GIs Patrolling German Border Without M-16s

WASHINGTON — American forces patrolling the East-West German border in the Fulda Gap have been ordered to leave their trademark M-16 rifles in the barracks and instead carry .45-caliber pistols on their border rounds, according to the Pentagon.

The 5th Corps commander “didn’t want to give East Germans crossing the border the impression that they were entering an armed camp” and issued the order late last week, said a spokesman, Lt. Col. Richard Bridges.

Bridges said the pistols, which fit discreetly beneath a soldier’s field jacket, are adequate for the defensive needs of the soldiers, who monitor activity across the border and ensure that American military personnel do not stray across the line.

The order affects close to 500 soldiers who patrol the border between East and West Germany in the area that has long been considered the Warsaw Pact’s most likely attack route.