PARATROOPERS CRETE WITH A RIFLE PULLS A DROP CONTAINER

Operation "Mercury" (Ger. Unternehmen Merkur) is the German code name for the airborne operation carried out in Crete from May 20 to June 1, 1941. On the German side, about 22,000-24,000 soldiers took part in the operation, supported by about 1,200 aircraft of all types under the command of General Kurt Student. On the Allied side, approximately 42,000 soldiers (including, among others, 18,000 British and 11,000 Greek soldiers) fought under the command of General Bernard Freyberg. It is worth adding that Operation Mercury is the largest German operation of this type during World War II. Activities began on May 20, 1941 with an air landing carried out by the 7th Air Division and Luftlandesturmregiment in the strength of a total of approx. 10,000 people in the northern part of Crete. Despite very high losses, the German paratroopers managed to fortify the area of the airport in the city of Maleme and effectively paralyze the road traffic behind the Allied forces. General Kurt Student, despite the high losses suffered on May 20, decided to continue the fight and on May 21 to concentrate operations in the Maleme area. On the same day, the Germans seized the airport near the city, and on May 21-25, a significant part of the 5th Mountain Division and heavy equipment were transferred to Crete. On May 22, units of German paratroopers and mountain infantry attacked towards the eastern part of the island. On May 26-28, as a result of the chaos of decisions and weak command of the Allied forces, the Germans managed to take over two important cities - Chania and Sud. Despite the fact that the German side captured a very important island in the Mediterranean basin in less than two weeks, it suffered significant losses, estimated at a minimum of about 3,400 people killed and about 2,600 wounded. 370 aircraft were also destroyed or damaged.Fallschirmjäger is the collective term for German airborne units from the interwar period and World War II. The first parachute unit was organized in Nazi Germany in 1936 - perhaps as a result of observations made during the Soviet maneuvers of the previous year. The first paratroopers squad was created on the initiative of Herman Göring and was assigned to the Luftwaffe. A year later (1937), the first unit of this type was subordinated to the Wehrmacht, and more precisely to the land forces. In 1938, these units were combined and expanded to form the 7th Aviation Division under the command of General Kurt Student. It consisted of parachute infantry, troops trained to transport gliders and infantry transported to the battlefield by airplanes. In the course of World War II, more Fallschirmjäger units were created, incl. in 1943, on the basis of the 7th Aviation Division, the 1st and 2nd Parachute Divisions were established. In the period 1939-1941, the German Fallschirmjäger was used for its intended purpose (e.g. during the fighting in Western Europe in 1940), but after the heavy losses suffered in the course of the fighting in Crete in 1941, the German parachute troops began to be used primarily as elite infantry units, in which role they proved to be very successful, earning the nickname "Green Devils" among the Allies.