Eighteen glider pilots were killed and another eighty were wounded or injured in crashes. 2nd armored division ww2 rostermary calderon quintanilla 27 februari, 2023 . Upon hitting the ground, Coutts and his men came under intense small arms fire. Operations of Company C, 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division, in the attack on Flamierge, Belgium, 4 January 1945 Thinking Flamierge lost, they returned with their report. . Ridgway, however, was not eager to take on this new task. Military government duties began 12 April, and active contact with the enemy ceased 18 April 1945. As a result, Allied planners cancelled Choker II and Naples II, as well as Operation Arena, an even more ambitious plan that called for an airborne drop of several divisions 100 miles east of the Rhine, followed by an airlift of several conventional infantry divisions. As such it did not take part in the first two large-scale airborne operations conducted by the Allies, Operation Husky and Operation Neptune, transferring to Britain only after the end of Operation Overlord. [28] During its initial advance the division engaged German forces, including infantry and armour, in an attempt to secure a narrow, high-rimmed road to the north-west of Bastogne; during a battle that lasted three days the division suffered nearly 1,000 casualties attempting to hold what the division's official historian labeled "Dead Man's Ridge". The 17th Airborne Division was activated on 15 April, 1943 at Camp Mackall, North Carolina, with a cadre from the 101st Airborne Division. We seek to educate future Americans to fully appreciate the sacrifices that generations of American Soldiers have made to safeguard the freedoms of this Nation. Activated 20 July 1942 at Fort Benning, Georgia. Despite the intense fire, the artillerymen assembled several of their guns within a half hour and were soon firing at German targets. 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment 17th Airborne Division Artillery 680th Glider Field Artillery Battalion . Isadore Jachman one of three Jewish men to receive the Medal of Honor for actions during World War II. Once on the ground, the combats between the 513th and Furthermore, the plan called for the airborne troops to land within range of Allied artillery support on the west bank of the Rhine, and the areas around the landing zones would be hit by heavy bombers prior to the drop. 14 September Isadore S. Jachman - 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division - Near Flamierge, Belgium on January 4th 1945. US Army WWII 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment 17th Airborne Division Varsity, 1932 Original Copy Schematics,etc. November 1943 then to Camp Mackall, still in North Carolina on The troopers of the 17th Division hopped aboard the British Churchill tanks, rode into Dorsten 14 miles east of Wesel, and advanced another 17 miles. [43], The 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, under the command of Colonel Edson Raff, was the lead assault formation for the 17th Airborne Division, and was consequently the first U.S. airborne unit to land as part of Operation Varsity. 101st Airborne Division Cook Jack On the night of 23 March, elements of Dempseys Second Army began crossing the Rhine under the cover of darkness. During this fight, Staff Sergeant I.S. Anderson is the son of Mr. & Mrs. Vester Anderson of Chicago, Illinois. Dempsey promised Ridgway that the link-up with Second Army would occur quickly, with two divisions reaching the airborne forces in no more than forty-eight hours. wqYr#Cn~IU&67?*7
!7mnXjKa}g^Ytqo[~.v>7/Xt]o9Eg3pX@>7^3}]nnt?k>,h]Univc#LqQ.jV@y>ooo0/q0Ymyps+dU n!WAy>F|Nqn\ara`#U0n9z7 As a result, the first troops from the 1st Battalion, 507th Parachute Infantry, which included COL Raff, the regimental commander, landed nearly two miles away from their planned drop zone. One battalion reached the Issel River, the easternmost of the first days objectives. It moved from Fort Benning to Fort Bragg before being assigned to Camp Mackall, North Carolina, in January 1944, but was transferred to the Tennessee Maneuver Area and, in March 1944, assigned to the 17th Airborne Division, commanded by Major General William "Bud" Miley. In his wartime memoir, A Soldiers Story, GEN Bradley contended that the Germans had diverted the bulk of their forces east of the Rhine to the Remagen bridgehead, leaving weak forces around Wesel. Armored Division in Bastogne. The division then advanced through Northern Germany until the end of World War II, when it briefly undertook occupation duties in Germany before shipping back to the United States. When two German tanks broke out of the dense fog and threatened to overrun the 513th's positions, Staff Sergeant Isadore S "Izzy" Jachman recovered a bazooka from a fallen comrade and single-handedly engaged the two Panzers. To help to reinforce Bastogne, Don A. IX Troop Carrier Command lost another 41 killed, 153 wounded, and 163 missing. The defending forces were to try to defend the airport and the surrounding area and repel the airborne assault. The 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment was activated on 26 December 1942 at Fort Benning, and attached to the 13th Airborne 13 August 1943. 