Controversial article about parachute operations

[Lastdingo]

OK, then we quit both. This is not going to convince anyone anyway.

The article wasn't great and no better than an ordinary forum post somewhere in the vast internet and it's not worth to argue like this about details.

[RTK]

Check it out. For guys like me and JCustis, this isn't our hobby.

This is our job.

Let go of our ears. We know what we're doing.

[Rifleman]

I never meant for this to turn into a flame war. I just thought it was basically a goofy little article, poorly thought out and articulated, with only one (to me) interesting point: greater possible use of small scale tactical parachute operations.

People were sounding the death knell of the Airborne way before I graduated jump school in 1984. Yet, just post Vietnam we've seen Grenada, Panama, Afghanistan, northern Iraq, and one operation called off in Haiti where the invasion force had already gone "wheels up." Now throw in numerous small operations in Africa conducted by the French, Belgians, Rhodesians, and South Africans. Mass tactical airborne operations are far from "no longer relevant."

Let's Go, Falcons!

[slapout9]

Rifleman, you forgot the Yom Kippor war in Israel where the USSR threatened to send in troops to support Egypt. I was 1 hour away from boarding the aircraft to go to the ME. When the USSR found this out they backed down. It was largest 82nd alert outside of the 1962 missile crisis at the time. This all happened during the backround of the first Arab oil embargos. They were interesting times to say the least.

[Jedburgh]

General Orders No. 10
Headquarters, Department of the Army
Washington, DC, 25 September 2006

UNITS CREDITED WITH ASSAULT LANDINGS

I—GENERAL.

1. In accordance with the provisions of AR 600-8-22, paragraph 7-25, the units listed in section II below were designated by the Senior Army Commander in the theater operations as having participated in a parachute (to include free fall), amphibious, or helicopter assault landing.

2. When entering individual credit on the Enlisted Record Brief or Officer Record Brief, this general orders may be cited as authority for such entries for Soldiers who were present for duty as a member of or attached to a unit listed herein and actually participated in a combat parachute jump, free fall combat jump, helicopter assault landing, combat glider landing, or amphibious assault landing at the place and time during the period indicated. A Soldier must actually exit the aircraft or landing craft to receive assault landing credit.

3. Under the provisions of AR 600-8-22, paragraph 7-25, the designation of a combat assault landing is determined and approved by the Senior Army Commander in the theater of operations. Eligibility of individuals to wear the bronze arrowhead on the designated campaign medal (Global War On Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Iraqi Campaign Medal, or Afghanistan Campaign Medal) is established by this approval. This approval also authorizes eligible Soldiers to affix a bronze service star to their Parachute Badge or the Military Free Fall Parachute Badge, denoting completion of a combat parachute jump or combat free fall jump.

II—LIST. The following units were designated by the Senior Army Commander in the theater of operations as having participated in a parachute (to include freefall), amphibious, or helicopter assault landing.

....

b. Helmand Desert, Afghanistan (Parachute), 1845Z-0014Z hours, 19 October 2001 to 20 October 2001.

75th Ranger Regiment, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Company A, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Company C, Detachment

c. In the vicinity of Alimarden Kan-E-Bagat, Afghanistan (Parachute), 1800Z-2334Z hours, inclusive, 13 November 2001.

75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Company B, Detachment

d. Near Chahar Borjak, Nimruz Province, Afghanistan (Parachute), 1345Z-1445Z hours, inclusive, 25 February 2003.

75th Ranger Regiment, 2d Battalion, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 2d Battalion, Company A, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 2d Battalion, Company C, Detachment
504th Infantry, 3d Battalion, Company B, Detachment

.....

w. Bashur Drop Zone in Northern Iraq (Parachute), 1700Z to 1737Z hours, inclusive, 26 March 2003.

1st Special Forces, 10th Special Forces Group, 2d Special Forces Battalion, Detachment
74th Infantry, Detachment
173d Airborne Brigade, Headquarters and Headquarters Company
173d Support Company
250th Medical Detachment
319th Field Artillery, Battery D
501st Support Company
503d Infantry, 2d Battalion
508th Infantry, 1st Battalion
4th Air Support Operations Squadron (United States Air Force)
86th Contingency Response Group (United States Air Force)

x. Northwestern Desert region of Iraq, in the vicinity of the town of Al Qaim, near the Syrian border (Parachute), 1830Z to 2230Z hours, inclusive, 24 March 2003.

75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Company C
75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Detachment
24th Special Tactics Squadron, Detachment (United States Air Force)

y. At H1 airfield in western Iraq, west of the Haditha Dam and the town of Haditha (Parachute), 1835Z to 1200Z hours, 28 and 29 March 2003.

27th Engineer Battalion, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Detachment
75th Ranger Regiment, 3d Battalion, Company A
24th Special Tactics Squadron, Detachment (United States Air Force)

z. Southeastern region of Afghanistan (Free Fall), 1735Z to 1800Z hours, inclusive, 3 July 2004.

75th Ranger Regiment, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Regimental Reconnaissance Detachment, Team 3

[120mm]

Not that I WANT to get "piled on", but someone has to do it, I suppose, to what extent do you suppose that airborne operations are conducted because of airborne's presence and influence within the Army as a whole? I would suggest that especially in the case of OIF, airborne ops "may" be conducted in order to say that airborne ops were conducted.

I would suggest that while Airborne Operations are a valid, and possibly even vital tool in the Army "toolbox", that Airborne, and Airborne Operations wield an influence way out of proportion of their/its importance. And this is not necessarily Good For The Army. It's kind of like a guy who's only tool is an Airborne Brigade; Everything starts looking like a combat drop.

To be sure, Airborne does a good job of IO campaign within the Army, and one of their key tactics is to make Airborne wings into a merit badge for young officers. Where their influence becomes less of an "interesting" thing, and more of a "seriously damages the Army" thing, is when the Airborne mafia tries to forces "C-130 deployable" on each and every piece of equipment's specification chart. This reduces equipment capability, adds unnecessary cost, and hardly ever results in a "C-130 deployable" piece of equipment.

I am now digging my hole and putting up 18 inches of overhead cover in preparation for the inevitable counter-battery fire.

[Steve Blair]

Actually I think this is a valid tangent question. I don't know enough about the more current drops to comment on them, but the drops during the latter part of the Korean War and certainly the drop of a battalion of the 173rd during Junction City in Vietnam have been called unnecessary by many historians. The drop in Vietnam is especially worthy of note in this regard, since they lifted the remainder of the brigade in by helicopter later the same day.

The airborne mafia has been a fixture in the Army since the end of World War II. I happen to think that airborne forces have an important place in any army's toolkit, but I also do think that it's easy to exaggerate their importance and too easy for some to misuse them or assume they're capable of things that they are not.