Unit status
82nd Airborne Division
The 82nd Division was raised in March 1942 and was initially under the command of Maj. Gen. Omar Bradley. It was converted to an airborne division in August 1942 and by then was under the command of Maj. Gen. Matthew Ridgway. The division landed in North Africa in May 1943 for further training prior to commitment to the invasion of Sicily. The 504th and 505th PIR took part in Operation Husky in July 1943 on Sicily. During Operation Avalanche, the 504th PIR parachuted into Salerno in September 1943 while the 325th GIR was landed from ship as reinforcements. The 82nd Airborne Division moved to the ETO in December 1943, though the 504th PIR remained in combat on the Italian front, including participation in the Anzio campaign, until late March 1944 when it finally rejoined the division.
For Operation Neptune, the division deployed the veteran 505th PIR and 325th GIR, with the addition of the new 507th and 508th PIR in the Normandy drops. By the time of Operation Market in September 1944, the order of battle reverted back to the core 504th and 505th PIR and 325th GIR. The 508th PIR remained with the division for this mission and its later wartime assignments, but the 507th PIR was separated and later attached to the 17th Airborne Division. During the Battle of the Bulge, the 517th PIR was under divisional command, but it reverted back to the 11th Airborne Division for the final months of the war.
The 82nd Airborne saw 422 days in combat of which 157 were connected with its four airborne missions (Sicily, Salerno, Normandy, Netherlands) and 265 in ground deployment (Italy, Ardennes, Germany).
| Organic units |
| 325th Glider Infantry Regiment |
| 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment (January 14, 1944–August 1944) |
| 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment (January 14, 1944–end of war) |
| 517th Parachute Infantry Regiment (January 1, 1945–February 10, 1945) |
| 319th Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 320th Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 376th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 456th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 80th Airborne Antiaircraft Battalion |
| 307th Airborne Engineer Battalion |
| 307th Airborne Medical Company |
| 82nd Airborne Signal Company |
| 782nd Airborne Ordnance Maintenance Company |
| 407th Airborne Quartermaster Company |
| 82nd Parachute Maintenance Company |
| 82nd Airborne Division attachments, Operation Neptune, June–July 1944 |
| Troop B, 4th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron |
June 1–23 |
| 87th Armored Field Artillery Battalion |
June 1–8 |
| C/746th Tank Battalion |
June 1–11 |
| A/746th Tank Battalion |
June 13–21 |
| A/712th Tank Battalion |
1-8 July |
| 188th Field Artillery Battalion |
June 12–July 8 |
| 172nd Field Artillery Battalion |
June 16–19 |
| C/899th Tank Destroyer Battalion |
June 1–19 |
| A/607th Tank Destroyer Battalion |
June 19–July 4 |
| 801st Tank Destroyer Battalion |
June 30–July 1 |
| 803rd Tank Destroyer Battalion |
July 1–8 |
| B/87th Chemical Mortar Battalion |
June 15–21 |
| D/86th Chemical Mortar Battalion |
July 1–4 |
| 3809th Quartermaster Truck Company |
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| 3810th Quartermaster Truck Company |
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| 1/603rd Quartermaster Company (GR) |
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| 1/464th Ambulance Company, 31st Medical Group |
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| 493rd Collecting Company, 179th Medical Battalion |
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| 374th Collecting Company, 50th Medical Battalion |
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| 429th Litter Bearing Platoon |
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| 591st Collecting Company |
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| 82nd Airborne Division attachments, Operation Market, September 1944 |
| A/50th Field Hospital |
September 17–November |
| 666th Quartermaster Truck Company |
September 19–November |
| 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards* |
September 19–22 |
| 5th Battalion Coldstream Guards* |
September 19–22 |
| 2nd Battalion Irish Guards* |
September 19–22 |
| Nottinghamshire Yeomanry(Sherwood Rangers)* |
September 19–October 10 |
| 1st Royal Dragoons (armoured car)* |
September 19–October 10 |
| 1st Polish Parachute Brigade |
September 25–30 |
| 231st Brigade* |
September 30–October 1 |
| 32nd Guards Infantry Brigade* |
September 30–October 1 |
| 5th Battalion Coldstream Guards* |
September 30–October 10 |
| 79th Field Regiment, RA* |
September 30–October 230 |
| 4th Battery, 54th Anti-tank Regt, RA* |
September 30–October 3 |
| 130th Infantry Brigade* |
October 5–6 |
| 2nd Battalion Grenadier Guards* |
October 6–7 |
| 13/18th Hussars (Queen Mary’s Own)* |
October 10–November 10 |
| *British Army |
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division was raised at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, in August 1942 under the command of Maj. Gen. William Lee and based around the 327th and 401st GIR and the 502nd PIR. Maj. Gen. Maxwell Taylor took over command in March 1944 after Gen. Lee suffered a heart attack. For the Normandy landings, the division was substantially reinforced and consisted of two glider regiments (327th and 401st) and three parachute regiments (501st, 502nd, 506th). At the time of Operation Market, the division retained this same heavy, five glider/parachute regiment configuration. When committed to defend Bastogne in December 1944, the two glider infantry regiments remained behind in France for refitting and the 401st GIR was subsequently disbanded with assets going to the 327th GIR. As a result, the division in the Ardennes was based around three parachute infantry regiments. It was reinforced with the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion, a combat-experienced unit that was formerly 2/509th PIR during the fighting in Italy in 1943–44. After being reorganized as a separate battalion, the 509th PIB had taken part in the invasion of southern France as part of the 1st Airborne Task Force.
