Airborne forces are military units moved by aircraft and "dropped" into battle, typically by parachute, almost anywhere with little warning. Formations are limited only by the number and size of their aircraft; a huge force can appear "out of nowhere" behind enemy lines in minutes, an action known as vertical envelopment.
The Battle of Crete was fought during the Second World War on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany began an airborne invasion of Crete. Greek and other Allied forces, along with Cretan civilians, defended the island. After one day of fighting, the Germans had suffered heavy casualties and the Allied troops were confident that they would defeat the invasion. The next day, through communication failures, Allied tactical hesitation and German offensive operations, Maleme Airfield in western Crete fell, enabling the Germans to land reinforcements and overwhelm the defensive positions on the north of the island. Allied forces withdrew to the south coast. More than half were evacuated by the British Royal Navy and the remainder surrendered or joined the Cretan resistance. The defence of Crete evolved into a costly naval engagement; by the end of the campaign the Royal Navy's eastern Mediterranean strength had been reduced to only two battleships and three cruisers.
Kurt Arthur Benno Student was a German general in the Luftwaffe during World War II. An early pioneer of airborne forces, Student was in overall command of developing a paratrooper force to be known as the Fallschirmjäger, and as the most senior member of the Fallschirmjäger, commanded it throughout the war. Student led the first major airborne attack in history, the Battle for The Hague in May 1940. He also commanded the Fallschirmjägers in its last major airborne operation, the invasion of Crete in May 1941. The operation was a success despite heavy German losses, and led the Allies to hasten the training and development of their own airborne units.
Salon-de-Provence Air Base is a base of the French Air Force located 4 km (2.5 mi) south Salon-de-Provence in southern France.
Leidschenveen-Ypenburg is a Vinex-location in and district of The Hague, located in the southeast. It is geographically connected to the main body of the city by only a narrow corridor. It consists of four quarters: Hoornwijk and Ypenburg on the southwest of the A12 motorway and parallel railway to Utrecht, and Forepark and Leidschenveen on the northeast.
The Battle for The Hague was a battle fought on 10 May 1940 during the German invasion of the Netherlands. German Fallschirmjäger units were dropped in and around The Hague in order to capture Dutch airfields and the city itself.
Ypenburg Airport, which later became Ypenburg Air Base was an airport in the Netherlands near the city of The Hague. The ICAO code was EHYB.
The Battle of Fort Eben-Emael was a battle between Belgian and German forces that took place between 10 May and 11 May 1940, and was part of the Battle of Belgium and Fall Gelb, the German invasion of the Low Countries and France. An assault force of German paratroopers, Fallschirmjäger, was tasked with assaulting and capturing Fort Eben-Emael, a Belgian fortress whose strategic position and strong artillery emplacements dominated several important bridges over the Albert Canal. These carried roads which led into the Belgian heartland and were what the German forces intended to use to advance. As some of the German airborne forces assaulted the fortress and disabled the garrison and the artillery pieces inside it, others simultaneously captured three bridges over the Canal. Having disabled the fortress, the airborne troops were then ordered to protect the bridges against Belgian counter-attacks until they linked up with ground forces from the German 18th Army.
The Battle of Rotterdam was a Second World War battle fought during the Battle of the Netherlands. Fought between 10–14 May 1940, it was a German attempt to seize the Dutch city. It ended in a German victory, following the Rotterdam Blitz.
Valkenburg Naval Air Base is a former air base located just south of Valkenburg, which is part of Katwijk and close to the city of Leiden, that was used by the Royal Netherlands Navy until 2006, being their base for the Lockheed P-3 Orion aircraft. The Orions were sold to Germany and Portugal, resulting in the closure of the air base. Though officially closed as an airport, it still sees limited use for special events and by gliders and occasionally small piston aircraft, most of which from local flying club Aeroclub Valkenburg. Current plans however are to use the area for housing development, but part of the former air base may remain in use for glider flying.
Nancy-Ochey Air Base is a front-line French Air Force base located approximately 11 km west-southwest of Neuves-Maisons in the Département de Meurthe-et-Moselle, France.
Le Mans Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield, which is located near the City of Le Mans in the Pays de la Loire region of northern France.
Goetsenhoven Military Airfield is a Belgian Air Component base, located 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Tienen, approximately 26 miles (42 km) east-southeast of Brussels (Bruxelles).
Valence - Chabeuil Airport is an airport in France, located about 5 miles (8 km) east of Valence and approximately 300 miles (483 km) south-southeast of Paris.
Münster-Handorf Airfield is a former military airfield located in Germany about 5 miles east-northeast of Münster (Nordrhein-Westfalen); approximately 250 miles west of Berlin.
Lippstadt Airfield is a former military airfield located in Germany, located in the northern part of Lippstadt (Nordrhein-Westfalen); approximately 222 miles west-southwest of Berlin.
Schweinfurt Army Heliport is a military facility near Schweinfurt, being part of U.S. Army Garrison Schweinfurt.
The Fallschirmjäger were the paratrooper branch of the German Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first German paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations and came to be known as the "green devils" by the Allied forces they fought against. The Fallschirmjäger were very effective when used in commando style raids. The Fallschirmjäger were famous for their willingness to give every effort unwaveringly even in the grimmest of situations. The Fallschirmjäger were seldom used as parachutists. Instead, they were prized for their combat abilities and frequently acted in a "fire brigade" role as roving elite infantrymen. Throughout World War II the Fallschirmjäger commander was Kurt Student.
Schaffen Air Base is a Belgian Air Force Base, located 2.1 km (1.3 mi) north-northeast of Diest in Flemish Brabant, Belgium.
Kijkduin en Ockenburgh is a Dutch subdistrict of the Loosduinen district in The Hague. The subdistrict is located in the western part of The Hague at the municipal border of Monster. The area is bordered by the North Sea, an imaginary line between beach pole 105 and the De Savornin Lohmanlaan, the Machiel Vrijenhoeklaan, the Duinlaan, the Kijkduinsestraat, the Ockenburghstraat, the Loosduinse Hoofdstraat, the Monsterseweg and the municipal border with Monster. As the name suggests, the subdistrict consists of two neighborhoods Kijkduin and Ockenburgh.