Airborne troops study D-Day battlefields
5 Jun 2014 11:56 AM
Paratroopers have
visited the battlefields in Normandy that helped to form the formidable
reputation of the British Army's airborne
forces.
As part of the commemorations of
the 70th anniversary of D-Day, junior soldiers from 16 Air Assault Brigade are
carrying out a battlefield study of significant sites from the
campaign.
In the early hours of 6 June
1944, some 7,900 troops from the British 6th Airborne Division landed by
parachute and glider in Normandy.
Their mission was to secure the
eastern flank of the invasion beaches by destroying or capturing key transport
routes and attacking German positions.
Key actions such as Pegasus
Bridge and Breville-les-Monts have become iconic demonstrations of the
flexibility and reach of airborne forces, as well as their robustness and
fighting spirit.
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