 19 of them were bad!". That quote stuck with me! LOL! SKIP

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  • 1 year later...

Having heard for years that there is no evidence that M1 Carbines with bayonet lugs ever made it to the WWII combat zones...

 

Italy, April 1945.

Photo Margaret Bourke-White

post-75-0-65147500-1518554209_thumb.jpg

post-75-0-43998700-1518554225_thumb.jpg

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The problem with the photo is that M4 bayonets made it to the ETO before the bayonet lugs were available. So if you look at the very indistinct picture, it appears that the bayonet is taped or otherwise tied to the carbine. We are still in the "maybe, maybe not" period.

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There are photos of the M4 in use in the PTO, aren't there?

 

There's a photo of a guard on Mount Surabachi with a carbine with a bayonet lug, but it's not dated, and is clearly after the island has been secured and much of the beach is cleaned up. I think the best guess on the picture is after June 1945 when Iwo Jima was still in use for it's airfields while bombing Japan. I don't think there has been a proven use of the bayonet lug in Okinawa (that battle ended 21 June 1945 when the Japanese Army Commander committed suicide).

 

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Hard to tell what is on the weapon, but I do think it is funny that they are all standing around launching rifle grenades at something. Knowing GI's they are probably shooting at deer or goats..

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Got a picture of a student's great grandpa's scrapbook. While not pre-VE Day, it was interesting that her grandpa in very, very early occupation duty is shown standing with a carbine with bayonet clearly affixed. I'll post it if I can just for the heck of it.

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