"British Paras Question" Topic
3 Posts
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| Grelber | 18 Dec 2025 8:43 p.m. PST |
I had understood British parachutists dropped out a hole in the bottom of the airplane. This sounds reasonable if you are dropping in a couple lads to support the French resistance, but likely to spread the company, battalion or larger formations, all over the place during a night drop, which they did, of course, in Normandy. So, was the British approach for large drops and small, or just for smaller night drops using bombers? Grelber |
| Martin Rapier | 18 Dec 2025 11:39 p.m. PST |
The hole thing was pretty much training only, and early days of the parachute force when bombers were used. There isnt a hole in the bottom of a Dakota to jump through. |
 enfant perdus  | 19 Dec 2025 7:20 a.m. PST |
The ventral hole was on the Albemarle and the late versions of the Stirling, after it had been withdrawn as a frontline bomber. With the Albemarle, it was principally employed during training for the paras and for insertion of SOE, Jedburgh teams, etc. It could only carry 10, so its utility was limited. IIRC the only significant combat drop was Overlord where some of the Pathfinders went in Albemarles ahead of the main force. The drops from Stirlings (aside from SOE missions) were ancillary to their glider tug role. They had both the power and the internal capacity to carry men and supplies, if necessary, while simultaneously towing the gliders. I can't swear it was thus in every case, but I believe the jumpers in these cases tended to come from the attached Arms and Services. |
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