101st Airborne Division
"Screamin' Eagles"
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In the carefully conceived plans for the invasion of Nazi-held Europe, it became evident that a large force of hard-hitting, superbly-trained airborne troops would be needed to nullify coastal defenses and cut enemy lines. Thus, on Aug. 16, 1942, the 101st Airborne Division was activated at Camp Claiborne, La. After months of arduous training, drills and practice jumps, two parachute infantry regiments and two glider regiments landed in England in the fall of 1943. The division made history on D-Day, June 6, 1944, when it jumped, 14,000 strong, into occupied France. The division's fortunes fluctuated after World War II, and it was inactivated and reactivated as a training division three times in 11 years. On July 29, 1965, the 1st Brigade and support troops arrived at Cam Ranh Bay to begin the next chapter in the Screaming Eagles' combat history. The remainder of the division was in country by Dec, 13, 1967, and a year later, more than 10,000 enemy had died at the hands of the 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile). The division's mission has carried it into all four of Vietnam's tactical zones, and it has successfully defended the U.S. embassy in Saigon, the Bien Hoa Air Base and the coastal city of Phan Thiet.
