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Fallschirmjäger (often rendered Fallschirmjager in English; from German Fallschirm "parachute" and Jäger, "hunter; ranger" a term for light infantry) are German paratroopers. Fallschirmjäger of Nazi Germany in World War II were the first to be committed in large scale airborne operations. During the whole period of its existence, the Fallschirmjäger commander was Kurt Student.
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History
During World War II the Luftwaffe raised a variety of Fallschirmjäger units. Unlike Great Britain, the British Commonwealth, and the USA, these paratroopers were part of an air force rather than an army. Starting from a small collection of Fallschirmjäger battalions at the beginning of the war, the Luftwaffe built up a division-sized unit of three Fallschirmjäger regiments plus supporting arms and air assets, known as the 7th Flieger Division (7th Air Division). Fallschirmjäger units made the first airborne invasion when invading Denmark on the 9'th of April 1940. In the early morning hours they attacked and took control of Aalborg airport which played a key role acting as a refuel station for the Luftwaffe in the further invasion into Norway. In the same assault the bridges around Aalborg were taken. Other airborn attacks on Denmark the 9'th of April were also carried out.
Later in the war, the 7th Air Division's Fallschirmjäger assets were re-organised and used as the core of a new series of elite Luftwaffe Infantry divisions, numbered in a series beginning with the 1st Fallschirmjäger Division. These formations were organized and equipped as motorized infantry divisions, and often played a "fire brigade" role on the western front. Their constituents were often encountered on the battlefield as ad hoc battle groups (Kampfgruppen) detached from a division or organized from miscellaneous available assets. In accord with standard German practice, these were called by their commander's name, such as Group Erdmann in France and the Ramcke Parachute Brigade in North Africa. After mid-1944, Fallschirmjäger were no longer trained as paratroops due to the realities of the strategic situation, but retained the Fallschirmjäger honorific. Near the end of the war, the series of new Fallschirmjäger divisions extended to over a dozen, with a concomitant reduction in quality in the higher-numbered units of the series. Among these divisions was the 9th Fallschirmjäger Division, which was the final parachute division to be raised by Germany during World War II. The division was destroyed during the Battle of Berlin in April 1945. (These divisions should not be confused with the Luftwaffe Field Divisions, a poorly organised and managed series of light infantry divisions raised from excess Luftwaffe personnel early in the war.) Over 54,449 paratroops were killed in action and over 8,000 are still listed as missing in action.
Operations
Fallschirmjäger participated in many famous battles, including the airborne seizure of Fort Eben-Emael and airdrops in Norway and Denmark in 1940, the bloody battle of Monte Cassino and the defence of Carentan, as depicted in Band of Brothers, during the Battle of Normandy in 1944. Their most famous airdrop was in the Battle of Crete in 1941, where the entire 7th Air Division was deployed, with the German 5th Mountain Division as the followup. Initially the operation was unsuccessful and it was not until an airfield was captured that they could be reinforced. Crete was captured, but the high casualties among the Fallschirmjäger convinced Hitler that such mass airdrops were no longer feasible - though it has to be noted that surprise was lost even before the drops started, and the battle might have caused fewer German casualties otherwise. Still, the Allies would come to a similar conclusion near the end of the war, as each successive large-scale airdrop resulted in higher and higher casualties. The 3rd battalion, 3rd Regt, German 1st Parachute Division fought in the battle of Ortona, Italy, from December 20, 1943 to December 28, 1943. During the Battle of Monte Cassino the 1st Fallschirmjäger Division operated as ordinary infantry. When the Allies bombed the Monastery of Monte Cassino they inadvertently created an excellent fortress of rubble. This enabled the still present Fallschirmjäger to holdout for months against repeated assaults and heavy bombardment. They were nicknamed "Green Devils" by the Allied forces for their tenacious defence, they finally retreated from their positions to stave off being outflanked, allowing Polish and French Morrocan forces to occupy the ruins of the monastery.
