 Hello, I'm Colonel John Gordon, and this is Fort Bragg, North Carolina, anytime, any day, any week, any season. In the 82nd Airborne Division is continuous, hard, and demanding. It has to be to build strength and stamina, this training that develops each trooper's confidence in himself and his ability to function with discipline and control in any situation. It teaches him the many military skills that make the Airborne Trooper a formidable fighting man. Combat ready on the ground and in the air. This endless, high pressure training keeps the 82nd Airborne in top-notch condition for battle. As part of the United States Strike Command, it is prepared to move out swiftly by airdrops or air landing to trouble spots anywhere on Earth. The 82nd is proud to call itself Always Combat Ready. All the way, the slogan that expresses the fighting spirit of this great division, but perhaps the slogan that best describes the pride and patriotism of the 82nd is the one given it officially in 1917 because it was composed of fighting men from every state in the Union, All American. The 82nd started as an infantry division, and Sergeant Alvin Newark was with the All American Division, also a major named Jonathan Wainwright, destined for greatness as a general in World War II. At war's end, the All American Division was demobilized. Came alive again in 1942 when it was reactivated as an infantry division under General Omar Bradley. When Matthew Ridgway took command later that year, the 82nd became the Army's first airborne division. From the start, airborne training was rugged, ran some more. They jumped and climbed. There were calisthenics, rifle range, shoot school, glider loading, practice jumps, crash landings. It was continuous from Fort Benning, Georgia to the sands of North Africa. The men of the 82nd were learning what it meant to be really combat ready. It was when the first mission was announced in July, 1943. Blowing up clouds of desert dust, they took off from North Africa and headed out over the Blue Ocean, their first combat jump. But it dropped into Sicily behind enemy lines, ahead of an Allied invasion that was coming in by sea. Men of the 82nd advanced 150 miles in six days. The German and Italian defenders were roughing, but not without hard fighting. The Sicilian campaign was the first combat proof that American airborne doctrine was valid. The fighting quality of its paratroopers was made dramatically clear. Jump came soon after it. The Allies had landed at Salerno on the Italian mainland, but the bridgehead was in trouble, so the 82nd went in. The Germans, some of Hitler's best troops fought savagely with everything they had. It wasn't enough. They were beaten back. On October 1, 1943, Naples was liberated. Men of the 82nd led the way in, but they had little time for the victory celebration, as elements of the division fought at the Anzio beachhead. They pursued the Germans into the Appennine Mountains. They had to fight mud and exhaustion as well as rocky heights. Spearheading the 5th Army's advance, they finally joined the British 8th Army at Mount Samucro, and the 82nd was relieved and sent to England. This was their first real breathing spell since Sicily. No one really believed it would last for long, but it was nice while it lasted. The placements began pouring in, and intensive training was resumed. The biggest jump of all was coming up into frats, to smash the walls of Hitler's fortress Europe. Once again, they were going in ahead of the ground forces. The 82nd Airborne, the new 101st American Airborne, and the British 6th Airborne. The German Army was taken by surprise, but not completely. They had scattered paratroopers all over Normandy. Fighting became a confused mealy of small unit action. The troopers struck out hard and captured St. Mary's at Gliese, a key point in the Nazi defenses and the first town to be liberated in France. It was a slow process, had the bleed for every town, field, and hit room. The 82nd fought for 33 days without relief for reinforcements. The enemy wished they had it. Of the 13,000 men who jumped into Normandy, only 5,000 were still on their feet when the 82nd was sent back to England to rest and rebuild the outfield. Almost as bad an ordeal was the Battle of the Bulge, when Hitler's Panzer divisions cracked the Allied line in Belgium. The 82nd was called on to hold the northern shoulder of the Bulge. Not only were they outgunned and outnumbered, they were freezing. Like their fellow paratroopers of 101st at Bastogne, the men of the 82nd threw back one desperate attack after another. Finally, the Nazi drive was played out. Airborne soldiers stayed on the ground now to race across Germany, scooping up a fantastic number of prisoners, including the entire 21st German Army, 145,000 men. It was an inglorious end to Hitler's dream of a thousand-year right. And a triumphant war's end for the 82nd, which was chosen by General Eisenhower to act as American Honor Guard in Berlin. But best of all was the victory parade down New York's Fifth Avenue, led by General Gavin in January of 1946, when the All-American Division came home to be welcomed by an All-American audience. Unlike the aftermath of World War I, there was no deactivation for the 82nd this time. Instead, it was made a regular army division, and it worked at it, mastering new techniques and equipment. Peacetime training and maneuvers were almost as rugged as World War II. A