Wikipedia

3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment

The3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment(3 PARA), is abattalionsized formation of theBritish Army'sParachute Regimentand is a subordinate unit within16 Air Assault Brigade.

Third Battalion, Parachute Regiment
Cap badge of the Parachute Regiment
Active1941–1948
1948 – present
CountryUnited Kingdom
BranchBritish Army
TypeAirborne infantry
RoleAir assaultinfantry
SizeBattalion
662 personnel[1]
Part ofParachute Regiment
16 Air Assault Brigade
Garrison/HQColchester Garrison
Nickname(s)Gungy Third[2]
Motto(s)Utrinque Paratus
(Latinfor "Ready for Anything" )
Engagements
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Sir Gerald Lathbury
Richard Lonsdale
Insignia
Drop zone flash

Roled as anAirbornelight infantryunit, the battalion is capable of a wide range of operational taskings. Based at Merville Barracks,Colchester Garrison,their barracks in England, personnel regularly deploy outside of the United Kingdom on operations and training.

A unique part of the 3rd Battalion is the inclusion of the Guards Parachute Platoon, which is incorporated into B Company and also known as 6 (Guards) Platoon. The Guards Parachute Platoon is made up of volunteers who have passed P Company from the five Regiments ofFoot Guardsand Infantry qualified members of theHousehold Cavalry;they can be distinguished from other paratroopers by a "blue red blue" patch sewn to their beret beneath the Parachute Regimentcap badge.

History

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Three of the first British paratroopers June 1941.

Background

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Impressed by the success of German airborne operations during theBattle of France,the BritishPrime Minister,Winston Churchill,directed theWar Officeto investigate the possibility of creating acorpsof 5,000 parachute troops.[3]On 22 June 1940,No. 2 Commandowas redeployed to parachute duties and on 21 November re-designated the 11th Special Air Service Battalion, with both a parachute and glider wing,[4][5]the men of which took part in the first British airborne operation,Operation Colossus,on 10 February 1941.[6]The success of the raid prompted the War Office to expand the airborne forces, setting up the Airborne Forces Depot and Battle School inDerbyshirein April 1942, and creating the Parachute Regiment as well as converting a number of infantry battalions into airborne battalions or platoons in August 1942.[7]

All parachute forces had to undergo a twelve-day parachute training course atNo. 1 Parachute Training School,RAF Ringway.Initial parachute jumps were from a convertedbarrage balloonand finished with five jumps from an aircraft.[8][nb 1]Anyone failing to complete a descent was returned to his old unit. Those men who successfully completed the parachute course were presented with theirmaroon beretandparachute wings.[8][10]

Airborne soldiers were expected to fight against superior numbers of the enemy armed with heavy weapons, including artillery and tanks. Training was as a result designed to encourage a spirit of self-discipline, self-reliance and aggressiveness. Emphasis was given to physical fitness,marksmanshipandfieldcraft.[11]A large part of the training regime consisted ofassault coursesandroute marchingwhilemilitary exercisesincluded capturing and holding airborne bridgeheads, road or rail bridges and coastal fortifications.[11]At the end of most exercises, the battalions would march back to their barracks. An ability to cover long distances at speed was also expected: airborne platoons were required to cover a distance of 50 miles (80 km) in twenty-four hours, and battalions 32 miles (51 km).[11]

There was a wide spread rumour that started circulating about the 3rd Battalion that they would often defecate into the boots of men in other battalions as a sort of practical joke. This rumour was found to be true when an officer of the regiment discovered human excrement in his shoe, no one was found guilty of the prank however until a couple of years later where Michael Smith (1st Battalion), caught Sam Bowyer (3rd Battalion) placing human excrement into his boots.[12]