| Organic units |
| 327th Glider Infantry Regiment |
| 401st Glider Infantry Regiment (disbanded March 1, 1945) |
| 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment (January 1944–end of war) |
| 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment (September 1943–end of war) |
| 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 907th Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 377th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 463rd Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 81st Airborne Antiaircraft Battalion |
| 326th Airborne Engineer Battalion |
| 326th Airborne Medical Company |
| 101st Airborne Signal Company |
| 801st Airborne Ordnance Maintenance Company |
| 426th Airborne Quartermaster Company |
| 101st Parachute Maintenance Company |
| 101st Airborne Division attachments, Operation Neptune, June 1944 |
| Troop C, 4th Cavalry Squadron |
| 3807th Quartermaster Truck Company |
| 3808th Quartermaster Truck Company |
| 2/Quartermaster Company (GR) |
| 491st Medical Collection Company |
| Armored Field Artillery Battalion |
| Tank Destroyer Battalion |
| 759th Tank Battalion |
17th Airborne Division
The 17th Airborne Division was raised in April 1943 at Camp Mackall, North Carolina, under the command of Maj. Gen. William Miley. It originally included the 193rd and 194th GIR along with the 517th PIR, but was substantially reconfigured in 1944 to conform to the two parachute/one glider regiment configuration. The division swapped the 513th for the 517th PIR in March 1944 and added the 507th PIR in August 1944. The 507th PIR had served with the 82nd Airborne Division in Normandy, so its addition gave the division some needed experience. During the crisis in the Ardennes in December 1944, the division was rushed to the ETO and first served in a defensive line along the Meuse before being committed to combat for the first time on January 3,1945, northwest of Bastogne. It returned to theater reserve on February 10, 1945, in preparation for Operation Varsity. At this time, it reorganized under the new December 1944 tables, with the 193rd GIR disappearing and remaining assets being merged into the 194th GIR. The division landed near Wesel on March 24 for Operation Varsity and remained in combat in Germany, taking part in the reduction of the Ruhr pocket.
| Organic units |
| 194th Glider Infantry Regiment |
| 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 680th Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 681st Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 464th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 466th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 155th Airborne Antiaircraft Battalion |
| 139th Airborne Engineer Battalion |
| 224th Airborne Medical Company |
| 517th Airborne Signal Company |
| 717th Airborne Ordnance Maintenance Company |
| 411th Airborne Quartermaster Company |
| 17th Parachute Maintenance Company |
| 17th Airborne Division attachments, Operation Varsity, March 1945 |
| 1 Commando Brigade* |
| 771st Tank Battalion |
| 605th Tank Destroyer Battalion (three in towed guns with 55 DUKW amphibious trucks) |
| 692nd Field Artillery Battalion (25-pdr) |
| 387th Anti-aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion |
| A/3rd Chemical Battalion (Motorized, 4.2in. mortar) |
| AT Battery (17-pdr)* |
| 53rd (Wessex) Division RA* |
| 81st Field Regiment* |
| 83rd Field Regiment* |
| 133rd Field Regiment* |
| 17th AT Regiment* |
| 25th Light AA Regiment, RA* |
| 77th Medium Regiment, 8th AGRA* |
| Battery, 382nd Heavy AA Regiment, RA* |
| *British Army |
13th Airborne Division
The 13th Airborne Division was raised in August 1943 at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, under the command of Maj. Gen. George Griner. It was reorganized several times in 1943 before adopting the configuration listed above. It deployed to the ETO in February 1945. The division as a whole did not see combat in the ETO in World War II. However, its 517th PIR was a combat-experienced unit, having been deployed in combat in Italy in May 1944, taken part in the airborne landings in southern France on August 15, 1945, as part of the 1st Airborne Task Force, and been attached to the 82nd Airborne Division during the fighting in the Ardennes. It was attached to the 13th Airborne Division on March 1, 1945, in anticipation of Operation Choker II, which never took place.
| Organic units |
| 326th Glider Infantry Regiment |
| 515th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 517th Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 676th Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 677th Glider Field Artillery Battalion |
| 458th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 460th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 153rd Airborne Antiaircraft Battalion |
| 129th Airborne Engineer Battalion |
| 222nd Airborne Medical Company |
| 513th Airborne Signal Company |
| 713th Airborne Ordnance Maintenance Company |
| 409th Airborne Quartermaster Company |
| 13th Parachute Maintenance Company |
1st Provisional Airborne Task Force (Seventh Army Provisional Airborne Division)
This provisional unit was formed in July 1944 to conduct the airborne missions included in Operation Dragoon, the invasion of southern France. The unit was under the command of Maj. Gen. Robert Frederick who had previously led the Canadian–American 1st Special Services Force (“Devil’s Brigade”). Following the airdrops of August 15, 1944, the task force took part in the advance on Cannes. When the British brigade was removed in August, it was replaced by the 1st SSF. It continued the advance towards the Italian frontier, and reached it on September 8, 1944. At that point, the task force was assigned defensive positions in the Alps along the Franco-Italian border.
| Organic units |
| British 2nd Independent Parachute Brigade (August 15–24, 1944) |
| 517th Parachute Infantry Regiment (to November 22, 1944) |
| 1/551st Parachute Infantry Regiment |
| 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion |
| 550th Glider Infantry Battalion |
| 602nd Field Artillery Battalion |
| 460th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 463rd Parachute Field Artillery Battalion |
| 596th Airborne Engineer Battalion |
| 887th Airborne Engineer Aviation Company |
| 676th Medical Collecting Company |
| 512th Airborne Signal Company |
| 334th Quartermaster Depot Supply Company |