series of large-scale field exercises made sure that the 82nd lived up to its reputation of always being combat ready. There was some disappointment at not being called out to help in Korea, but that almost totally mountainous country made the use of airborne troops impractical. Always among the first to be trained in new fighting techniques, the division learned how to cope with a nuclear environment using simulated nuclear weapons. These training exercises ranged from coast to coast and as far north as Alaska, where the paratroopers were drilled in cold weather jumping and tactical maneuvers. Then they were exposed to the tropical heat of the canal zone and Vieques Island in the Caribbean. For the 82nd being combat ready meant being fully prepared to fight in any location on Earth. Real combat seemed close in 1962. The All-Americans were set to go all the way during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October. The 82nd stayed on full alert until the threat of war was over. However, another alert three and a half years later did result in the 82nd being under fire again. Late in April of 1965, the 82nd airborne as part of the Army's strike command received emergency orders to deploy into the revolt-torn Dominican Republic. The 82nd led the way as the advanced guard of an inter-American peace force fielded by the OAS, the Organization of American States. Anti-communist Dominicans were on hand to greet them with warm support. But the troopers soon learned that not all the local citizens were friendly when they undertook their first mission. This was to secure the east bank of the Azama River and the Duarte Bridge that crossed it. The airborne soldiers promptly came under sniper fire from rebels holding commanding positions on the other bank. It was a baptism of fire for most of the young troopers, but they took it with the cool competence of veterans. They crossed the bridge and penetrated Santa Domingo where they set up a network of outposts and checkpoints to contain the rebel sector. Nonetheless, rebel fire was heavy throughout May and into June. The airborne soldiers moved swiftly and expertly to knock out snipers. The 82nd was under strict orders not to take the offensive since negotiations with the rebels were underway. Discipline remained firm despite harassing rebel fire that wounded many civilians, innocent bystanders who were swiftly evacuated to field hospitals where they received the same care given to the wounded paratroopers. The 82nd's task was eased considerably when troop contingents arrived from Latin American countries who were members of the Organization of American States. An inter-American jeep patrol toured the city until peace negotiations were successfully concluded on the 31st of August. Then the 82nd was promptly redeployed home. Back at Fort Bragg, the 82nd picked up where it had left dock. More airborne training and maneuvers to keep the division's skill and air drops razor sharp and to make sure its air-landing capabilities were up to the minute. Realistic battle exercises, they worked out with the Sheridan, an armored reconnaissance airborne assault vehicle. It's a formidable addition to the 82nd's firepower. It can be air-dropped as well as air-landed to support initial waves of paratroopers with heavy firepower. It has a 152-millimeter main gun and a guided missile, the Sheleli. When the Vietnam conflict came, the men of the 82nd promptly went into the field to practice the tactics of counter-guerrilla warfare. Enemy forces were simulated by their own men using guerrilla tactics of hit-and-run. However, their line of retreat was scouted by helicopter. The home base of the guerrilla force was pinpointed. This was a Viet Cong style village, a typical guerrilla strong point. The encircling paratroopers received the word to close in. The guerrillas put up a last-ditch resistance, but the airborne soldiers quickly overran the village and began a roundup of prisoners. Some of the guerrillas tried to get away through an exact replica of a Viet Cong escape tunnel. Even though the mock battle had been won, the note of battlefield realism remained as hiding places and booby traps were cleared. Rugged field training under realistic conditions, the 82nd's formula for being always combat-ready. Early in 1968, the All-Americans were called upon to put this counterinsurgency expertise to use in battle. The Third Brigade was sent to South Vietnam during the Communist Tet Offensive. General Creighton W. Abrams was there to greet them when they arrived. The Third Brigade troopers moved to the Highlands and set up their base camp. They dug in. They might move, but they weren't about to be moved. Bunkers were built, firing positions sandbagged. 