Current and Legacy Airborne Units
AAC's Current and Legacy Airborne Units collection connects the organizations that developed American airborne warfare with the Soldiers who continued its traditions. It is a guide to related histories, not a claim that every represented unit is currently active or on parachute status.
Building an Airborne Force
The 1940 Parachute Test Platoon at Fort Benning helped establish the practical foundation for American parachute infantry. World War II brought larger formations and a combination of parachute and glider forces, supported by aircraft crews, artillery, engineers, signal, medical, and supply personnel.
These organizations did not all enter combat in the same way. A glider infantry regiment was part of an airborne division without being a parachute infantry regiment.
Different Ways to Arrive
A parachute assault, an airlanding, and a helicopter air assault are distinct methods. In Grenada in 1983, Rangers parachuted onto Point Salines while follow-on 82nd Airborne Division forces arrived in aircraft that landed.
The distinction also applies to training. Earning parachutist wings, serving in an airborne organization, and participating in a combat jump are separate qualifications and experiences.
Current Organizations and Historical Names
Present-day airborne capability exists within organizations whose structure has changed over time. The 11th Airborne Division, for example, includes an infantry brigade and a separate airborne brigade; its name does not mean that every formation in the division has the same parachute mission.
Legacy unit names remain important to veterans even after inactivation or redesignation. Campaign credit, official special designations, mottos, and informal unit identities should be matched to the right organization and era.
Use AAC's individual unit histories and their Historical Sources sections for the more specific record behind a design. Shared airborne heritage is a connection between those stories, not a substitute for them.
Historical Sources
- National Airborne Day holds special resonance at Fort Benning, birthplace of the Airborne. U.S. Army, 2020. The 1940 test platoon and development of parachute training.
- The Development of Airfield Seizure Operations in the United States Army. Army University Press, Military Review, R. F. M. Williams, 2021. Distinguishes parachute assaults and airlanded follow-on forces, including Grenada.
- 11th Airborne Division units. U.S. Army, 11th Airborne Division. The different roles of the division’s infantry and airborne brigades.
Airborne Apparel Company honors this heritage through reproductions and original designs for the people who served and those who remember them.
