First to Jump (25 page)

On short rest, McNiece was ordered to train a new group of Pathfinders that would parachute down inside the enemy perimeter and set beacons for an aerial resupply similar to the one that saved the 101st in Belgium. McNiece and Williams pulled the team into shape and led them on their mission, which went off without a hitch.

Two months later, in April, with no further Pathfinder missions anticipated, McNiece was returned to Regimental Headquarters and rejoined the 506th as a demo-sabo when the unit took control of Hitler's abandoned Bavarian chalet, the Eagle's Nest.

On May 7, 1945, General Alfred Jodl, chief of Germany's High Command, signed his nation's complete and unconditional surrender to the Western Allies at Reims, France.

When he spoke about the war decades afterward, McNiece was dismissive of the Pathfinders' role in the Allied triumph, and specifically the jump into Bastogne.

“It wasn't particularly patriotic of us, it was self-preservation,” he said, leaving it to others to call them heroes.

Colonel Joel Crouch. In civilian life, a United Airlines pilot. After Sicily, he brainstormed the Pathfinders idea with General “Jumping” James Gavin.

All photos courtesy of the National Archives

Captain Frank Lillyman chewing on one of his lucky cigars. When he ran low on his Army allotment, he had his wife mail him stogies.

Lieutenant Charles Faith and his stick pose before they board the C-47 for Operation Market Garden. Most will be killed when the plane is hit by German flak.

Officers, including Captain Frank Lillyman (center left), look over a sandtable before the drop into Normandy.

The Rebecca unit (above) in the C-47 transport sent out a time radar pulse that was picked up by the Eureka (right), which the Pathfinders had set up in the drop zone. The Eureka sent back a confirming pulse to the Rebecca.

Sergeant Jake McNiece applies war paint to another trooper. He wasn't much of a garrison soldier, but he was a warrior on the battlefield.

Paratroopers drop on Holland on the first day of Operation Market Garden.

Troopers from the 101st make their way through the Dutch town of Veghel.

Jack Agnew sits on a pile of bricks in Bastogne. He will guard the Eureka here for several days in the bitter cold.

A great many primary and secondary source materials were used in the preparation of this narrative. These include interviews, letters, declassified action reports and other archival documents, newspaper and magazine stories, official military histories, published books, and various Internet sources.

The dialogue in
First to Jump
is taken entirely from primary sources and interviews, and to that end I owe a special debt to the oral histories of George Koskimaki, and the memoirs of Acting Sergeant Jake McNiece (with Richard Killblane).

War is inherently chaotic, and in instances where there may be conflicting recollections of events, I've used logic and judgment to draw an account that is consistent with available facts. Any errors or omissions that may occur in the telling of the tale are my responsibility alone.

A list of major sources follows.

ARCHIVAL U.S. MILITARY DOCUMENTS
(UNCLASSIFIED AND DECLASSIFIED)

Operations of the 101st Airborne Division in the Invasion of France, Army Ground Forces Report No. 116, Headquarters, European Theater of Operations, United States Army WD Observers Board, July 15, 1944 by Charles H. Coates, Colonel, Infantry.

Report of D-Day Pathfinder Activities, 101st Airborne Division Pathfinder Group, APO-472 U.S. Army, July 1, 1944 by Frank L. Lillyman, Captain, 502nd Parachute Infantry, Division Pathfinder Officer.

Report of Pathfinder Employment for Operation Neptune, Headquarters 82nd Airborne Division, Advance Command Post, APO-469—In the Field, June 11, 1944 by M.L. McRoberts, Captain, Infantry, 82nd Airborne Division, Pathfinders.

Annex 12 to Ninth Air Force Tactical Air Plan for Operation Neptune, Headquarters IX Troop Carrier Command, APO-133 U.S. Army, May 2, 1944 by Paul L. Williams, Brigadier General, USA, Commanding.

Regimental Unit Study Number 3, 506 Parachute Infantry Regiment in Normandy Drop, Historical Section, European Theater of Operations, 8-3.1 BB 3 by S.L.A. Marshall, Colonel.

