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re: Normandy vet sings "Blood on the Risers/Paratrooper thread. Any jumpers?
Posted on 5/6/24 at 1:47 am to fr33manator
Posted on 5/6/24 at 1:47 am to fr33manator
Look at all that white privilege
0
Posted on 5/6/24 at 2:06 am to fr33manator
The 82nd is something of a family business on my fathers side. My family likes to say we have had at least one officer serving in the 82nd since before it was designated an Airborne unit in '42 but my research shows we missed about 3 years in the late 70s.
My father was in the 504th that crossed the Rhine in the spring of '45 and set up in Hitdorf (sp?). His company earned a Presidential Unit Citation for the action.
The one thing I have on all the living 82nd relatives is I have a mustard stain (combat jump). I was in the 1-504 when we jumped into Panama (Operation Just Cause) in '89. It was the first 82nd combat jump since WWII and the largest combat jump since Market Garden. IIRC the only other mass combat jump since then was Operation Northern Delay in 2003 which was primarily 173d troopers.
I suppose my best personal story is jumping out of a C-141 at night at under 500 feet watching tracer fire criss-cross around me. Honestly, the most I can remember about that few seconds is hoping I didn't piss myself and praying my main inflated because making the decision, cutting away, and getting a reserve inflated was near impossible at the altitude. I truly was more worried about getting to the ground in a semi-controlled manner than I was about getting shot. This changed abruptly the second my boots touched the ground.
As combat goes mine in OJC and ODS were tame compared to those that went before and those that came after particular kicking doors in GWOT. Most people wearing a CIB went through a lot worse even if they were never grazed for that little bit of chest candy.
My father was in the 504th that crossed the Rhine in the spring of '45 and set up in Hitdorf (sp?). His company earned a Presidential Unit Citation for the action.
The one thing I have on all the living 82nd relatives is I have a mustard stain (combat jump). I was in the 1-504 when we jumped into Panama (Operation Just Cause) in '89. It was the first 82nd combat jump since WWII and the largest combat jump since Market Garden. IIRC the only other mass combat jump since then was Operation Northern Delay in 2003 which was primarily 173d troopers.
I suppose my best personal story is jumping out of a C-141 at night at under 500 feet watching tracer fire criss-cross around me. Honestly, the most I can remember about that few seconds is hoping I didn't piss myself and praying my main inflated because making the decision, cutting away, and getting a reserve inflated was near impossible at the altitude. I truly was more worried about getting to the ground in a semi-controlled manner than I was about getting shot. This changed abruptly the second my boots touched the ground.
As combat goes mine in OJC and ODS were tame compared to those that went before and those that came after particular kicking doors in GWOT. Most people wearing a CIB went through a lot worse even if they were never grazed for that little bit of chest candy.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 7:10 am to fr33manator
I was not a jumper, but I was in HHQ Company of the 101st Airborne Division as a 52B30. For all you civilians out there, that would be a generator mechanic.
Worked alongside many heroes that were jumpers, coming back from Vietnam.
The social environment at the time was pretty much comparable to the protesting bullshite going on at college campuses today. Only instead of targeting the Jews as villains,like these Hamas-loving lunatics do, the protesters treated soldiers as the bad guys. These heroes I mentioned, were only doing what their country asked them to do, They didn't try like hell to avoid duty by any means possible or high tail it to Canada with many other cowards.
Vietnam vets never got the welcome home treatment that today's soldiers get. Instead they were spit on and looked down at as a murderers, etc.
I didn't just hear or read about these things, I was there...I saw it!
So, if you see a Vietnam veteran, please tell 'em "thanks for your service and welcome home". We owe it to them!
Worked alongside many heroes that were jumpers, coming back from Vietnam.
The social environment at the time was pretty much comparable to the protesting bullshite going on at college campuses today. Only instead of targeting the Jews as villains,like these Hamas-loving lunatics do, the protesters treated soldiers as the bad guys. These heroes I mentioned, were only doing what their country asked them to do, They didn't try like hell to avoid duty by any means possible or high tail it to Canada with many other cowards.
Vietnam vets never got the welcome home treatment that today's soldiers get. Instead they were spit on and looked down at as a murderers, etc.
I didn't just hear or read about these things, I was there...I saw it!
So, if you see a Vietnam veteran, please tell 'em "thanks for your service and welcome home". We owe it to them!
Posted on 5/6/24 at 7:28 am to Lutcher Lad
I wish that there was a way to see who downvotes threads like these.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 7:42 am to EZE Tiger Fan
I think it's a personal thing more than the subject matter. They just don't like me. And the inevitable prose or poetry that will arise, I guess.
