FORMATIONS (TO&E), PART 10

World War II: Coastal Troops

 

During World War 2 Finnish coastal artillery and coastal troops were part of Navy. Once the war started it revealed some serious issues. Even if eastern parts of Gulf of Finland freeze practically every winter and the ice is usually heavy at least for infantry if not light armoured vehicles, coastal artillery had focused its attention in fighting warships, but was basically unprepared for the situation in which enemy might attack its coastal forts by marching on ice. In addition coastal artillery completely lacked infantry units its own. Later when these troops especially trained and equipped for battles in coast and islands were created, they were named as coastal troops (rannikkojoukot). Hence the story of Finnish coastal troops starts from infantry units created by Army, but placed under command of Finnish Navy for Winter War. As to be expected these troops did not possess any special training or equipment for coastal battles. If anything they were units considered to be 2nd rate infantry due to being created from older reservists.

These Winter War era units included:

Structurally all these units were similar as the normal infantry units of Finnish Army and in total their manpower was around 8,600 men. As Winter War was fought during very cold winter the need for coastal troops was quite limited until the sea froze in such extent, that the ice could be crossed with motor vehicles and tanks. During the last weeks of the war Finnish coastal troops took part to battles in Hanko/Hango/Gangut Peninsula and Viipurinlahti Gulf.

When Continuation War begun the situation was quite different than during Winter War. It was summer, Soviets now partially controlled southern coastline of Finnish Gulf and had their naval base in Hanko/Hango/Gangut Peninsula in Finnish south coast. Finnish coastal troops were build as larger and more effective Coastal Brigades, which included:

However, one important element had still been forgotten and left off - lightly armed infantry capable for offensive operations! Once the battles begun this mistake became obvious within a week and Navy Headquarters started fixing it by establishing Coastal Strike Companies (Iskukomppania), which had equipment (boats) suitable for this use. The Coastal Strike Companies soon proved too little for their tasks and commanding this sort separate companies too difficult. So just in after another week or so, Navy HQ started uniting them to create more powerful and easier operate with Coastal Strike Battalions (Iskupataljoona). Typical Finnish coastal defence of Continuation War era had combination of these units supporting and protecting each other. The combination of troops usually had been combined as Sector (Lohko) or Fort (Linnake, which had its own HQ commanding the units it contained. Below are tables of organisation for some of these units. However, the actual sizes and organisations of coastal units varied considerably, so some of these cannot be seen more than guidelines. Especially coastal infantry units had huge variation: Year 1944 some of them still had TO&E resembling the 1941 Coastal Strike Company, while others were similar to ordinary Infantry Companies and Battalions - and some coastal infantry units were somewhere in between. Notice that also weaponry used in coastal troops varied more than in frontline infantry units.

Probably the most common unit of Finnish Coastal Troops was Coastal Defence Company (Torjuntakomppania), which was basically coastal infantry heavy weapons company suitable for defensive operations. Main weaponry of these companies was medium machineguns (typically water-cooled Maxims on machine-mounts) and guns in 20-mm - 47-mm caliber-range. The light guns in their use included variety of antitank-guns and light coastal guns, which were all suitable targeting enemy infantry trying to land with small boats or landing crafts. Originally this unit type was created to provide close range defensive capability for coastal artillery forts, but soon it developed to de facto standard defensive coastal infantry formation for defending important beaches or islands. Usually these companies were used as platoons, each of which defending a base assigned to it.

For obvious reasons anti-aircraft units of coastal troops resembled the ones used by the Army. One could however note that unlike their Army equivalents they for obvious reasons used all their anti-aircraft guns in the frontline (heavy aa-guns included) and were trained to routinely use their guns also against surface targets.

