US Airborne Divisions in the ETO 1944–45

by Zaloga, Steven J.

• ISBN13: 9781846031182
• ISBN10: 1846031184
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-03-27
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Summary

The delivery of entire divisions to battlefields behind enemy lines by parachute and glider was a unique feature of World War II. This book covers the mature phase of these operations from the tactical failures of night-time drops at D-Day, through the daylight jumps at Arnhem and the Rhine, to the end of the war. Paying special attention to often overlooked aspects of airborne operations, Battle Orders 25 gives a detailed account of the successes and failures of the US Airborne divisions within Europe, focusing on their organizational structure during 1944-45, and covering two of the world's finest units: the 82d and 101st 'Screaming Eagles.'

Author Biography

Steven J. Zaloga was born in 1952, received his BA in history from Union College, and his MA from Columbia University. He has published numerous books and articles dealing with modern military technology, especially armored vehicle development. His main area of interest is military affairs in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe in World War II, and he has also written extensively on American armored forces. The author lives in Maryland, USA.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 4
Combat mission	p. 7
Preparation for war: doctrine and training	p. 9
Lessons learned
Training
Unit organization	p. 16
Parachute infantry regiment
Glider infantry regiment
Airborne artillery Airborne engineer battalion
Airborne anti-aircraft battalion
Airborne tank battalion
Airborne weapons and equipment	p. 45
Troop carrier organization
Airborne tactics: the navigation problem
Command and control	p. 54
Tactics	p. 58
Operation Neptune: night drop over Normandy
Operation Dragoon: the champagne campaign
Operation Market: paving the way to a bridge too far
Operation Varsity: bouncing the Rhine
Assessing the combat record	p. 84
Unit status	p. 86
82nd Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
17th Airborne Division
13th Airborne Division
1st Provisional Airborne Task Force (Seventh Army Provisional Airborne Division)
Further reading	p. 92
Official studies and reports
Books
Glossary	p. 94
Index	p. 95
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