Battalion and Small Unit Study Number 9, Cassidy's Battalion, Historical Section, European Theater of Operations, 8-3.1 BA 9 by S.L.A Marshall, Colonel.

Operations of the 101st Airborne Division in the Airborne Invasion of the Netherlands 17 September–27 September 1944 (Rhineland Campaign), Personal Participation—Battalion Executive of an Airborne AA-AT Battalion, Robert R. Kemm, Major, Infantry.

Report on Operation Market, Air Invasion of Holland by IX Troop Carrier Command by Paul L. Williams, Major General, USA, Commanding.

AGF Report 449—Pathfinder Teams U.S. 101st Airborne, Division Operation “Market,” APO-887, December 12, 1944 by Harvey J. Jablonsky, Colonel, Infantry, WD Observers Board.

Report of Airborne Phase Operation “Market,” APO 109, October 5, 1944 by Headquarters XVII Corps, Airborne

Escape and Evasion Report 2307, Faith, Charles M. (1st Lt.), MLR Number UD 133, UD 134 by War Department, U.S. Forces, European Theater, Military Intelligence Service (MIS), Escape and Evasion section (MIS-X).

Memorandum: Pillaging and Plundering, Headquarters 101st Airborne Division, Office of the Division Commander, APO-472, October 17, 1944 by Maxwell D. Taylor, Major General, USA, Commanding.

The Operations of a Regimental Pathfinder Unit, 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment (82nd Airborne Division) In Normandy, France 6 June 1944 (Normandy Campaign) by Captain John T. Joseph, Infantry, Advanced Infantry Officers Class Number Two.

Graphic Survey of Radio and Radar Equipment used by the Army Air Forces, July 1, 1945 by United States Army Air Forces Air Technical Service Command, N-12836-D-2.

Training Progress Report 1 Dec 1944–14 January 45, Headquarters IX TCC Pathfinder Group (Prov.), Office of the Corps Pathfinder Officer, APO-135, 14 January 1945 by Frank L. Brown, Captain, Infantry (Parachute) Corps Pathfinder Officer.

Report of Pathfinder Operation “Nuts,” Headquarters IX TCC Pathfinder Group (Prov.) Office of the VXIII Corps, Airborne, June 27, 1945 by Frank L. Brown, Infantry (Parachute) Corps Pathfinder Officer.

Packed Parachute Delivery Supplies at AAF 465, APO 133, January 9, 1945, Headquarters 409th Quartermaster Depot Commander, Marvin F. Jacobs, 1st Lieutenant, QMC, Operations Officer.

Report of Resupply of American Troops in Bastogne Area, Headquarters, IX Troop Carrier Pathfinder Group (Prov.), 1944 by Lieutenant Colonel Joel L. Crouch.

Siege of Bastogne, Historical Section, European Theater of Operations, Office of the Chief of Military history by S.L.A. Marshall, Colonel.

BOOKS

Crusade in Europe
by
General
Dwight D. Eisenhower (New York: Doubleday & Company, 1948).

The Memoirs of Field Marshall Montgomery
by Viscount Montgomery of Alamein (Cleveland: World Publishing Company, 1958).

Soldier: The Memoirs of Matthew B. Ridgeway
by Matthew B. Ridgeway as told to Harold H. Martin (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1956).

On to Berlin: Battles of an Airborne Commander, 1943
–
1946
by General James M. Gavin (New York: Viking, 1978).

Airborne: World War II Paratroopers in Combat
Edited by Julie Guard (United Kingdom: Osprey, 2007).

Easy Company Soldier: The Legendary Battles of a Sergeant from World War II's “Band of Brothers”
by Sergeant Don Malarky with Bob Welch (New York: St. Martin's Press, 2008).

In the Footsteps of the Band of Brothers: A Return to Easy Company's Battlefields with Sgt. Forrest Guth
by Larry Alexander (New York: New American Library, 2007).

Parachute Infantry: An American Paratrooper's Memoir of D-Day and the Fall of the Third Reich
by David Kenyon Webster (Louisiana State University Press, 1994).

The Filthy Thirteen: From the Dustbowl to Hitler's Eagle's Nest: The True Story of the 101st Airborne's Most Legendary Squad of Combat Paratroopers
by Richard Killblane and Jake McNiece (Philadelphia: Casemate Publishers, 2003).

