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The ageing Dakota transport lurched and bumped far above the
Normandy beach. The Paratroopers inside wished they were already over
the Drop Zone It was hot inside and even with the door open not enough
air was circulating. At least it had not been a long flight. The
dispatchers' eyes watered as he peered outside the fuselage into the
slipstream. Ahead was the town of Merville and to one side the German
coastal battery. He pulled himself back into the aircraft and took a
deep breath. "Stand up". "Hook up". The Port stick
struggled to their feet and snapped the hook at the end of their static
lines onto the overhead cable. "Check equipment".
Each man checked his static line, his helmet
fastening, his reserve hooks and flap covering the reserve chute handle.
Satisfied all was as it should be each man then checked the jumper in
front making sure the others static line ran clear and there was nothing
visually wrong with the back of the Parachute." Sound off for
equipment check" the dispatcher shouted. "Twelve OK!"
shouted the last man and slapped the shoulder of the person in front.
Each jumper repeated this until it reached the
lead man. 'Number One OK! Port stick OK!" The dispatcher put his
hand to his headphones and pressed the cup closer to his ear to hear the
pilot's commentary better. "Two minutes" came the call from
the pilot. The dispatcher had another quick look outside the aircraft to
satisfy himself of the DZ's location and called "Action
stations" at the same time pointing to the door.
The first man stepped smartly into the door
frame. It was almost a drill movement. His left hand snapped the static
line towards the dispatcher who grasped it firmly. His hand now free was
placed on the doorframe to steady himself and his right hand rested on
the top of his reserve. He looked out at the horizon and into the clear
blue French sky. Behind him the rest of the stick closed up. "Red
On!" He tensed his mouth suddenly seemed very dry and it was hard
to swallow. "Green On!" "Go!" Number one stepped
smartly into the slipstream and was tumbled away into the turbulence
below the aircraft followed rapidly by the rest of the stick.
He gasped as the Chute opened above him and the
pressure of his reserve threatened to squeeze all the air out of his
lungs. The moment passed quickly and allowed him to check his canopy.
Turning the chute he satisfied himself he was in no danger of a
collision with any other jumper and looked for the DZ. 2000 ft below he
could see the battery clearly marked out in the lush green Normandy
fields. It was now time to think about his landing. Far below a dirty
water filled ditch beckoned uninvitingly as he once again turned into
wind and assessed his drift.
No. This was not the Normandy invasion. Neither
was it a scene from a film. The Pathfinder parachute group had just
jumped onto the Merville gun battery in front of the survivors of the
original airborne assault. The 9th Battalion the Parachute Regiment.
This was their anniversary and for Pathfinder it was the second time
they had jumped here at the personnel invitation of the Veteran
battalions committee. 80% of Pathfinder are either serving or retired
paratroopers from all over the world and so the honour bestowed on them
by the 9th was appreciated.
Pathfinder was the brainchild of Sgt Roy Mobsby and Bdr (retired) Ron
Ball ably supported by Ian Marshall himself a serving member of the
British Parachute Association Council and a former Paratrooper.
The first year was a bit slow with only two
small courses being jumped at Paracentrum Texel. Word passed slowly
passed around that here was a group filling the gap between military
parachuting and sport parachuting. The membership rapidly increased not
only from England but also from abroad. Soon Danish LRRP, Japanese
Rangers, Dutch, German, Estonian, French, American and Canadian soldiers
both retired and serving swelled the ranks.
It takes a different type of bottle for static
line and free fall and not many can achieve both. Paratroopers feel that
2000 ft is high whereas a free faller will tell you that is their lowest
safety high before they become a stain on the landscape. Pathfinder
allows a retired paratrooper to continue jumping in the style has been
trained in and without a weapons container or a three-hour low-level
flight it becomes enjoyable. In order to jump safely and legally all
jumps are carried out at civilian minimum drop height but are the 'Walk
out the door" exits that paratroopers are used to. With nearly eight
hundred members spread over sixteen countries the "Airborne
Brotherhood "really does exist. As many of the jumpers noted
jumping with Pathfinder is like being back with the Airborne.
Although Pathfinder boasts a Brigadier, several
Colonels and Majors within its ranks no rank is used nor does it need to
be. All jumpers no matter what rank or nationality are there for the
same reason. To enjoy jumping round canopies. To jump in the style they
were all trained in and to uphold the traditions of the Airborne in an
age when it is fashionable to promote peace and unfortunately forget our
veterans and their sacrifices whilst doing so. The group keep the
military and the Para's in the public eye when the army cannot afford to
do so themselves.
Until recently the group felt they were the only
people who still had faith in the use of Para's in modern war. That was
until the American Airborne jumped into Afghanistan renewing the MOD
planners interest in Airborne assaults. Within the group are a few
civilian jumpers who have never been in the forces. These are usually
re-enactors from Airborne units who having portrayed Paratroopers wish
to find out what it is really like. Pathfinder gives these people the
opportunity to experience the end result without having to suffer
"P" Company like the rest of the group had to. These people do
not consider themselves Paratroopers but have a better insight into what
makes the airborne some of the best soldiers in the world.
