 weapons coupled with the fighting skill of the American soldier stands ready on the alert all over the world to defend this country you the American people against aggression this is the big picture an official television report to the nation from the united states army now to show you part of the big picture here is sergeant steward queen today a milestone in the modernization of the united states army is taking place at fort campel kentucky it is the reorganization day ceremony of the new hundred and first airborne division better known as the screaming eagles of world war two fame deactivated after world war two and a brilliant combat service record the hundred and first is well on its way toward the new atomic army concept with weapons new equipment new organization and tactical employment to play a key role in the army's plans for the atomic era here today is being baptized a revolutionary fighting machine which may be the prototype for army divisions of the future all purpose units which can fly at a moment's notice to trouble spots anywhere in the world fittingly the reorganization ceremonies are opened with a field prayer for world peace the division chaplain prays that peace and understanding among the nations of the world be granted on hand to unsheath the colors of the reborn hundred and first our secretary the army wilbur m brocker and army chief of staff general maxwell detailer overhead as part of the ceremonies a mass paradrop demonstration gets underway among the jumpers are many combat veterans of the original hundred and first airborne division courage is the chief characteristic of the paratrooper but as well as courage he's got to have stamina and a driving will to fight it's this kind of soldier that makes up the airborne division gives it the capability of carrying out decisive combat on any portion of the earth's surface he's equipped to move fast and hit hard heavy equipment from howitzers to trucks land with the airborne infantry of today mobile and flexible the hundred and first is prepared to fight in independent actions accomplish its mission sustain itself then move on to another trouble spot to repeat the cycle here today too is the division's mascot getting a look at some of the new weapons at the division's command the honest john rocken capable of carrying an atomic warhead is one of the new weapons giving the division added punch new assault type aircraft like to see 123 are capable of carrying far greater payloads than their counterparts of world war two or over they take off and land in much shorter distances almost any open field may become a landing strip for the 123 the traditional army mule of the horse drawn artillery days is fast becoming a vanishing species taking its place is the new mechanical mule it's built to transport weapons ammunition or men of all its many potentialities the mechanical mule will probably prove most valuable to the foot soldier by increasing his cross country mobility real eye opener on display here today is the army's newest means of air transportation for troops in the field officially it's the delacre era cycle unofficially the flying platform the high point in the day ceremonies is an address by army chief of staff general max well detailer secretary brecker officer and man of the hundred and first airborne division this is indeed a wonderful day for me to return to this field in kentucky to attend this celebration which marks the rebirth of one of the truly great fighting units of american military history i am happy to be here both as chief of staff and as a former member and commanding general of this division as chief of staff i look upon this unit as a symbol of the new army being brought into being you have the honor to pioneer in a field of great military importance this division will have in it greater firepower greater mobility increased readiness to respond to aggression wherever found about the world than any division size unit in our past history as such it will act as a prototype for the development of other units with similar characteristics you officers and men who participate in this experiment must show bold thought initiative readiness to accept change in order that we may exploit to the maximum the military assets of this new organization now as a former member of the world war two division i am happy to be here to see the colors of the old division once more fly proudly in the breeze the hundred and first airborne division was a truly great unit in which to have served in time of war it was great because of the people who were in it for the many veterans of the original hundred and first who formed the hard core of the new division strong memories are revived for me it goes all the way back to 1940 fort benning fort brag and other places august 42 the old hundred and first and the 82nd were activated as twin airborne divisions the country's first when general lee took over the screaming eagles he sure hit it right on the head the hundred and first has no history he said but it has a rendezvous with destiny man we had a lot to learn and we learned it the hard way by trial and error there weren't any manuals and nobody had this kind of combat experience in jumps and training problems we learned how to land and organize how to seize key targets get tough we told each other we're para troops we're number one guys a year later we're in england everybody's glad to see us from the prime minister down the line the big brass is very interested in how our training's been going because we're slated to handle a big job in cracking what's been advertised as fortress europe we're not going through the wall we're going over it and we're going in in the dark on the night before d-day target the shareboard peninsula facing utah beach objective knockout enemy forces guarding roots inland the british have been saying an airborne assault will be too costly they urge general eisenhower to give up the idea but his own staff figured it was essential for the rapid development of the