I don't care. These stories are awesome. Especially those early parachutes.
And then last night I was reading how usually, the fighters would refuse to shoot parachuting men in the air. Apparently it was a big faux pas in war.
I don't care. These stories are awesome. Especially those early parachutes.
And then last night I was reading how usually, the fighters would refuse to shoot parachuting men in the air. Apparently it was a big faux pas in war.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 8:05 am to EZE Tiger Fan
quote:
I wish that there was a way to see who downvotes threads like these.
Probably a direct descendant of one of the cowards who fled the country. Or a tender hearted liberal who thinks the freedoms we do enjoy in this country was just thrown at us by kind hearted countries who wanted to share their good fortune.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 8:22 am to HerkFlyer
I used to watch the Hercs and 141’s drop troops at Benning many a time while fishing River Bend with my Pop.
Unfortunately in all those drops we saw I can remember two instances of “streamers”….probably late 70’s/early 80’s time frame. One may have deployed reserve in time. Pretty sure the other didn’t make it.
Unfortunately in all those drops we saw I can remember two instances of “streamers”….probably late 70’s/early 80’s time frame. One may have deployed reserve in time. Pretty sure the other didn’t make it.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 9:37 am to jcaz
quote:
Ever since watching Band of Brothers as a kid I have always been obsessed with the paratroopers.
When I was in, I knew a guy in another unit. He was from the Netherlands. He grew up listening to his grandparents and other older folks talking about the paratroopers that landed and how brave and tough they were.
This made such an impression on this guy he immigrated to the US for the sole purpose of becoming an airborne infantryman like the guys he'd heard stories about.
Prior to doing thus, He got a masters degree in physics while in the Netherlands. He was just a super smart guy. He was a good soldier and a really nice guy. He was a bit out of place with the rest of the idiots.
He did 3 or 4 years as a grunt and left to become an officer and fly hero's. I always respected that guy. Talk about following your dreams...
Posted on 5/6/24 at 10:20 am to eitek1
Posted to bookmark
Posted on 5/6/24 at 10:21 am to fr33manator
quote:
My cousin is a jumper. He says it's "a flood of the most primal fear followed by euphoria followed by anxiety to land."
Just a wild concept. To hear him talk about the jumpers doing it in combat zones...those were some hard, hard men.
We haven't done combat jumps since when?
Posted on 5/6/24 at 10:25 am to fr33manator
Spent 3 years in 3/325 at Bragg.
Blue Falcons!
Blue Falcons!
Posted on 5/6/24 at 10:49 am to fr33manator
My great grandfather was in the 101st. Jumped in Normandy and Market Garden. Fought in in the Bulge too. He died in the early 80's so I never met him.
I have his jump wings and some photos from training in Toccoa, GA.
I have his jump wings and some photos from training in Toccoa, GA.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 11:16 am to Stonehenge
My, brother as well.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 11:24 am to Spaceman Spiff
quote:
We haven't done combat jumps since when?
HALO and HAHO jumps are probably carried out fairly regularly but the majority of them probably don't meet the requirements for a "combat jump" since Delta, ST6, the 75th RRC and the like use them for stealth insertions.
AFAIK the there have only been two static line mass combat jumps since the end of WWII. Operation Just Cause in '89 into Panama and Operation Northern Delay in '03 into Northern Iraq.
While there are a lot of Army units that are airborne deliverable all the units set up for mass jumps are in the XVIII Airborne Corp which would be mainly or possibly only the 82nd, 173d and 20th Engineers which is a division, BCT and a brigade.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 11:53 am to Obtuse1
quote:
AFAIK the there have only been two static line mass combat jumps since the end of WWII. Operation Just Cause in '89 into Panama and Operation Northern Delay in '03 into Northern Iraq.
I'm pretty sure there was a jump into Korea. It went poorly.
I was in Desert Storm with an Indian by the name of Bob Gambler. I saw him one day and he was sharpening the edge of his entrenching tool. I said "Gambler, what are you doing". He said "My Dad jumped in Korea. They jumped on an occupied position and it devolved into hand to hand combat. My Dad had sharpened his E-tool and used it as a hacking weapon. He said its the best hand to hand combat tool there is".
Needless to say, I sharpened my E-tool, just in case.
Posted on 5/6/24 at 12:04 pm to fr33manator
Posted on 5/6/24 at 12:05 pm to Spaceman Spiff
quote:
We haven't done combat jumps since when?
Sorry, to clarify, we were talking about the historical jumpers.
Not that they were jumping into combat presently.
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