513th PIR Calhoun and a group of the Company E under the orders of 1st "WH^XgEiEtnQ[S,syA/ikSk%>.T)l]=~sEpKT^?os-v?uUm^vJG_:]?Trg7/#WIn>ksbo9G8'}bv? Ridgway later reported that the heaviest losses during Varsity came during the first thirty minutes of the 513ths drop. The 101st Airborne Division earned a Presidential Unit Citation for its stubborn defense of Bastogne, Belgium, and forever etched itself in Army lore. 328th . It consisted of cadres of the 189th and 190th Glider Infantry and the 513th Parachute Infantry Regiments and supporting units. HqxR:mv67*e1q-NwPp Carried out at night, paratroopers from both the veteran 82d Airborne Division and the un-blooded 101st Airborne Division (Screaming Eagles), along with the British 6th Airborne Division, were scattered far and wide over the Norman countryside. After being withdrawn from the front lines in February 1945, the 17th Airborne Division was bivouacked at a dozen airfields around Paris. After the Normandy invasion the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment . n]m\mC|j\G4Oys{nrhg[jn\'`;^ky39w^`]>CIz8 Operation Varsity was a successful large-scale airborne operation. Planning for possible Allied airborne assaults across the Rhine actually began shortly before the Battle of the Bulge. Ward Ryan on April 9, 1945. 1 Presidential Distinguished Unit Citations, 1 Presidential Distinguished Unit Citations. A favorite regimental pastime was a game called "Matching the thirteen in 513," which consisted of downing thirteen beers in a single sitting. During - $20.78. %PDF-1.4 chosen area for the attack would go through nearby Wesel, in the North of The drops to the American forces were scattered and only fifty percent of the air dropped bundles were recovered. replaced by the 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment) 139th . has been used as the occupying army in Germany from Find 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 17th Airborne Division unit information, patches, operation history, veteran photos and more on TogetherWeServed.com. [44] At 10:00 on the morning of the 24th, the first Allied airborne units began to land on German soil on the eastern bank of the Rhine, some thirteen hours after the Allied assault had begun. The resultant failure rate was accordingly high, but there was never a shortage of candidates, especially for the American divisions, as the rate of pay was much higher than that of an ordinary infantryman. It was back to the United States on Furthermore, the C-46 was faster and had doors on either side of the cabin, allowing troops to exit the aircraft quickly. The planes lacked self-sealing fuel tanks; if a fuel tank was punctured, high octane aviation gas would stream along the wings towards the fuselage. Lieutenant Colonel George V. Millett, Jr was given command. Copy N60, Headquarters XVIII Corps Airborne, Office of the Commander. In addition, nearly 1,000 Allied fighters escorted the transports. RCA Victor Radio Model RE-81 Service manual, Set of 1 Is it Wrong To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon Anime Acrylic Keychain Hestia. trained in The 513th formed part of the 17th Airborne Division and participated in the European Campaign, fighting in the latter stages of the Battle of the Bulge in January 1945 and parachuted into Germany in Operation Varsity in March, in the largest airborne drop . The unit is a member of the World War II Historical Reenactment Society, (HRS) a tax-exempt, non-profit, non-political organization . The 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment was constituted on 26 December 1942 and assigned to the 13th Airborne Division. [49] However, despite this inaccuracy the paratroopers swiftly rallied and aided the British glider-borne troops who were landing simultaneously, eliminating several German artillery batteries which were covering the area. The entire regiment was meant to be dropped in drop zone W, a clearing two miles north of Wesel; however, excessive ground haze confused the pilots of the transport aircraft carrying the 507th, and as such when the regiment dropped it split into two-halves. the very last airborne operation of the Second World War, but the first one for While the weather was sunny and bright, the drop zones were obscured by haze caused by the massive smoke screen covering the river crossings and Allied artillery. Coutts stick managed to hook up one wounded soldier and shove him out of the plane before the rest followed. We'll email you when there are new posts here. Military Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. The Diersfordter Forest had been cleared of enemy troops, and the roads along which the Germans might have moved reinforcements against the advance had been cut by airborne troops. [54] In terms of casualties, the 17th