3rd Battalion

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The 3rd Parachute Battalion was formed in 1941 from volunteers from various infantry regiments. It became part of the1st Parachute Brigade,later part of the1st Airborne Division.The battalion first saw action during theOperation Torchlandings, and thenfurther operations in North Africa,by the independent 1st Parachute Brigade. After theTunisian campaign,the battalion and brigade rejoined the 1st Airborne Division, and took part inOperation FustianinSicily,andOperation Slapstickon theItalianmainland.[13]

Withdrawn to Britain with the rest of the 1st Airborne Division, the next mission was duringOperation Market Gardenand theBattle of Arnhem,during which the battalion was virtually wiped out. Afterwards, the battalion was reformed but never saw any further action during the Second World War, though it may have gone to Norway with the initial reoccupation force in 1945. The battalion was then assigned to the3rd Parachute Brigadein the6th Airborne Divisionand served with them inPalestine.The battalion was disbanded in 1948, but was reformed by the re-numbering of the7th (Light Infantry) Parachute Battalionas the 3rd atItzehoein July 1948.[14]

The battalion was deployed inNorthern Ireland12 times between 1971 and 2004, duringthe Troubles.In the summer of 1976, it was based in SouthCounty Armagh,where complaints were made of its treatment of residents.[15]

In 1981, it joined5th Infantry Brigadeat Aldershot on the reconversion of British Army Field Forces back into brigades. In 1982, it was hurriedly transferred to3 Commando Brigade,along with 2 PARA, to reinforce that brigade ahead of the Task Force's sailing for theFalklands Conflict.After marching 50 miles across the islands, the Battalion saw action on 11/12 June when it was engaged in theBattle of Mount Longdon.[16]

Kajaki Dam, Helmand Province, Afghanistan

In 2006 3 PARA battle group was deployed to Helmand Province in Afghanistan. As the first NATO troops to enter Helmand they were soon engaged in some of the heaviest fighting the British Army had seen since the Korean War. On 4 September 2006, four Soviet anti-personnel mines, undetonated since the1979-1989 Soviet–Afghan War,were set off by members of 3PARA in what became known as theKajaki Dam Incident.There was a single fatality and seven others were left with seriously life-threatening injuries.[17]

3 PARA soldiers in combat in Afghanistan during 2008

In October 2013, 3 PARA took part in a large training exercise to return to the Airborne Assault role.[18]

In September 2014, a comprehensive history of the battalion, with numerous links to photos, obituaries and more was founded – the creation of Paradata, a 'living history' of the Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces[19]

3 PARA trained with its anti-tank platoon to take on the Air Assault Task Force (AATF) role from May 2014, with the unit's airborne infantry bolstered by artillery, engineers, medics and logisticians from 16 Air Assault Brigade.[20]

In 2018, over 80 members of 3 PARA were sent to Afghanistan as part of theResolute Support Mission,to protect military and civilian advisors working in government ministries and work as advisors at the Afghan National Army Officers' Academy, alongside the 1st BattalionRoyal Gurkha Rifles.[21][22][23]

In April 2019 the battalion was investigated by the Ministry of Defence when a video circulated on social media showing four members of 3 PARA firing simulation weapons at an image ofLabourleader andLeader of the OppositionJeremy Corbyn.[24]

On 7 June 2022, the Chief of the General Staff,Sir Patrick Sanders,took the decision to cancel an overseas deployment by the battalion after a number of incidents which demonstrated a poor standard of discipline in the battalion.[25]The minister,James Heappey,was said to be "sorry and embarrassed" by the "disgraceful" behaviour.[26]