overall invasion plan even today ike says it was one of the toughest decisions of the war so then on d-day minus one we screaming eagles are ready for our first combat jump ike tried to hide his own tension and ease ours by kidding us about the taste of the cocoa and linseed oil smeared on our faces at midnight we're heading for the planes 6600 screaming eagles waiting for us are the c47s the payoff of our training is only a few hours off the invasion fleet is already in the channel there's no turning back now we're as ready as we'll ever be there'll be a few surprises for us sure but there'll be more for the enemy waiting down there then we're on our way and the weather and the flak and the dark we got trouble some guys are dropping way away from their drop zones even general taylor who's running the show lands all alone so we team up in small groups and go after the bridges and causeways the best we can we're fighting against time too daylight's coming and the invasion fleet is heading for the beaches of normandy the mightiest seaborn invasion of all time is coming in and they're counting on our airborne invasion to pick the lock of fortress europe and bibs we've knocked off our key objectives with small bunches of men overwhelming large enemy units our d-day objectives out of the way we move against a town called karin tan it's a railroad and highway center we're taking losses but taking the high ground infiltrating and finally pinching off the town and its die-hard defenders we beat off counterattacks one after another and keep the way open between the invasion beaches prisoners nearly one out of every four screaming eagles as a casualty after we've seized all our objectives the 101st takes a well-deserved rest at the town of karin tan many of us receive the silver star later many will receive the medal of honor the people really take us to heart which means more than medals to us but our jobs just begun back in england we get ready for operation market basket this is going to be the biggest airdrop of the war now we're teaming up with the 82nd and a british airborne division this time we're going into holland on the continent the allies have pushed the germans north of gent and antwerp and west of a north-south highway leading to eindhoven and veckle the plans for us to grab a highway for a breakthrough to the north this will open up the way for a drive across the Rhine right into germany man if we were nervous about dropping into normandy we're really keyed up for this operation we're going in in daylight it's just about midway when we cross the channel and then belgium toward our drop zones in holland objective eindhoven and its highway bridges over the drop zones nearly seven thousand screaming eagles bail out while the landing in normandy was a mixed up mess at the start the drop into holland turns out to be a piece of cake weather and daylight are on our side and at first there isn't much enemy opposition gliders bring in men material and equipment by the hundreds these noiseless aircraft swoop into the flat fields of holland naturally it's not a 100% easy show as the landings continue a fog moves in on the fields this makes it mighty rough on the glider guys the dutch people welcome us warmly their underground rallies to our aid this time our units assemble quickly and move toward their objectives right on schedule after years under the nazi heel the dutch farmers and towns people turn themselves inside out trying to help us you might say it went too easy for us at the beginning but with cheering crowds and smiling faces to greet us so we've taken the germans by surprise right now they're getting ready to give us their version of a happy welcome when they open up we know we're in for a real fight three bridge for every canal we fight them for every inch and expand our airhead we smash through artillery machine gun and mortar and small arms fire and take the town of einhoven trying to keep the highway open so our own armor can roll to the north across the ride but a little rain is able to do what the vermesh couldn't the low lion fields of holland turn into a quagmire our offensive bogs down up to its knees and gluing mud we took einhoven all right but the campaign to strike through arnhem falls apart but lieutenant general lewis brereton commanding general the first airborne army paid this tribute to the 101st and the 82nd divisions everybody will remember arnhem but no one will remember that two american divisions fought their hearts out in the dutch canal country and whipped hell out of the germans for us now the old saying about no rest for the weary holds true 73 days of combat in holland then suddenly from france we're heading for belgium we have to get there and fast we load into trucks with whatever equipment we can lay our hands on later supplies would be dropped to us from the air our column runs all night with blazing lights ignoring the risk of attack by the lift button under cover of fog and bad flying weather the vermesh launches a desperate counter attack they're throwing 25 divisions at us our lines reel back the battle of the bulge is on our mission is to defend bastone a belgium road and rail center everybody else is getting out of town we're going in we take positions in the open fields positions we hope will give us command of the situation at bastone even the weather's gotten in for us not only is it freezing cold but it's got a snow on top of that anyway you look at it things can't get much worse germans have cut the main road to the south and now we're surrounded we're cold and hungry and shorter supplies our ammo has reached a dangerous low the enemy figures he's got us just where he wants us after all they got us in a box the weather is so lousy we can't get any supplies by air which is what we've been counting on so they send over the message surrender or be annihilated our answer just one word nuts i guess that kind of irritates them they really pour it on we're still in business trying to make every precious