Combat Jump:
The Young Men Who Led the Assault Into Fortress Europe, July 1943

Author: Ed Ruggero
Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (June 29, 2004)
ISBN-10: 0060088761
ISBN-13: 978-0060088767

As the Allies prepared to invade Sicily in July 1943, the US Army deployed a new type of combat outfit: the paratroopers of the 505 Regimental Combat Team. Their mission was to jump behind enemy lines, seize the approaches to the invasion beaches and hold off German counterattacks until the invading troops came ashore.

By first light on D-Day, July 10, it looked as if the mission would fail. Inexperienced pilots, lost or blown off course, dropped eighty percent of the troopers from one to sixty miles from their targets. The American commander, Colonel Jim Gavin, landed so far from his objective that he was not even sure he was in Sicily. Nearly everything that could go wrong did, and yet—in their very first combat action—the paratroopers managed to accomplish their missions. The costly lessons they learned shaped the war in Europe for, without Sicily, there might have been no airborne invasion of France on June 6, 1944.

Combat Jump recounts the extraordinary contributions these young men made when their country called them to war.

About the Author

Ed Ruggero has been studying, practicing and teaching leadership for twenty-five years as a West Point graduate, Army officer, professor, author, speaker and leadership coach. He is the author of five novels and several works of non-fiction, including Combat Jump: The Young Men Who Led the Assault Into Fortress Europe, July 1943. Ed is a member of the Academy Leadership team and an experienced keynote speaker on leadership and leader development. For more information, visit www.edruggero.com.