Transport equipment used by coastal troops varied. Finnish military had no actual purpose-build landing crafts during World War 2. VMV-patrol boats of the Navy transported them in some occasions and when larger transport was needed gunboats and other ships were used. However typical coastal infantry transport was mix of various motor boats each capable transporting 1 - 2 squads of infantry. The mixed variety of these boats was mainly explained by them being civilian boats pressed to military use during the war. Most typical type of these motor boats was open fishing boat. As to be expected maximum speed of used boats varied considerably, but was typically very modest by military standards of that day and since they operated in units, usually the pace was set by the slowest boat. At least in theory each of these boats was to have a water-cooled Maxim medium machinegun on its bow. In some instances when motor boats were not available Finnish coastal infantry even had to rely using rowing boats. In some occasions also canoes were used, but apparently usually only for reconnaissance.

Coastal Strike Company (Coastal Infantry Company), 1941:

Company Commander

Coastal Infantry Platoon with lots of firepower

Coastal Infantry Platoon with lots of firepower

Motorboat Squad

Notice: "Lots of firepower" = more then usual amount of automatic weapons.

 

Coastal Strike Battalion (Coastal Infantry Battalion), 1941:

Battalion HQ

Coastal Strike Company

Coastal Strike Company

Mortar Platoon (light mortars, 81 - 82 mm)

 

Coastal Strike Battalion, (2nd alternative TO&E) late 1941:

(As established by HQ of Finnish Navy. This was basically just a framework.)

Battalion HQ

Battalion HQ Company

3 Coastal Strike Companies

Mortar Company (light mortars)

Anti-aircraft Machinegun Company (only in some Coastal Strike Battalions)

Note: This unit was designed as attack force and to be used as reserve in archipelago Finnish Gulf and in coastal defence sectors.

 

Coastal Defence Company, 1941

Company HQ

2 Infantry Gun Platoons

2 Machinegun Platoons

Supplies Platoon

OR

2 Infantry Gun Platoons

Machinegun Platoons

Coastal Infantry Platoon

Supplies Platoon

 

Coastal Defence Company, 1941:

Company Commander (pistol)

2 messengers (runners) (rifles)

Light Artillery Section (Infantry Gun Platoon)

Machinegun Platoon (light searchlight)

Supplies Squad

 

Coastal Defence Company, 1941:

Company Commander (rifle + bicycle)

2 messengers (rifles + 1 bicycle)

1st Light Artillery Section (light searchlight)

2nd Light Artillery Section (light searchlight)

1st Machinegun Platoon

2nd Machinegun Platoon

Supplies Squad

 

Coastal Defence Company, 1942 – December 1943:

Company Commander (pistol)

Company HQ Squad

1st Infantry Gun Platoon

2nd Infantry Gun Platoon

1st Machinegun Platoon

2nd Machinegun Platoon

Coastal Infantry Platoon

Supplies Platoon

Note: Infantry Guns in this case are captured Soviet 45-mm antitank-guns.

 

Coastal Defence Company, December 1943 - 1944:

Company Commander (pistol)

Company HQ Squad

1st Infantry Gun Platoon

2nd Infantry Gun Platoon

1st Machinegun Platoon

2nd Machinegun Platoon

Coastal Infantry Platoon

Supplies Platoon

 

Coastal (infantry) Battalion, 1941:

Battalion HQ

3 Infantry Companies

Machinegun Company

Mortar Company (light mortars 81 – 82 mm)

AA-Machinegun Company

 

Heavy Coastal AA-Artillery Battery, 1941

Battery Commander (pistol)

FO Unit

AA-Gun Battery

Supplies Squad

Additional personnel: 1 Lotta working as clerk and 2 Lotta’s working as cooks. (*)

 

Light Coastal AA-Artillery Battery, 1942:

Battery Commander (pistol)

2 AA-Gun Sections

Supplies Squad

Additional personnel: 1 Lotta working as clerk and 2 Lotta's working as cooks. (*)

(*) Members of (all female) Lotta-Svärd volunteers auxiliary organisation. During WW2 they served in non-combatant tasks supporting Finnish military. They had no military training and were unarmed. Originally Lotta-Svärd organisation had been established in year 1921 as volunteer organisation for women and its main task had been supporting and help in supplying of Suojeluskunta (Civil Guard) organisation.

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