Need Help With One i Have Never Seen

[Bill Scott]

Has anyone ever seen one of these Beauties.The wording is OTSU MOUNTAINEERS Company M.OTSU is a city in Japan and has some beautiful mountain ranges around it.Any and all thoughts and comments are welcome.Thanks Scotty

[Ray42]

Hi, I commented this on your ASMIC post also but will repeat it here in case it gives anyone a good idea but there was also a Camp Otsu in the city during the Korean War. Maybe you can find a unit that did mountain warfare training in preparation for Korea at that location? That is a very cool patch by the way. 

[smwinter207]

Found this 1957 photo of a 7th Cav Regiment bugler at Camp Otsu in Japan. 

 

[Airborne-Hunter]

The 8th Cavalry Regiment had a Mountaineers in Korea. I haven't been able to prove it yet, but I suspect it to be their Battle Patrol equivalent. 

The 8th Cav Reg went to Japan after hostilities wore down in Korea (I have not been able to confirm them at Camp Otsu, but they were in Japan).

 

IF we assume that the 8th Cav Reg Mountaineers are 1) in fact the battle patrol 2) were at Camp Otsu and 3) they acted like the 27th Infantry Regiment's Raiders when they were sent to Japan in 1952. Then we MAY be able to see a logical path to this being a 2nd design for the 8th Cav Reg's Battle Patrol (Mountaineers). 

There is some limited evidence that the 27th Infantry Regiment Raiders changed their patch when they went to Japan. The implicit reason was because so many newbies came in after a major assault in November 1951 that they wanted differentiation from the true originals/combat vets. We MAY be able to apply that logic to this patch for the 8th.Additionally, the 27th Infantry Regiment Raiders were on POW guard duty in Japan. If this is the case for the 8th, then this MAY explain the use of the heavy machine gun logo. The only 8th Cav Reg Mountaineers design I am aware of is below. 

 

A post above mentions the 7th Cav Reg. There IS evidence that the 7th had a Battle Patrol equivalent as well, but I have not yet been able to nail down the exact name, yet. I doubt it was also Mountaineers, but I must admit the possibility.

Another side note. IF the above patch is for a BATTLE PATROL, it is likely the "COMPANY M" does NOT exist. Battle Patrols were organized as "Companies" in Korea but usually had  strengths of varying sizes around a large reinforced platoon. Company M would therefore stand for "Mountaineers" as in "Company Mountaineers" as in the "Battle Patrol/Raider Company."

There are a lot of IF's in this one, but I'd hazard this a significant possibility, so much so that I'd buy the patch on this whim. 

To date, I have yet to find any surviving WW2 or Korea Battle Patrol, Raider or Provisional Unit member. If anyone reading this should know anyone or have any information whatsoever about any unit, please contact me. 

Best ABN 

 

[tredhed2]

8th Cav Regt never at Camp Otsu, but the 7th was.

 

Company M has always been the heavy weapons company in the army, especially crewed automatic weapons. So this Co M certainly did; there is no evidence of “ghost/phantom units” in Korea as in WW 2.