Airborne Division suffered a total of 1,346 casualties in the space of five days, between 24 and 29 March, when Operation Plunder came to an end. [50] During its attempts to secure its objectives, the regiment also gained a third Medal of Honor for the division when Private First Class Stuart S. Stryker posthumously received the award after leading a charge against a German machine gun nest, creating a distraction to allow the rest of his platoon to capture the fortified position the machine gun was situated in. I believe that airborne troops should be reorganized in self-contained units, comprising infantry, artillery, and special services, all about the strength of a regimental combat team[] To employ at any time and place a whole division would require a dropping over such an extended area that I seriously doubt that a division commander could regain control and operate the scattered forces as one unit. from the 13th Airborne to be definitively assigned to the 17th on 464th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion, 466th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion, 550th Infantry Airborne Battalion (attached). Between The 513th TWS is the largest online community of Veterans existing today and is a powerful Veteran locator. The airborne [19] Due to the success of the units of the 11th Airborne Division during the exercise, the divisional-sized airborne force was deemed to be effective and was allowed by Eisenhower to remain. [20] It finished its training on 27 March 1944,[21] and transferred to Camp Forrest on 24 March 1944. The C-46 could carry twice as many paratroopers as the C-47 Dakota (thirty-six, an entire platoon, versus eighteen). coincide then with an airborne operation carried out by the XVIII Airborne [60], 17th Airborne Division shoulder sleeve insignia, Army Battle Casualties and Nonbattle Deaths, Final Report (Statistics and Accounting Branch, Office of the Adjutant General, 1 June 1953), Last edited on 23 February 2023, at 20:06, breaking through Allied lines and rapidly advancing towards Antwerp, "Operation Varsity: The Last Airborne Deployment of World War II", "Operation Varsity: Allied Airborne Assault Over The Rhine", "Medal of Honor Recipients World War II (M-S)", "Medal of Honor Recipients World War II (G-L)", "Order of Battle of the US Army - WWII - ETO - 17th Airborne Division", "Airborne Operations During World War II", "CHAPTER XXI The Battle for the Rhineland", "Medal of Honor Recipients World War II (G-L)", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=17th_Airborne_Division_(United_States)&oldid=1141184661, 155th Airborne Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion, 17th Parachute Maintenance Company (assigned 1 March 45), 464th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion (75mm) (assigned 1 March 1945), 466th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion (75mm), 680th Glider Field Artillery Battalion (75mm), 681st Glider Field Artillery Battalion (75mm), Special Troops (Headquarters activated 1 Mar 45), Headquarters Company, 17th Airborne Division, Reconnaissance Platoon (assigned 1 March 45), 811th Tank Destroyer Battalion (attached 1727 January 1945), This page was last edited on 23 February 2023, at 20:06. regiment reached the front, they were taken under the shootings of the mortars. Jake C. The 680ths losses, however, were heavynineteen killed and fifty-six wounded. This operation, which got to such an advanced stage that plans had been created and divisional commanders briefed, called for the 17th and 82nd Airborne divisions, along with a brigade from the British 6th Airborne Division, to be dropped in daylight in and around Berlin to capture the city. [26] On Christmas Day, the division was attached to George Patton's U.S. Third Army and ordered to assume a thirty-mile long defensive position that ran along the Meuse River near Charleville. several prisoners. The website will be updated to add information and documents related to the 17th Airborne. Gadd precisely where and when the 2nd British army would be ready to force a By the end of the day, the 680th had captured 150 Germans and two batteries of enemy artillery, and provided artillery support for the 17th Airborne, earning the battalion a Presidential Unit Citation. While suffering heavy casualties, the 194th took 1,150 prisoners, eliminated fifty artillery pieces, and destroyed ten tanks. The first American glider troops (COL Pierces 194th Glider Infantry Regiment and LTC Joseph W. Keatings 681st Glider Field Artillery Battalion in double towed gliders) begin arriving at around 1030, with most reaching the correct landing zones despite the haze and heavy ground fire. 17th Airborne Division. ABMC Headquarters 2300 Clarendon Blvd, Suite 500 Arlington, VA 22201 Phone: 703-584-1501 They had 13 children, and Ernest Levasseur worked as a day laborer in the lumber industry to support his family. While historians have never agreed on the origins of the cultural phobia, the paratroopers didn't spend much time dwelling