Quote:
Originally Posted by James Langham
One thing that is often forgotten is that in the months leading up to September a number of these smaller operations had been conceived and abandoned as the ground troops reached the drop zones before the airborne could be deployed!
The biggest problem with Market Garden (in hindsight) is that it is an all or nothing affair, without reaching Arnhem it gives you no advantage. What is so frustrating is how close it comes and how many little things conspire against success.
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If my memory is correct, I want to say there was something on the order of 14-15 operations that were planned and dropped due to the speed of the ground advance.
To be sure 1st Allied Airborne Army wanted to get back into the fight and one of the things that came out of Market-Garden was the speed with which they were able to plan and launch over 35,000 paratroopers. Just that was a major feat.
But Market-Garden also showed the weakness of airborne forces, unless they can be quickly reinforced by the ground forces, the paratroopers get cut up quickly.
Before the paratroop mafia jumps over this ole tanker, the stands of the 101st and 82nd in the Battle of the Bulge showed off their capability...but let us not forget that the 101st was encircled in Bastogne with the remaining elements of CCR, 9th Armored Division, CCB, 10th Armored Division, a battalion of SP tank destroyers, three battalions of 155mm howitzers and 4.5in guns, as well as survivors of the 28th Infantry Division (Team SNAFU), hardly the "all-airborne" fight that is remembered.
The 82nd fought elements of the 1st SS Panzer Division trying to break through to relieve KG Pieper. Until the 82nd was reinforced by major elements of the 3rd Armored Division, they were not able to maintain a line...bazookas, 57mm antitank guns and satchel charges had a rather hard time in slowing down Panthers and King Tigers.