Originally Posted by Apansson

Im not really sure there was such an overwhelming amount of FJ soldiers around to do such a landing. Crete landings pretty much comitted them all, and that was a much more limited action. They were never intended for the kind of more massive landings later done by allied forces. Even in Crete the results of the landings were far from a spectacular success, taking Crete came more by the ineptitude of Allied commanders than their own strengt.

Personally i believe that Crete, as well as Market Garden later, rather shown the relative weakness of unsupported airborne troops of that time when put against regular all-arms troops in prolonged combat. They simply werent made for that.

A Weserubung-like operation as a direct follow-up on Dunkirk might have had a slim chance of success, probably better than a more regular naval landing as suggested in the Seelöw planning. Still that would had been a very major gamble with possibly catastrophic losses.

Even if a port or beachhead had been succesfully captured by a German surprise attack im not sure it would had done them much good. With the RN majorly intact at the time seaborn supply and re-inforcement would had been a nightmare. The larger force you can land the more pressing the need for supplies, and occupying the British Islands would require a fairly major one, even given the somewhat battered shape of its army.

If paratroopers could slip in unnoticed, then major military bases and airfields could be caputred before a counter attack or significant defense could be mounted, and the English military would have its back broken.

Originally Posted by GreatestAlive

If paratroopers could slip in unnoticed, then major military bases and airfields could be caputred before a counter attack or significant defense could be mounted, and the English military would have its back broken.

As I have mentioned before, the UK had a large number of ex WW1 vets who were still quite fit and still had the guts and determination to "get stuck in." All over UK there were secret arms dumps, known only to a trusted few in the district, some are still hidden today as those who knew the locations are either dead or cannot recall.

Whether or not German para's could have taken and held ground is a matter of debate. British civilians would not have taken invasion and occupation by German forces laying down. The main German invasion force which would have had to get across the English Channel by sea would have had to run the gauntlet of the Royal Navy.

To quote an old saying, "Capturing ground is the easy part, holding it is another thing altogether."

I recall that throughout WW11 we were on a constant state of alert (the population) for paratroop activity. WW1veterans were involved in all activities, including anti-aircraft work. Certainly paratroop incursion was expected and would have been attacked everywhere by a nation on their toes, prepared if necessary to take their last stand. It was a nation under arms. England never wavered, not for a moment. As for the Lutwaffe - well just look what happened to their unprecedented assault on London and the outcome. They were never going to succeed by sea.

Why not accept history - they played all the cards they could and didn't make the grade.

Originally Posted by GreatestAlive

If paratroopers could slip in unnoticed, then major military bases and airfields could be caputred before a counter attack or significant defense could be mounted, and the English military would have its back broken.

An Airborne assault of that size would never go unnoticed.To drop and assault targets would require regt's of para's and to hold all of the airfields and installations would have over taxed Germany's airborne forces.

The Airborne assault would have to happen in conjuction with a seaborne assault ala Normandy or ground offensive ala Market Garden (which went pear shaped) to even hope to have a chance of success.

That's what I meant to say!

Before my dad joined the army at 17, he was a member of the Home Guard. He was issued a BAR along with 10 magazines, my grandad was issued a Lee Enfield and 50 rounds as were a couple of my uncles before they were called up. Thousands of homes, towns and villages in the UK during this period were armed and ready to fight if they had to.

There is a brilliant story I heard regarding a police amnesty for unlicenced firearms in UK during the late 1960's. A little old lady phoned the local cop shop and asked the police to collect a gun that her husband (who had recently died) was issued during the war.

The police asked her to bring the gun in, "I cant" she replied, "Its too heavy."

A police car was dispatched to the house, the policeman walked into the front room and nearly fell over in fright. Sat in the room with its barrel pointing down the street with an excellent arc of fire was a pristine Vickers Machine gun, complete with water can and a belt of ammunition fed into the gun.

The husband was a member of the Home Guard and was issued the Vickers for the defence of his street in the event of an invasion.

The lady was asked why her husband didnt hand it back after the war ended, she replied, "He tried to, but no one was interested as there was no paper work anywhere for the gun."

There was a lot of commotion, and radio calls, and visits to the house by many senior police officers, where it was finally decided that perhaps a phone call to nearest army unit might help.

The local army unit stated that the Vickers hadnt been issued since 1966 and that present day soldiers had never seen one, let alone know how to unload it. During the conversation an elderly civilian who was sweeping the floors in the office overheard what was being said, stated "I was a Vickers gunner during the war. I'll unload the old girl for you."

The civilian was bundled into a Land Rover and taken to the house. he walked into the room where the gun was sitting and apparently his eyes lit up, running his hands over the gun saying, "She's a beauty."

The gun was unloaded and removed from its tripod, from what I hear the gun ended up in a museum as "one of the finest examples still in perfect working condition."

Great story. And Ibelieve that in WW11 we were an island nation of one mind, moving as one, committed as one, with no doubts regarding the job in hand and the right of the issue; it was a battle we had to win and I believe we never blinked. As a kid, I never remember anyone blinking, from Winston down, even at what appeared to be the darkest hours. The picture of Londoners shaking their fists at the sky from the rubble inspired me, and although I lost two homes to the bombs, I had no fear to leave our temporary one room when the Lutwaffe attacks crashed around us to head for the air-raid shelters; this was a common phenomenon. London could take it. Much of that area is now being rebuilt as the Olympic villages and sites. Station Street was taken out by a floating land-mine in its entirety; my parents found not only their home gone, but the whole street. It never rose again, it will be covered by Olympic site.

My uncle Fred was a sailor before, throughout, and after WW11, up to Chief Petty Officer. He served on ships such the Hood and then subs. He swore throughout the war that Germany would NEVER have been allowed to cross the channel, and that plans were always set in position; he went down a few times, spent days in the water, pulled guys from the water into lifeboats by their hair, experienced being stuck on the bottom, but never for one moment considered defeat. Bulldog breed stuff - they attack, we win - let's eat.