on it. LTG Brereton assigned his deputy, MG Richard N. Gale, who also commanded the British 1st Airborne Corps, as the chief planner and commander of the operation. In early February 1945, residents in Williamstown, Pennsylvania learned that yet another son had perished overseas. Flight and tactical training continued and night maneuvers were added to the training schedule. By 1400, the 194th Combat Team, eager to prove that glider troops were on par with the vaunted paratroopers, had accomplished most of its assigned missions. Dalton Tom Chin K. 1993 - 'Battling Buzzards' : The Odyssey of the 517th Parachute Regimental Combat Team 1943-1945 by Gerald Astor; Paperback, Hardcover. He had successfully led his corps in conventional operations during the Battle of the Bulge and was hoping to take command of an army if the opportunity arose. Curtis At 1458, patrols from the British 1st Commando Brigade marching out of Wesel reached elements of the 17th Airborne, marking the first juncture of airborne and amphibious units in Plunder/Varsity. 513TH PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT Xavier Van Daele Abadie Ray M Abel Francis N Abney Grover C Abney James E Abrahamian Armen Pvt Abshire Curtis J Accomado Paul J Ackerman John W Acosta Dan G Acres Willie Acton Alfon G 32857365 Adamkoski Franck Jr Pfc DOW 17/01/1945Belgique Ardennes American Cemetery, Neupre, Belgique, Plot: A Row: 7 Grave: 10 took part in maneuver in Tennessee on March 4, 1944. Peters died shortly after from his wounds and was subsequently awarded the Medal of Honor. While waiting for D-Day for Varsity, still planned for 24 March, the soldiers of the 17th rigorously trained and readied equipment and weapons for their upcoming mission. Attached units supported the 17th Airborne Division at some point during the war, but were not organic to the division. By the early afternoon, Ridgway crossed the Rhine in an amphibious tracked vehicle and reached Mileys headquarters at 1526. Rank: Staff Sergeant Conflict/Era: World War II Unit/Command: Company B, 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division; Military Service Branch: U.S. Army Medal of Honor Action Date: January 4, 1945 Medal of Honor Action Place: Flamierge, Belgium The C-46 carrying the 513ths commander, COL Coutts, was hit by long-range anti-aircraft fire and was ablaze as it crossed the Rhine. The The two airborne divisions would be dropped behind German lines, with their objective to land around Wesel and disrupt enemy defences in order to aid the advance of the British Second Army. Another airborne unit, the 11th Airborne Division, fought in the New Guinea, Leyte, and Luzon campaigns. We were established in 1983 as a member-based, charitable 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. But meanwhile, Pattons 3rd FOR SALE! facebook; twitter; linkedin; pinterest; FOP NEW YORK STATE NYS SUPERIOR COURT BRASS CARD PBA FAMILY MEMBER FRIEND. Unlike Sicily and Normandy, the airborne drops in support of the Rhine crossings would commence after the amphibious operations (Operation Plunder) had begun. The Army Historical Foundation is the designated official fundraising organization for the National Museum of the United States Army. [38] As such the 13th Airborne Division was dropped from the operational plan, primarily because it had no combat experience, whereas the 6th Airborne Division had participated in Operation Tonga, the British airborne landings during Operation Neptune, and the 17th had seen combat in the Ardennes. The 82d Airborne Division played an important role in holding the northern shoulder of the Bulge, while the inexperienced 17th Airborne Division was rushed to the front from England and took part in the Allied counteroffensive. England. The 513th The division came under the XXII Corps on 24 April. Thee 513th Parachute Infantry . With the 87th Infantry Division on its left flank, the division advanced towards German positions with the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment and 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment forming the division's assault element; the 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment and the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment moved behind these two regiments to deal with expected German armoured counter-attacks against them. On 23 December the weather cleared and the division was finally flown to France by emergency night flights. The Army Historical Foundation is the designated official fundraising organization for the National Museum of the United States Army. received the Medal of Honor on a posthumous basis. The division was originally composed of the 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment, activated on 11 January 1943 at Fort Benning, the 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment, and the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment. On 7 March, Montgomerys massive Rhine crossing was unexpectedly upstaged when elements of the U.S. 9th Armored Division, part