


Since its initial members came from all 48 states, the unit acquired the nickname All-American, which is the basis for its famed "AA" shoulder patch. The division was constituted, originally as the 82nd Division, in the National Army on 5 August 1917, shortly after the American entry into World War I, and was organized on 25 August 1917, at Camp Gordon, Georgia and later served with distinction on the Western Front in the final months of World War I.

The 82nd Airborne Division is one of the most highly trained light infantry divisions in the world. Army's most strategically mobile formation. Based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the 82nd Airborne Division is part of the XVIII Airborne Corps. The 82nd Airborne Division is an airborne infantry division of the United States Army, specializing in parachute assault operations into denied areas. "All American Division", "82nd Division", "82nd Infantry Division", "America's Guard of Honor", "The 82nd", within the unit and the wider airborne community simply ISBN 0-7643-2011-4.Command and control organization containing two to four maneuver brigades Down to Earth: The 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment in Normandy: June 6-July 11, 1944. The story focuses on the Nazi massacre of French civilians, and wounded paratroopers of the 507th, in retaliation for battle at the village of Graignes. On 1 June 2004, Investigating History aired, D-Day: The Secret Massacre. This film connects the regiment's contribution in the war with their journey back to Normandy for the unveiling of a monument in 2002. PBS aired the documentary, D-Day: Down to Earth - Return of the 507th. In 2004, two documentaries aired on the 507th. On 23 October 1985, it was reorganized and redesignated as the 507th Infantry, a parent regiment under the United States Army Regimental System, and transferred to the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The regiment was briefly re-activated in the late 1940s, then again in 1985. The regiment was shipped home and inactivated in September 1945. Peters earned the Medal of Honor for single-handedly attacking a German machine gun emplacement. The unit redeployed to France on 25 December 1944, and was used in the counter-attacks against the Germans in January and early February 1945.įinally, the regiment dropped near Wesel, Germany on 24 March to spearhead the division's assault during Operation Varsity. After returning to England, the 507th was permanently assigned to the 17th Airborne Division, because another of the 82nd's regiments, the 504th, had returned by then from Anzio.Īs part of the 17th, the 507th was not utilized in Operation Market Garden and was still in England training with the new division when the Battle of the Bulge began. The 507th later became known as Raff's Ruffians. Colonel Edson Raff, who had recently led the 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, then took command of the regiment.

Millett Jr., the initial commander of the regiment, was captured in Amfreville a few days after being deployed. Although their target was supposed to be in Drop Zone T, north of Amfreville, the confusion caused by clouds and flak resulted in a wide scattering of the unit. After arriving in Britain, their D-Day objective was to help secure the Merderet River crossings. It would participate in three operations during the war: D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity.Īs part of the 2nd Airborne Infantry Brigade, the 507th was assigned to the 82d Airborne Division to replace the 504th Parachute Infantry regiment that had suffered many casualties in Italy. The regiment was initially formed at Camp Toccoa, Georgia on 20 July 1942. During World War II, the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment (507th PIR) was a regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division and, later, 17th Airborne Division of the United States Army.