round count at the slightest break in the battle action we take time out for religious services at this point about all we can do is pray for some kind of help then just like an answer to our prayers the weather lets up on us for the first time in what seems like years allied planes are able to get into the air and oh what a lovely sight they are fighters bombers and cargo planes the enemy throws all the flak he has at the big birds but the planes come on just the same looks best of all to us are our fat friends the c-47s bringing the guns and ammo we need so bad you talk about men are from heaven this is it for us we rush out to grab the supplies to get shells into our guns this is the stuff to put the claws back in the screaming eagles and once more the fragile noiseless birds come in to give us a hand bringing more equipment more men to help us hold the battered city last we got the what with to fight back tanks and infantry smashed through our thin line of bazooka and riflemen but every time we throw them out again the german high commands tearing their hair out we're forcing them to commit larger and larger forces to knock out baston we're breaking the momentum of his whole attack along with american armor and tank destroyers we're stopping cold everything thrown at us from north east south and west finally after 33 days of fighting the enemies had it the doom with the last desperate ver marsh surge of the war is sealed but holding baston cost us a lot too 3500 of us have given our blood or our lives there have been many many individual acts of heroism by officers and enlisted men they'll be remembered whenever the name baston is mentioned for our job we get a very special honor never before in american history has a full division been cited for gallantry in action another first for the hundred and first now the ver marsh is cracking up so fast we aren't needed as paratroopers anymore we become part and parcel of the ground forces that are driving the german war machine deeper and deeper into their homeland as the enemy falls back we roll right up after it not giving him a chance to catch his breath it's been a long hard road from fort benning and fort bragg so now after five years of training and fighting we're coming to the end of the line berges got hitler's mountain retreat this had been a playground for hitler and his cronies but now it's under new management and we're getting our first real break for some sightseeing the number one attraction is hitler's eagle nest a very proper spot for the screaming eagles to finally come to rest a fighting bird won't stay grounded as the ceremony is here today proved a division called upon to appear in such roles and in such places could not have failed to be a great division and i can assure you your forebears who preceded you justified the destiny which they were allowed to perform now in closing i want to congratulate all of you who are today wearing the proud patch of the hundred and first airborne division you can see by the former commanders who have returned from all over the world the importance they are taught to their former associations here to us who were screaming eagles in world war two it is our proudest boast that we were men of the hundred and first so i charge you all you who are joining us for the first time to be worthy of the heritage which you have received from the past following general taylor's address another demonstration is held as part of today's ceremonies members of the 502nd airborne group of the hundred and first airborne division take part in a simulated combat action to illustrate the speed and mobility with which these special highly trained groups can perform this 11 man team has been given the mission of attacking and destroying a small bridge held by aggressor forces members of such groups have been trained to fight and defend themselves with both conventional and atomic weapons speed mobility and versatility are the key concepts behind the army's new look fast-moving highly skilled paratroopers are part of the army's answer to the pressing military demands of today when brushfire wars may without warning break out anywhere in the world to the thinking behind operations such as this is the demand for foot soldiers who can fight independent actions in small groups who can accomplish their mission swiftly and then move on fast to wherever their presence might be needed next you have only to multiply the number of squads such as this one to hit the enemy hard and subtly in widespread areas the immediate objective has been achieved the squad pulls out hurriedly while formally the paratrooper would be left as an infantryman to fight his way over the ground new techniques employed by the hundred and first airborne division are revolutionizing the paratroopers combat methods today's small light aircraft come in to pick up the squad fly them to another area of operation such techniques point toward greater and greater mobility for the foot soldiers at day's end and the conclusion of today's reorganization ceremonies the hundred and first airborne division marches forward to re-fulfill if called upon the prophecy made years ago that the hundred and first has a rendezvous with destiny as secretary of the army broker said in his address at the reorganization day ceremonies the hundred and first airborne division is streamlined but it's got the power and the punch and the magnitude and the integrity to go with it and it has many times the striking power of divisions of the past now this is sergeant steward queen inviting you to be with us again next week for another look at your army in action on the big picture the big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the army at home and overseas produced by the army pictorial center presented by the united states army in cooperation with this station you too can be an important part of the big picture you can proudly serve for the best equipped the best trained the best fighting team in the world today the united states army