Equipment
Fallschirmjäger units were usually very well equipped; they had access to the best weapons of the German military. They were among the first combat units to use assault rifles and recoilless rifles in warfare. A special version of the Wehrmacht's modernized Stahlhelm, or M1935 steel helmet, was designed and issued to Fallschirmjäger units. It did away with the projecting visor and deep, flared rim of the standard-issue helmet, and added further improvements. The modified shell incorporated a completely different and more substantial leather liner and chinstrap design that provided far more protection for German airborne troops, this model was known as the M1938. The style of parachute harness used by the Fallschirmjäger, however, is generally considered inferior to those used by the war's British and American paratroopers. Unlike the British and American models, connected to the chute at each shoulder, the German design connected the parachute to the trooper's body via a single strap in the center of the back. Paratroopers had to throw themselves bodily forwards out of the aeroplane. And in the resulting face-down position when the chute opened, control was nearly impossible. The necessity of landing on knees and elbows reduced the amount of equipment the trooper could carry and, even with pads, significantly increased the chance of injury. As such they jumped armed only with a holstered pistol and a small "gravity knife". Rifles and other weapons were dropped in separate containers and until recovered they were poorly armed. By comparison, Allied paratroops dropped armed with rifle or submachine guns. The Japanese copied the German system. Some would say that in an attempt to turn the Fallschirmjäger into Göring's private army, rivaling Himmler's SS, a universal weapon was developed that could replace rifles, submachine guns and light machineguns but was also light enough to be carried during a jump. This resulted in the FG42 automatic rifle. This was built and deployed in small numbers from 1943 until the end of the war.
Luftwaffe parachute units
Larger units
- Erste Fallschirmjägerarmee
- Fallschirmjägerkorps
- I. Fallschirmjägerkorps
- II. Fallschirmjägerkorps
Fallschirmjägerdivisionen
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- German 1st Parachute Division,
- German 2nd Parachute Division,
- German 3rd Parachute Division,
- German 4th Parachute Division, formed by survivors of the Italian 184th Nembo Parachute Division which was destroyed at Anzio.
- German 5th Parachute Division, the last parachute trained unit
- German 6th Parachute Division,
- German 7th Parachute Division,
- German 8th Parachute Division,
- 9th Parachute Division (Germany),
- German 10th Parachute Division,
- German 11th Parachute Division, Never actually formed
- German Parachute Training Division,
Regiments and Brigades
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- Ramcke Parachute Brigade
- Luftlande-Sturm-Regiment with Battalions I, II, III, and IV.
- Barenthin Regiment- formed from drafts from other units
- Fallschirmjäger-Sturmgeschütz-Brigaden - Assault gun Units equipped with StuG-IIIs and StuG-IVs.
- Fallschirmjäger-Sturmgeschütz-Brigade XI
- Fallschirmjäger-Sturmgeschütz-Brigade XII
Other parachute units
- Waffen SS
- Heer
- Schweres-Fallschirm-Infanterie Battalion
- Brandenburger Regiment
- German 22nd Air Landing Division
- German 91st Air Landing Division
Modern Bundeswehr Fallschirmjäger
In modern German Bundeswehr Fallschirmjager form the core of the Special Operations Division with two brigade equivalents and several independent companies and battalions. All in all in 2010 about 10,000 troops will serve in that division which will have the following structure:
- Special Operations Division
- Headquarter Company - Special Operations Division (stationed in Stadtallendorf)
- Long Range Reconnaissance Company 200 (Pfullendorf)
- Airborne Brigade 26 (Saarlouis)
- Headquarter Company Airborne Brigade 26 (Saarlouis)
- Airborne Reconnaissance Company 260 (Brigade Reconnaissance Force) (Zweibrücken)
- Airborne Engineers Company 260 (Saarlouis)
- Fallschirmjager Battalion 261 (Lebach)
- Airborne Support Battalion 262 (Merzig)
- Fallschirmjager Battalion 263 (Zweibrücken)
- Airborne Brigade 31 (Oldenburg)
- Headquarter Company Airborne Brigade (Oldenburg)
- Airborne Reconnaissance Company 310 (Brigade Reconnaissance Force) (Seedorf)
- Airborne Engineers Company 270 (Seedorf)
- Fallschirmjager Battalion 313 (Seedorf)
- Fallschirmjager Battalion 373 (Seedorf)
- Airborne Support Battalion 272 (Oldenburg, Seedorf)
- Special Forces Command (KSK) (Calw)
- Airborne Signal Battalion (Stadtallendorf)
- Airborne Air Defence Battalion 100 (Seedorf)
The vast majority of division members is deployable by parachute, while all of it is at least air mobile. In addition to the Special Operations Devision Germany is also setting up an air mobile or air assault unit of regiment size.
See also
- Kurt Student
- Otto Skorzeny
- Battle of Crete
- Battle of Monte Cassino
- Airborne forces, Luftwaffe, Wehrmacht
- Eugen Meindl
- Bruno Bräuer