Fighting With the Filthy Thirteen: The World War II Story of Jack Womer—Ranger and Paratrooper
by Jack Womer and Steven DeVito (Philadelphia: Casemate 2012).

Hugh Nibley: A Consecrated Life
by Boyd Jay Peterson (Utah: Greg Kofford Books, 2002).

The Longest Day: June 6, 1944
by Cornelius Ryan (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1959).

A Bridge Too Far
by Cornelius Ryan (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974).

If Chaos Reigns: The Near-Disaster and Ultimate Triumph of the Allied Airborne Forces on D-Day, June 6, 1944
by Flint Whitlock (Philadelphia: Casemate, 2011).

Tonight We Die As Men
:
The Untold Story of Third Battalion 506 Parachute Infantry Regiment from Toccoa to D-Day
by Ian Gardner and Roger Day (United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing, 2009).

Voices of D-Day: The Story of the Allied Invasion, Told by Those Who Were There
Edited by Ronald J. Drez (Louisiana State University Press, 1996).

War Stories of D-Day: Operation Overlord: June 6, 1944
by Michael Green and James D. Brown (Norwalk: MBI Publishing, 2009).

American GI in Europe in World War Two, Volume 3
by J.E. Kaufmann and H.W. Kaufmann (Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 2009).

Deliver Us from Darkness
:
The Untold Story of the Third Battalion 506 Parachute Infantry Regiment During Market Garden
by Ian Gardner (United Kingdom: Osprey Publishing, 2012).

Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest
by Stephen E. Ambrose (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001).

Pegasus Bridge, June 6, 1944
by Stephen E. Ambrose (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1988).

Citizen Soldiers: The U.S. Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany, June 7, 1944
–
May 7, 1945
by Stephen E. Ambrose (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997).

September Hope: The American Side of a Bridge Too Far
by John C. McManus (New York: New American Library, 2012).

Alamo in the Ardennes: The Untold Story of the American Soldiers Who Made the Defense of Bastogne Possible
by John C. McManus (New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2007).

D-Day with the Screaming Eagles
by George Koskimaki (New York: Presidio Press, 2006).

Hell's Highway: A Chronicle of the 101
st
Airborne Division in the Holland Campaign, September
–
November 1944
by George Koskimaki (Philadelphia: Casemate Publishers, 2003).

Hell's Highway: U.S. 101st Airborne and Guards Armored Division
by Tim Saunders (Pennsylvania: Casemate, 2001).

The Battered Bastards of Bastogne: The 101st Airborne and the Battle of the Bulge, December 19, 1944
–
January 17, 1945
by George Koskimaki (New York: Presidio Press, reissue edition, 2007).

101
st
Airborne: The Screaming Eagles at Normandy
by Mark Bando (New York/London: Zenith Press, 2001).

101
st
Airborne: The Screaming Eagles in World War II
by Mark Bando (New York/London: Zenith Press, 2007).

Avenging Eagles: Forbidden Tales of the 101st Airborne Division in World War 2
by Mark Bando (Michigan: Mark Bando Publishing, 2007).

Into the Valley: The Untold Story of USAAF Troop Carrier Command in World War II from North Africa through Europe
by Charles Hutchinson Young (Michigan: PrintComm, 1995).

Battle: The Story of the Bulge
by John Toland (New York: Random House, 1959).

The Unknown Dead: Civilians in the Battle of the Bulge
by Pete Schrijvers (The University Press of Kentucky, 2005).

ARTICLES

“Lillyman, Invasion Pathfinder, Knew He Was to Lead Invasion,” Howard Cowan,
The Syracuse Herald-American
, June 8, 1944.

“Paratrooper Capt. Lillyman, Husband Skaneateles Woman, First Soldier to Land in France,” Uncredited,
The Skaneateles Press
, June 9, 1944.

“Capt. Lillyman's Cigar Plays Important Part in Jump, He Once Said,” Uncredited,
The Skaneateles Press
, June 9, 1944.

