How the Invasion Began

The first U.S. troops to set foot on Axis Europe were paratroops. Their high half-boots hit the enemy soil early in the moonlit night of July 9, 1943--hours before Allied landing barges disgorged infantry, tanks and artillery on Sicily's shore.

The First Men. The paratroops, fit and bulky as bears in their equipment, got a final briefing just before take-off time. They knew their assignments. Some of the leading pilots had already been over the target to have a look at the lay of the land. The jumpers climbed into their planes, listened quietly as the colonel in command gave a refresher talk on things to bear in mind during the jump. In one of the planes was Photographer Robert Capa (Collier's) who took pictures and later described the flight to a TIME correspondent.

Soon they were halfway to the target, bumping through rough air over the Mediterranean. Some of the men got sick. The men knew that they, a handful only, must plant a cancer amidst the enemy and make it grow. They knew this even before the colonel spoke: "Well, boys, we are truly the first men of America tonight. We will be the first to land in Axis Europe. For hours & hours we will be alone. There will be enemies all around us and over our heads. We must do our best." Then, offhandedly, he added: "We are headed for Sicily." How did the men take this speech? Said Hungarian-accented Bob Capa: "In pooking."

The First Landing. Sicily lay below, bathed in light from a crescent moon. Bombing and diversionary flights had prepared the way. "The flak was some, not so much," said Photographer Capa. The formation came over its objective. Inside the plane the red light winked on.

The men had been hunched grotesquely in their bucket seats. Now they rose quickly, hooked up their release lines. Each man bulged with 100 pounds of gear--tommy gun, pistol, grenades, rations, cigarets, medical equipment, knife-bayonet. Over the side they could see the flat, rocky terrain. Inside the island of Sicily there were islands of fire--the fierce circles of flame left by Allied aerial barrages.

The formation dropped flares over the landing area. Altitude was about 500 feet, speed about 110 miles. Inside Capa's plane the green light flashed. Then began a hurlyburly.

The men pushed and got entangled in their hurry to get out. Despite the apparent confusion, they jumped with great speed: one man every 75 feet, all out within 25 seconds. As they went over, they shouted what sounded like gibberish to Capa. Perhaps it was the paratroops' jumping word--"Geronimo."

Bob Capa saw the chutes float down "like strings of diminishing pearls" in the moonlight and flarelight. The formation, its mission safely accomplished, turned back toward Africa. The men landed below were gathering up equipment, scurrying into tactical groups.

That was how the invasion began.

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