of the First Armys III Corps, seized the Ludendorff Bridge, the last intact bridge spanning the Rhine, at Remagen. The regiment participated in the latter stages of the Battle of the Bulge and parachuted into Germany in Operation Varsity. To avoid heavy casualties such as those incurred by the British 1st Airborne Division during Operation Market Garden, both Allied airborne divisions would be dropped only after Allied ground units had secured crossings over the Rhine; the two divisions would also be dropped only a relatively short distance behind German lines, to ensure that reinforcements would be able to link up with them after only a few hours and they would not be isolated. At the same time, the 17th, 82d, and 101st Airborne Divisions were pulled from the line and returned to their former bases near Reims for rest and refitting prior to the jumps over the Rhine. One drawback for Varsity planners was that only 75 C-46s would be available, and most soldiers would still be carried by the older, slower C-47s. After it had captured the town of Espeler on 26 January the entire division was withdrawn from the front and transported by truck to Luxembourg, effectively ending its participation in the Ardennes campaign. Banta MJu[bG8wML*UTjk9J}mM xgN$1q~c|_"cn'p?KEN}YRzZ7L!l@RWHjn)y*oY8V_\ceBqR|vnIw}y0msO
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#uX5_6ltu)>t>M!4fW{X3. H Force, 5307th Composite Unit 593 . *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. In April 1945, units of the 513th were carried into action around Munster by British tanks from the Guards Armoured Division. In the weeks before the operation, the soldiers of the 513th made a number of practice jumps from C-46s to familiarize themselves with the new aircraft. The regiment dropped with the rest of the division into Germany near Wesel in its only combat drop. German flak took a heavy toll on the 295 tow aircrafttwelve were shot down, another fourteen were forced to make crash landings, and 126 suffered heavy damage. The Armys first foray into airborne warfare came with Operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa, on 8 November 1942, when the 2d Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry, dropped into Algeria, seizing the Tafarquay Airport near Oran. When operation MARKET GARDEN was set off, the 17th the 513th PIR. In the heavy fighting after landing during Operation Varsity, PFC Stuart S. Stryker saw his unit's exposed position and ran to a forward position. [7] There were 250 feet (76m) and 34 feet (10m) towers built from which prospective airborne troops would jump off of to simulate landing by parachute, lengthy forced marches and practice jumps from transport aircraft; to pause in the doorway of an aircraft during a practice jump resulted in an automatic failure for the candidate. In March 1945, the division participated in its first, and only, airborne operation, dropping alongside the British 6th Airborne Division as a part of Operation Varsity, where it gained three more Medals of Honor. 23 December 44. Following the "Broad Front Approach" laid out by General Eisenhower, it was decided to attempt to breach the Rhine in several areas. [30][31], After participating in the Battle of the Bulge, the division was moved behind the front-lines as a reserve formation and theater reserve, whilst the Allies continued their advance towards the German interior. [32] Eclipse and several other similarly ambitious airborne operations came to nothing, but in February the division finally received word that it would be involved in an Allied airborne operation to cross the River Rhine in support of the Anglo-Canadian 21st Army Group that would take place during March. 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment: Company D: Curtis Gadd: 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment . By approximately 1530, the 513th Combat Team had reached all of its objectives, taking over 1,500 Germans prisoner in the process. Kozlowski Frederick at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts the same year. A month later, on 2 March 1942, the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) was activated at Fort Benning, GA from the 502nd Parachute Infantry Battalion. beginning of February, the situation on the front made it possible to evaluate During The 513th formed part of the 17th Airborne Division and participated in the European Campaign, fighting in the latter stages of the Battle of the Bulge in January 1945 and parachuted into Germany in Operation Varsity in March, in the largest airborne drop . He received a Purple Heart but ignored a doctors advice to have the fragment removed and carried it with him for the rest of his life. If you served in 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 17th Airborne Division, Join TWS for free to reconnect with service friends. [46] En route to the drop zone, the transport aircraft containing the regiment had the misfortune to pass through a belt of German anti-aircraft weapons, losing twenty-two