See also

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Notes

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Footnotes
  1. ^Barrage balloons were used to speed up training jumps and meet the target of 5,000 trained parachutists.[9]
Citations
  1. ^"Army – Question for Ministry of Defence".p. 1. Archived fromthe originalon 26 February 2021.Retrieved14 December2020.
  2. ^Bishop 2009,p. 28.
  3. ^Otway, p.21
  4. ^Shortt & McBride, p.4
  5. ^Moreman, p.91
  6. ^Guard, p.218
  7. ^Harclerode, p.218
  8. ^abGuard, p.224
  9. ^Reynolds, p.16
  10. ^Guard, p.226
  11. ^abcGuard, p.225
  12. ^The Ups and Downs of the Third Platoon p.76
  13. ^Mitcham, Samuel W (2007).German Order of Battle, Volume 2: 291st–999th Infantry Divisions, Named Infantry Divisions, and Special Divisions in World War II.Stackpole Military History Series. Vol. 2 of German Order of Battle. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. p. 281.ISBN978-0-8117-3437-0.
  14. ^"7th (Light Infantry) Parachute Battalion".Archived fromthe originalon 23 January 2011.Retrieved4 April2011.
  15. ^"CAIN: Events: Fr. Denis Faul and Fr. Raymond Murray. (1976) Majella O'Hare: Shot Dead by the British Army 14 August 1976".ulst.ac.uk.Retrieved1 November2015.
  16. ^Christian Jennings and Adrian Weale,Green-Eyed Boys: 3 Para and the Battle for Mount Longdon,p. 142, HarperCollins, 1996
  17. ^"Kajaki: Turning a remarkable Afghanistan escape into a film".The Independent.London. 17 November 2014.Retrieved15 May2020.
  18. ^"Back to basics for 3 PARA | British Forces News".Bfbs. Archived fromthe originalon 29 October 2013.Retrieved25 October2013.
  19. ^"The 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment (3 PARA)".paradata.org.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 12 February 2016.Retrieved1 November2015.
  20. ^Ministry of Defence and Defence Infrastructure Organisation (19 September 2013)."Javelin missiles fired at Norfolk training range – News stories".GOV.UK.Retrieved25 October2013.
  21. ^"3 PARA Prepare For Afghanistan Deployment".Forces Network.16 October 2018.
  22. ^"3 PARA Deploys To Afghanistan on NATO Mission".Forces Network.19 November 2018.
  23. ^Giannangeli, Marco (18 November 2018)."British Parachute Regiment sent back into combat in Afghanistan to beat IS".Daily Express.
  24. ^Sabbagh, Dan; Weaver, Matthew (3 April 2019)."Video shows British troops firing at Jeremy Corbyn poster".The Guardian.
  25. ^"Paratroops banned from deployment over orgy filmed at Merville Barracks".The Times.17 June 2022.Retrieved17 June2022.
  26. ^"Army minister 'embarrassed' over alleged paratrooper sex video at Colchester's Merville Barracks".ITV. 9 June 2022.Retrieved17 June2022.

References

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  • Bishop, P (2009).Ground Truth.UK: HarperPress.ISBN978-0-00-729665-1.
  • Ferguson, Gregor (1984).The Paras 1940-84.Volume 1 of Elite series. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing.ISBN0-85045-573-1.
  • Guard, Julie (2007).Airborne: World War II Paratroopers in Combat.Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing.ISBN978-1-84603-196-0.
  • Harclerode, Peter (2005).Wings Of War – Airborne Warfare 1918-1945.London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.ISBN0-304-36730-3.
  • Moreman, Timothy Robert (2006).British Commandos 1940–46.Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing.ISBN1-84176-986-X.
  • Otway, Lieutenant-Colonel T.B.H. (1990).The Second World War 1939–1945 Army – Airborne Forces.London: Imperial War Museum.ISBN0-901627-57-7.
  • Reynolds, David (1998).Paras: An Illustrated History of Britain's Airborne Forces.Stroud, UK: Sutton Publishing.ISBN0-7509-2059-9.
  • Saunders, Hilary Aidan St. George (1950).The Red Beret: the Story of the Parachute Regiment at War, 1940-1945(4 ed.). Torrington, UK: Joseph.OCLC2927434.
  • Shortt, James;McBride, Angus (1981).The Special Air Service.Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing.ISBN0-85045-396-8.
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