PARATROOPERS from both sides of the Channel came together for a shared jump in France.
More than 350 troops from the Colchester-based Air Assault Brigade and their French partners 11e Brigade Parachutiste jumped on to fields near Mont St Michel in Normandy on Friday.
An RAF C130 Hercules took off from RAF Brize Norton to drop a mixed load of 50 British and French paratroopers into France, with French paratroopers jumping from C160 Transall and Casa CN-235 transport aircraft in a number of waves across the day.
Lance Corporal Sean Bowden, of 23 Parachute Engineer Regiment, said: “It was a great jump, the air was still and I had an amazing view of Mont St Michel on the way down - the ground was quite hard and dry to land on though.
“Today is about celebrating our partnership with the French. We’re all paratroopers with similar roles, training and experiences and we work together very well.”
16 Air Asslt Bde and 11e BP – who both serve as their respective armies’ airborne rapid reaction forces – are at the forefront of co-operation between the British and French militaries.
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