4.2-inch mortars were set up. Automatic weapons were cleaned and checked. With swift, smooth professionalism, the All-Americans built a defense perimeter to secure their base camp. Then its attack force was ordered, along with the troopers of the 101st Airborne, to move toward the ancient city of Huey. Enemy forces were trying to support communist troops holed up in the city. They were to be stopped. Their positions saturated with heavy concentrations of artillery and automatic weapons. Helicopter gunships swept in with rockets and machine guns. Then the Airborne troops closed with the enemy in a vicious firefight that raged through the day and night. Next morning, the beaten enemy withdrew. Now a troop's occupied the ground. The enemy's bunkers had been smashed to rubble, but our soldiers, trained to take nothing for granted, carefully searched the debris for guerrillas holed up to make a suicide stand. But the Viet Cong really were gone, except for those who had been killed or captured. The performance of the Third Brigade was outstanding. Remained in Vietnam as an independent unit until late 1969. The 82nd Airborne already has a fully trained new brigade, the fourth to replace the third. They continue to train tirelessly to raise their high state of combat readiness a notch higher. To make its superb fighting men tougher, smarter, deadlier soldiers, its schools are busy developing small unit leaders, training specialists in old and new military skills. This is the Raiders School, the 82nd adaptation of the famed Ranger Corps at Fort Benning. Its carefully chosen students are taught how to live off the land, to endure hardship and fatigue, thirst and hunger. They must be able to carry out patrols in difficult country to bring back intelligence information or prisoners, so they are taught to overcome any kind of natural obstacle. Training also means they must learn to handle a wide variety of demolitions, expertly, safely, effectively. Training for long-range reconnaissance patrols is an extension of the Raiders School. Here, students get even more intensive training in how to operate undetected deep in enemy territory, to remain there for days, even weeks, to gather intelligence about the enemy and bring it back. For tent strap, make sure it is secure and then cover it. In the Advanced Airborne School, a group learns how to function in the role of jump master. The instructor is teaching them how to conduct the safety check of paratroopers' jump equipment. The safety of the men under his command is a jump master's paramount concern. Obviously, it is a matter of life or death that all hooks, straps and lines are properly in place. This concern for every detail of safety carries over to the interior of the jump aircraft. The instructor shows how the jump master must check out everything, every inch of the anchor line cable, the fire extinguisher. It has to be there, filled and up to pressure. From end to end of the big troop compartment, the jump master's job is to make sure, personally, right down to the jump lights by the door. The students also learn the jump procedures and voice commands that control and direct the paratroopers until the final moment when they'll step out the door and be on their own. In the Advanced Airborne School, students also study air movement operation in terms of equipment. The 82nd trains its own specialists in the techniques of loading and securing cargo for air landing operations. They also learn how to rig heavy objects for airdrop, the Longshoreman's skill refined to the nth degree. In the supply and maintenance school, student officers learn how to calculate supply requirements for different size units and how to systematically inspect fighting equipment to make sure it's always ready to go. The 82nd's non-commissioned officer school puts the focus on small unit leadership. The NCO is a basic and vital element in any unit's chain of command. In this school, his natural leadership potential is honed and polished. In the 82nd Airborne, the competitive spirit is encouraged by an intensive sports program. It is justly proud of its Olympic medal winners. Sergeant James Wallington, who brought back a bronze medal for boxing. Sergeant Wallington is equally skilled in his job as a member of the division's highly effective and fully air portable communications network. And there's Captain Mel Pender, gold medal winner in the 400 meter relay. Captain Pender's main interest, however, remains his professional mission as an officer of the 82nd. But perhaps no sports so truly represents the airborne as the freefall parachuting of the 82nd Sport Parachute Club. Schools and recreation programs, work and play, all directed to the end of keeping the 82nd tuned to perfect pitch in order to carry out its mission as the airborne arm of strike command. These men starting out on a typical training maneuver are known as an immediate ready force. The IRF could be a company, battalion or brigade in many combinations of firepower according to the need. Whatever and wherever the need, these men are ready to respond. Each one superbly trained, strongly disciplined, ready. When they move, they move fast. The complex paperwork of personnel and cargo lists is handled with lightning speed by computerized equipment. This ability to pick up and go far, fast and fully armed was dramatically demonstrated in 1969 exercise called Focus Retina. 2,500 troopers of the 82nd were deployed from the United States to Korea in a matter of hours. The entire exercise took only five days and involved more than 7,000 troops of the United States and South Korea. This is the 82nd Airborne Division, fearless among fighting units. Its history is long and famous, crowded with great battles and inspiring deeds of valor. But its story is far from over. You will surely hear from it again when a call comes to defend this country's freedom. The division will always be in the forefront of battle, and beyond all doubt will prove again, over and over if necessary, that in fighting skill, courage and devotion to duty, the men of the 82nd are indomitable. They are all American, all the way.