US Army paratrooper training and skydiving from C-47 transports during World War II is shown. NEW VERSION with improved video & sound: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlJ7R... Public domain film from the Prelinger Archive, slightly cropped to remove uneven edges, with the aspect ratio corrected, and mild video noise reduction applied. The soundtrack was also processed with volume normalization, noise reduction, clipping reduction, and/or equalization (the resulting sound, though not perfect, is far less noisy than the original). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paratrooper Paratroopers are military parachutists — soldiers, marines, and others trained in parachuting into an operation and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. They are used for tactical advantage as they can be inserted into the battlefield from the air, thereby allowing them to be positioned in areas not accessible by land. It is one of the three types of "forced entry" strategic techniques for entering a theater of war; the other two are by land and sea. This ability to enter the battle from different locations allows paratroopers to evade fortifications that are in place to prevent attack from a specific direction, and the possible use of paratroopers forces an army to spread their defences to protect other areas which would otherwise be safe by virtue of the geography. Another common use for paratroopers is to establish an airhead for landing other units. Paratroopers are also trained in conducting drop zones, pickup zones, and landing sites for various aircraft. This doctrine was first practically applied to warfare by the Italians and the Soviets. During World War II, however, the two countries' ground forces were often overstretched, leaving their elite paratroopers to be employed as regular infantry. The Germans then were the first to use paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger) extensively in World War II, and then later by the western Allies. Owing to the limited capacity of cargo aircraft of the period (for example the Ju-52) they rarely, if ever, jumped in groups much larger than 20 from one aircraft. In English language parlance, this load of paratroopers is called a "stick", while any load of soldiers gathered for air movement is known as a "chalk". The terms come from the common use of white chalk on the sides of aircraft and vehicles to mark and update numbers of personnel and equipment being emplaned. In World War II paratroopers most often used parachutes of a round design. These parachutes could be steered to a small degree by pulling on the risers (four straps connecting the paratrooper's harness to the connectors) and suspension lines which attach to the parachute canopy itself. German paratroopers, whose harnesses had only a single riser attached at the back, could not manipulate their parachutes in such a manner. Today, paratroopers still use round parachutes, or round parachutes modified as to be more fully controlled with toggles. The parachutes are usually deployed by a static line. Mobility of the parachutes is often deliberately limited to prevent scattering of the troops when a large number parachute together. Some military exhibition units and special forces units use "ram-air" parachutes, which offer a high degree of maneuverability and are deployed manually (without a static line) from the desired altitude... United States In 1930 the US Army experimented with the concept of parachuting three-man heavy-machine-gun teams. Nothing came of these early experiments. The first US airborne unit began as a test platoon formed from part of the 29th Infantry Regiment, in July 1940. The platoon leader was 1st Lieutenant William T. Ryder, who made his first paratroop jump for the US Military on August 13, 1940 at Lawson Field, Fort Benning, GA from a B-18 Bomber. He was immediately followed by Private William N. King, the first enlisted soldier to make a parachute jump. Although airborne units were not popular with the top U.S. Army commanders, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sponsored the concept, and Major General William C. Lee organized the first paratroop platoon. This led to the Provisional Parachute Group, and then the United States Airborne Command. General Lee was the first commander at the new parachute school at Fort Benning, in west-central Georgia. The US Army regards Major General William C. Lee as the father of the Airborne. The first US Army Combat Jump was near Oran, Algeria, in North Africa on November 8, 1942 conducted by elements of the 509th Parachute Infantry. For the role of paratroopers in the Normandy Landings see American airborne landings in Normandy...
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