The parachute is still a useful military accessory

With all the helicopter-borne assaults being made in Afghanistan, one might get the impression that the parachute was an anachronism left over from previous wars, no longer of particular value except as a means of escape from a damaged aircraft. That's not the case at all, as has just been demonstrated in a large-scale military exercise in Fort Bragg, NC. The base's public affairs people report:

Light infantry troops are like little birds. They get up into the highest mountains, and they say, “feed me, feed me,” according to one sustainment officer in the 82nd Airborne Division involved in supply-by-air training, Sept. 6 through 11.




“As a logistician, how do you get the stuff that they need to them when they are in the most inaccessible spot, where there are frequently no roads?” asked Lt. Col. Paul Narowski, commander of 1st Brigade Combat Team’s 307th Brigade Support Battalion.

“You’ve got to learn to use the third dimension,” he said.




During a Large Package Week exercise, paratroopers with 1st BCT and aircrews from a number of Air Force units learned to coordinate parachute drops of vehicles, artillery pieces, supplies and troops.

. . .

“Based on my combat experience, my primary method of resupply is always by air,” he said. “I will ensure that the staff maximizes every aerial-delivery asset before I start tasking trucks to get out on the road. If we can do it in a dimension that won’t get interdicted by the enemy and put our paratroopers at most risk, that’s a win-win for me.”




Narowski said the learning curve is steep for logisticians trying to keep up with the “fast-and furious” light infantry.




“The important thing about the way the 82nd and 101st fight is, we don’t fight head-on,” he said. “We go for the soft flank around his strength. If he’s strong along the road, then we can’t send a convoy up the road. If we get a force into his rear area, how do we resupply them? You’ve got to have that agility and familiarity with things like air drop and sling load and use those to our advantage.”

There's more at the link. More (and much larger) photographs may be found here. Click on each thumbnail for a larger version.

Peter