PARATROOPERS carried out an airborne assault on Salisbury Plain – all in the name of training.
About 100 members of C Company, 3rd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment were strapped into body armour and given weapons with daysacks strapped to their legs.
They then climbed to 100ft in two RAF C-130J Hercules, before jumping into the drop zone.
The soldiers regrouped before sending out reconnaissance patrols to perform a night attack and capture a mock village at Copehill Down.
After fighting building-bybuilding and street-by-street to secure their position, they defended it until finally being relieved by the mechanised infantry of 1st Battalion, the Scots Guards that night.
Major Bob McKay, officer commanding C Company, said: “As we move on from Afghanistan and prepare for the next operational challenges, we are going back to basics.
“This particular mission is exactly what the Parachute Regiment was created to do, and it can be found many times in our history.
“We parachute in, capture a strategic objective by surprise and then hold it until heavier forces can relieve us.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here