“Soldier at Ease: New York Hotel Treats Paratrooper Veteran to Banana Splits, Fancy Five-Room Suite and Bemushroomed Steaks,” Uncredited,
LIFE Magazine
, December 3, 1945.

“D-Day Hero Dies,” Uncredited,
Lodi News Sentinel,
March 9, 1971.

“D-Day Remembered,” Uncredited,
Air Force News Agency
, June 8, 2006.

“Sergeant Recalls Days under General Taylor,” Uncredited,
Kentucky New Era
, June 29, 1959.

“Generals Rise at Dawn Says Lorelle Hearst,” Lorelle Hearst,
The Milwaukee Sentinel
, June 10, 1944.

“The Pilot Who Led the D-Day Invasion,” Tony Reichhardt,
Air & Space Magazine,
June 6, 2014.

“Supplies Are Dropped to U.S. Troops: Surrounded Men Get Aid as Relief Column Is Nearing London,” Associated Press,
The Independent-Record
, December 27, 1944.

“Supplies to Troops: Ammunition Parachuted to Americans in Bastogne Area,” Associated Press,
Lawrence Journal-World
, December 27, 1944.

“The Story of the 101st Airborne Division,” booklet, Staff,
Stars and Stripes
Magazine,
1945.

“Family Seeks Clues to WWII Mystery of Missing Pilot,” Doug Clark,
Ellensburg Daily Record
, March 1, 2001.

“Story Behind a Brick of a Hero,” Libby Car,
West Seattle Herald
, July, 27, 2009.

“El Pasoans Went to War as Young Paratroopers,” John Hall,
El Paso Times,
November 11, 2010.

“Old Paratroopers Relives Leaps of Faith: 12 D-Day Pathfinders Reunite in Nashville for What May Be Last Time,” Leon Alligood,
The Tennessean,
May 20, 2006.

“World War II Veteran Everett Andrews Will Return to Bastogne, Along with Parachute Used in War,”
Fayetteville Observer
, Chick Jacobs, March 1, 2014.

“‘Filthy 13' Squad Rivaled by None in Leaping Party,” Tom Hoge,
Stars and Stripes,
June 8, 1944.

“A Christmas Present for Bastogne,” Richard Killblane,
World War II Magazine,
September 2003.

“‘Filthy Thirteen' Veterans Recount Their Antics during WWII,” Leo Shane III,
Stars and Stripes,
November 10, 2008.

“World War II Soldier John (Jack) Agnew, Whose Unit Inspired ‘Dirty Dozen,' Dies at 88,” Associated Press,
New York Daily
News
, April 12, 2010.

“Jake McNiece, Who Led Incorrigible D-Day Unit, Is Dead at 93,” William Yardley,
New York Times,
February 13, 2013

Obituary, Joel L. Crouch,
Honolulu Star-Bulletin
, August 23, 1997.

TRANSCRIPTS/RECORDED INTERVIEWS

Acting Sgt. Jake McNiece, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne, Pathfinder (Series of 15 videotaped interviews), The Witness to War Foundation, WitnesstoWar.org.

Acting Sgt. Jake McNiece and Private John J. Agnew, 506th PIR, Pathfinders, 2009 (video), American Veterans Committee.

Private Reed Williams, 502nd PIR, 101st Airborne, Pathfinder (Series of 6 videotaped interviews), The Witness to War Foundation, WitnesstoWar.org.

Sgt. Maynard “Beamy” Beamesderfer, 501st PIR, 101st Airborne, Pathfinder, and Private Angel Romero, 82nd Airborne, May 26, 2012 (radio), Hometownheroes.com, interview conducted by Paul Loeffler.

Lt. Reed Pelfrey, 502nd PIR, 101st Airborne, Pathfinder, 2011 (video), Curahee Military Museum.

Lieutenant Everett G. Andrews, 377th Field Artillery Battalion, 101st Airborne, August 2001 (transcript), APSU Veterans' Oral History Project.

Lieutenant Everett G. Andrews, 377th Field Artillery Battalion, 101st Airborne, December 2013 (video), 101st Airborne Museum.

INTERNET

For information and links to archival 101st Airborne Pathfinder footage on the web: 502-101airborne.pl/sylwetki/frank-lillyman