This is a solid history of the German Paratroops engaged in the Second Battle of France. The paratroops were an elite unit and it is interesting to compare their performance with that of the Waffen SS and the Wehrmacht’s Brandenburgers, who were also elite special forces units – Highly Recommended.
NAME: Hitler's Paratroopers in Normandy, The German II Parachute Corps in the Battle for France, 1944 FILE: R2995 AUTHOR: Gilberto Villahermosa PUBLISHER: Pen & Sword, frontline books BINDING: hard back PRICE: £25.00 GENRE: Non Fiction SUBJECT: Luftwaffe, WWII, WW2, Second World War, World War Two, World War 2, Western campaigns, light infantry, Atlantic Wall, Normandy Landings, 2nd Battle of France, liberation, Falaise Pocket
ISBN: 1-84832-771-4
IMAGE: B2995.jpg BUYNOW: tinyurl.com/y49egkeo LINKS: DESCRIPTION: This is a solid history of the German Paratroops engaged in the Second Battle of France. The paratroops were an elite unit and it is interesting to compare their performance with that of the Waffen SS and the Wehrmacht's Brandenburgers, who were also elite special forces units – Highly Recommended.
The German paratroopers were formed as part of the Luftwaffe. That was logical in that it placed all airborne operations under one command. After the heavy losses in Crete, the paratroopers were mostly used as elite light infantry. They were determined and skilled in their new role and they were prepared to take heavy losses to achieve the objectives set for them. In that, they had great similarity with the Waffen SS and the Brandenburgers, and suffered accordingly.
In Normandy, they were once again called to serve as an elite force alongside Wehrmacht and Waffen SS troops. They continued to suffer from a lack of heavy weapons and this exposed them to the British, Canadian and US troops who were deployed in all-arms units with significant close air support and air superiority. As a result, their heavy losses meant that only a few managed to escape the Falaise Pocket.