of the C-46 transport aircraft and damaging a further thirty-eight. January 5, 1943: -. The day we were activated we had 13 paratroopers jump from a plane numbered 13, at 1,300 feet at 1300 hours.". Again, German anti-aircraft fire took a heavy toll on the 240 low flying B-24s, shooting down fifteen and badly damaging 104. Ridgway had blamed much of Market-Gardens failure on Dempseys lack of aggressiveness in pushing British ground forces forward. Montgomery and British Second Army commander LTG Miles Dempsey, who would spearhead the amphibious crossing, drew up a plan using three airborne divisions: MG Eric Bols British 6th and two American divisions, MG Elbridge G. Chapmans 13th and MG William (Bud) Mileys 17th. Many soldiers wounded during the flight to the drop zones chose to jump and take their chances rather than remain in the dangerously flawed aircraft. position of the 513th, S/Sgt Isadore S. Izzy Jachman took a The division was composed of the following units:[56], During World War II the division and its members were awarded the following awards:[59], The 17th Airborne Division was relieved of occupation duty on 14 June by British troops, and the division was split up and its component units attached to other airborne divisions, either to the 82nd Airborne Division in Berlin or to the 13th Airborne Division which was preparing to participate in the invasion of Japan. Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! The Curtis Plunder envisioned the British Second Army, under Lieutenant-General Miles Dempsey and the U.S. Ninth Army under Lieutenant General William Simpson crossing the Rhine at Rees, Wesel, and an area south of the Lippe Canal. started to burn. These standards are not meant to deter prospective members, but to outline the expectations that we have of our membership. It moved from Fort Benning to Fort Bragg before being assigned to Camp Mackall, North Carolina in January 1944, but was transferred to the Tennessee Maneuver Area and assigned to the 17th Airborne Division in March 1944. Edwin Cottrel, P47 pilot, 493rd Fighter Squadron, 48th Fighter . The 507th Parachute Infantry, which had taken part in the drop into Normandy on D-Day while assigned to the 82d Airborne, was commanded by COL Edson Raff. The 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) is established at Camp Toccoa, GA under thirty-six-year-old LTC Orin D. Haugen. German fire took a heavy toll among the battalions officers, and many artillerymen were forced to fight as infantry while others assembled their 75mm pack howitzers and gathered ammunition and equipment. arrived The 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment was activated on 26 December 1942 at Fort Benning, and attached to the 13th Airborne 13 August 1943. [26] However, while the other two airborne divisions were able to immediately make their way to the Ardennes as they were already stationed in France, bad weather prevented the 17th from flying in from where the division was stationed in Britain for several days. Unidentified unit means that the veteran's survey indicated . The troopers collected over 300 prisoners, including a number of senior officers from the German LXXXVI Corps and 84th Infantry Division. Oliver Harris, HQ/513th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division. the very last airborne operation of the Second World War, but the first one for Coutts' 513th Parachute Infantry was assigned to the new aircraft. Robert White, HQ/507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division. Airborne was back to its base in Chalons-sur-Marne, France, on % HQ Company, 194th Glider Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division 187. [39] Once these objectives were taken, the airborne troops would consolidate their positions and await the arrival of Allied ground forces, defending the territory captured against the German forces known to be in the area. For those watching below, including GEN Eisenhower and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, it was an impressive display of Allied might. . [30] Between 19 and 26 January, the division broke through German lines and captured several towns before linking up with elements of the British 51st Infantry Division. By 1500, resistance in the castle ended after Company G cleared the structure room by room. When Germany unconditionally surrendered on 7 May 1945, the division was conducting occupation duties in northern Germany. [49] Once the German troops in the area had been eliminated, a combined force of American and British airborne troops stormed Hamminkeln and secured that town. The daredevil feline was incorporated into the regiment's insignia, which featured a wide-eyed Disney-esque black cat with pants bloused into the top of its jump boots. [18] The transport aircraft were divided into four groups, each taking off from a different airfield in the Carolinas, with two groups dropping paratroopers and two towing gliders, and between them deployed 4,800 airborne troops in the first wave.