ARmy Rumour SErvice

Originally Posted by greenronnie

As a side note, has anyone noticed how similar the original AAC cap badge looks to the Fallschirmjager eagle?

Me too, I was thinking that when i was reading the thread earlier:



-and the West German one for comparison as mentioned to me by a former German para of post WW2 who saw my book on Fallschirmjaeger and said the badge was the same without the swastika:

Nice one Guns.

Scalieback, I was referring more to the Luftwaffe Eagle worn on the smock by the Fallschirmjager. I know it doesn't have the surround, but it's quite a similar design.

Cheers for the more sensible comments lads!

Originally Posted by sirbhp

actually if you read your history books they arrived to see two sappers having a crafty fag afor the action started .

Yes that's true. There is a thread on here started by a Sapper who was on the D day landings he said the same.

D. DAY NORMANDY. ARNHEM. SAPPERS. Sword Beach to Bremen.

My Granddad was not very complimentary about the Paras he met during his time. He had to go and help train some (between Italy and his holiday to France) and felt that the initial successes of the Germans had blinded people to what parachuting could achieve. Also he felt that they were being asked in a short time to train sub-SAS troopers but with a not so good selection processes. He said that the lads he had where those that the COs and RSMs were happy to let "volunteer", which was a bit rich coming from him as he only ended up in the SAS as he had been adrift so the RSM put him on puns - one of which was to drive a Lt Col David Sterling around Cairo (he was one of two blokes in the Scots Guards Btn that could drive). He drove said officer twice and on the second time thought that as he had wheels, a pass to be out and a bit of money he should take advantage of that. The CO of the Btn, whose car it was, was less impressed when informed by the MPs of a situation. Granddad became the RSMs new best friend as they spent so much time together, he painting rocks white the RSM checking them. So when he drove David Sterling again he asked if he needed a driver. Next thing he knew he was jumping off the back of a truck at 20 mph to practice parachute landings.

His opinion was that mass drops where pointless as you lost the element of surprise, took huge casualties and then had to supply them. He was very much of the discrete get in get out.

The engineers landed with the Oxs and Bucks LI in thier gliders, not before everyone else. Obviously to remove the demolition charges.

The Commandos turned up at 1pm on D Day.

Guns, I'd agree that the smaller scale Para drops were more successful, such as Bruneval. However that wasn't down to the individuals in the units concerned. It was down to bungling planning and the fact that it was a brand new concept. Remember that the first SAS parachute operation was a total disaster too. Also the concept of the Parachute Regiment was virtually identical to that of the SAS (they were even called the SAS initially) until they expanded into Brigades and Divisions.

Originally Posted by greenronnie

Also the concept of the Parachute Regiment was virtually identical to that of the SAS (they were even called the SAS initially) until they expanded into Brigades and Divisions.

Didn't they use the terms Division and Brigades to dupe the Germans into thinking they were up against a greater, specialist unit?

Originally Posted by blobmeister

Didn't they use the terms Division and Brigades to dupe the Germans into thinking they were up against a greater, specialist unit?

No mate, there were two British Airborne Divisions.

However the SAS used that ploy, using the number 22nd SAS to imply there were that many Regiments.