Product Description During World War II, perhaps no unit had a more outstanding combat record than the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry of the 82nd Airborne Division, under the command of the legendary Lieutenant Colonel Ben Vandervoort, famously portrayed in the movie, The Longest Day, by John Wayne.
He led the Battalion through the entire Normandy campaign, despite badly breaking his ankle upon landing by par.
Vandervoort and his paratroopers were at the forefront of some of the most crucial battles of World War II, making four combat jumps in just fourteen months-Sicily, Italy, Normandy, and Holland.
He has skillfully woven their words together in an exciting and powerfully compelling narrative that puts the reader into the heart of combat with these elite warriors.
Phil Nordyke has gathered an amazing amount of first person accounts through interviews, oral histories, diaries, letters, memoirs, awards files, and official accounts.
Their incredible true story is now told for the first time in the words of Lieutenant Colonel Vandervoort and his troopers.
He led one of the finest Infantry battalions ever fielded by the United States Army-the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
From the Back Cover Lieutenant Colonel Ben Vandervoort, forever immortalized by John Wayne in the movie, The Longest Day, was one of the great combat commanders of World War II.
The reader will feel the emotions and realism associated with combat, as conveyed in the words of the veterans themselves.
Now, Phil Nordyke tells the story of this incredible leader and his paratroopers in their own words using over one hundred written and oral accounts to draw the reader into the close combat experienced by these amazing men.
It fought in the Battle of the Bulge and in Germany in the closing days of the war.
The Battalion was at the forefront of many of the most fierce battles of World War II, making four combat jumps in just fourteen months: Sicily, Italy, Normandy, and Holland.
Product Description During World War II, perhaps no unit had a more outstanding combat record than the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry of the 82nd Airborne Division, under the command of the legendary Lieutenant Colonel Ben Vandervoort, famously portrayed in the movie, The Longest Day, by John Wayne
