Categories timeline: US Airborne (1940-1945)
18 Janvier 1945
101st Airborne Division: transfer to Moselle
On 18 January 1945, after a very hard and deadly campaign in Belgium, the 101st Airborne Division was transferred to France in the Sarrebourg sector in Moselle.
Back to the listDecember 16 1944
Battle of the Bulge
Faced with numerous setbacks, Hitler launched a large-scale offensive to halt the advance of Allied troops in the West. This highly ambitious operation was given the name ‘Wacht am Rhein’ and was intended to enable German troops to break through the forest of the Belgian Ardennes, cross the Meuse and seize the port of Antwerp. Postponed several times, the offensive was finally launched on 16 December 1944 in the heart of the Ardennes forest. In the first days of the offensive, a force of more than 250,000 men overwhelmed Lieutenant General Courtney Hodges’ 1st US Army.
General Eisenhower decided to send to the rescue the XVIIIth US Airborne Corps, which he held in operational reserve. On 17 December 1944, Major General Ridgway was informed of the German breakthrough and urgently decided to send all available men to Belgium. Early on 18 December, the 82nd Airborne embarked on trucks, followed in the afternoon by the 101st Airborne. The All-Americans landed in the Werbomont sector, while the Screaming Eagles took up positions around Bastogne.
Back to the listNovember 29 1944
The 11th Airborne Division in the Philippines
On 5 and 6 December 1944, 241 paratroopers from the 511th PIR of the 11th Airborne Division were dropped near Burauen on the island of Leyte in the Philippine archipelago.
Back to the listDuring November 1944
82nd et 101st Airborne Division: ordered to rest
November 1944: The American paratroopers are ordered to rest and remain as reserve units in France near Reims, at the Suippes and Sissonne camps for the 82nd Airborne and at Mourmelon for the 101st Airborne Division.
Major General Maxwell D. Taylor from the 101st is called back to the US and is replaced by his deputy Brigadier General Anthony C. McAuliffe.
Back to the listEnd of October 1944
Brigadier General James M. Gavin receives his second Major General star
End of October 1944: Brigadier General (1 star) James M. Gavin receives his second Major General star (2 stars).
Back to the listSeptember 17 1944
Operation Market Garden
On 17 September 1944, as part of Operation Market-Garden, 14,019 paratroopers and 478 gliders from the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions attached to the 1st Allied Airborne Army parachuted into Nijmegen and Eindhoven in Holland.
In early September 1944, Field Marshal Montgomery proposed a plan to end the war before Christmas. This new large-scale operation involved bypassing the Siegfried Line to allow Allied troops to penetrate the heart of Germany. The operation began on 17 September. The first phase, ‘Market’, consisted of a massive parachute drop of airborne divisions and gliders. The second phase, ‘Garden’, was a ground assault by the British 30th Corps. The 82nd US Airborne’s mission was to jump south of Nijmegen and seize the Grave and Waal river bridges. The 101st US Airborne was to jump north of Eindhoven and seize the bridges at Son and Veghel, while the 1st British Airborne, reinforced by the 1st Polish Parachute Brigade, was to jump near the Arnhem bridges and seize the Oosterbeek railway bridge.
Back to the listAugust 27 1944
Ridgway at the head of the XVIII Airborne Corps
August 27 1944: Major General Matthew B. Ridgway is named chief of the XVIIIth Airborne Corps, composed by the 82nd, the 101st and the 17th Airborne Divisions, and then by the 13th Airborne Division, in 1945.
Brigadier General James M. Gavin takes command of the 82nd Airborne Division.
The 507th PIR becomes attached to the 17th Airborne Division until March 1st 1945
Back to the listAugust 15 1944
Operation Dragoon
On 15 August 1944, the 1st Airborne Task Force under Major General Robert T. FREDERICK dropped 5,607 American paratroopers, 300 Rupert dolls and hundreds of gliders in Provence as part of Operation Dragoon.
To ease the pressure on Operation Overlord in Normandy, SHAEF planned a second landing of Allied forces in the South of France. Initially called ‘Anvil’ and scheduled for 6 June 1944, this operation was postponed due to a lack of resources. There were not enough landing craft or aircraft available to carry out two large-scale operations simultaneously. The Allies thought that opening up a second front in France could cause the German defensive system to collapse. General Eisenhower therefore insisted on postponing the operation until 15 August 1944, under the code name ‘Dragoon’. The objectives were to capture the ports of Toulon and Marseille, then to move up the Rhône valley and link up with the troops coming from the west.
Back to the listAugust 2nd 1944
Activation of the 1st Allied Airborne Army
On 2 August 1944, activation of the 1st Allied Airborne Army under Lieutenant General Lewis H. BRERETON, bringing together the :
XVIII US Airborne Corps, British 1st Airborne Corps and IX Troop Carrier Command.
Back to the listJuly 13 through 14 1944
The 82nd Airborne Division returns to England
On 13 and 14 July 1944, the units of the 82nd Airborne Division returned to their base camps in England. The division was put to rest, replacing its dead, caring for its wounded and preparing for the next mission.
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