In 1999 Pathfinder was given
the opportunity and honour to jump with British Regular and TA
Paratroopers at Ginkle Heath as part of the Arnhem anniversary jump.
This was their "Foot in the door" and the start of their
organisation being taken seriously. Two former Soviet AN2 jump ships
were pressed into action and twenty-five members from six countries
jumped onto the heath. The jumpers were then carried by re-enactors in
over 40 restored Willys jeeps around the battlefield area. Most of the
jumpers had at the request of a British veteran bought WW2 battledress
to make the jump more realistic. This was well received and as a result
we had an invitation from the veterans of the 9th Battalion the
Parachute regiment to jump at their anniversary onto the Merville gun
battery in Normandy.
This was successfully completed in 2000
and 2001 putting out over 40 jumpers each time. A cargo drop was also
carried out by 47 Air Despatch Sqn and a bail out by the jump masters
from a higher altitude as a tribute to the dispatchers and aircrew who
had died on these missions. In 2004 Pathfinder again had the opportunity
to jump into Normandy but this time onto Drop Zone N as part of the 60th
Anniversary drop. Over 106 members of Pathfinder jumped in five DC3
lifts. Pathfinder has jumped into Dreil,
Since that day Pathfinder and its representatives have
jumped on several anniversary events and clocked up an interesting
array of jumps that include the following
1999. Den Burg in Holland for the Anniversary of VE
day,
The Mervile Gun Battery DZ in Normandy for the Invasion Anniversary in
2000 and 2001,
2001. India for the Indian Airborne Diamond Jubilee,
2002.Battle for Arnhem Anniversary onto Ginkle Heath
DZ and the Polish DZ at Driel
2003.Battle for Arnhem Anniversary onto Ginkle Heath
DZ
2004. Normandy Invasion Anniversary onto DZ N
alongside 1 Para.
2004. Battle for Arnhem Anniversary which was filmed
for part of the 'Road to Berlin' TV series with Al Murrey.
2005.Israel for their 'Freedom jump'
2005. Den Burg Holland for the anniversary of VE day.
2005. Semnoz and Vasieux DZ in the French Alps for
the anniversary of Peter Churchills SOE drops.
2006. Operation Musketeer in Israel,the anniversary
of the Suez Canal drop.
2006. Battle for Arnhem Anniversary onto Ginkle Heath
DZ
2007. Battle for Arnhem Anniversary onto Ginkle Heath
DZ ,the Polish DZ at Driel and the American DZ at Groesbeek.
2008. Israel for their 'Freedom jump'
2008. Battle for Arnhem Anniversary onto Ginkle Heath
DZ and the American DZ at Wolfhese and Groesbeek.
In 2004 the Arnhem anniversary was a distinct honour for Pathfinder as
we were request to try to jump on to the LZ that should have
been used in 1944. However British Intelligence thought the Dutch
Resistance had been compromised and that the LZ was too soft.We walked
the DZ and decided it was too small for a mass drop so several passes
were made with four jumpers each time. Thanks to some good flying and
excellent spotting from Ian Marshall the senior jump master all
jumpers were delivered safely onto the DZ.All 28 jumpers landed in
front of thousands of spectators. Maybe we proved history was
wrong and our troops could have taken both ends of the bridge.The war
may have been shortened but who knows.It was a successful drop for
Pathfinder.
Several static displays have been carried out on
Pathfinders behalf by re-enactment groups who portray
"Pathfinder" units. Pathfinder only supports groups whose
members are ex Para or who have attended their basic course at Texel or
Tuege. The basic Dutch Military Parachutist course taught by Texel
and Teuge is used as a safety guide. All new jumpers must attend
this course in order to maintain a safe standard within the group. With
so many different member nationalities all with different methods of
training to achieve the same aim it is essential to have a common
syllabus for jumping. The Dutch National Parachute training centre at
Teuge has been adopted as the groups new home DZ. Mainly due to
logistical problems. The staff are friendly, the training amongst
the safest and best in the world and the area is ideal for jumping.
American MC-1C are used by the group who have now purchased a number of
their own chutes and intend to obtain more.
Due to the BPA phasing out round canopies in England, Pathfinder cannot
jump in its home country but is nevertheless welcomed in many other
countries. All jumpers must be fully insured and thanks to British based
companies have the best parachute insurance money can buy.
Pathfinder has jumped for Cromwell productions and Channel five's
British heroes series as well as numerous foreign news networks.
Each year the membership grows bigger and we spread the word
further afield each year. We look forward to you and your friends
joining us for an adventure of a lifetime.
We wish you Blue Skies and Soft Landings
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(retired) 
7 Para RHA (retired).