# Paratroopers **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 18, 2010, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156 "2010-07-18T21:31:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/21 "2010-07-20T14:11:02Z")
Well, that makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/22 "2010-07-20T16:18:40Z")
It also makes sense that once the bergan hits the ground, the load on your chute is lessened and you can touch down that much slower. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/23 "2010-07-20T18:54:04Z")
> [@Lust4Life](#): > > If you’ve actually done Military Parachuting you will understand what I’ve said, if you’ve just read about it on the Net then to be honest its pointless discussing it. I understand completely. I simply assumed you were American military, trained many years ago and things had changed. I didn’t realize you were in the British military. I should have caught that. Especially from the word “bergan”, which I’ve never heard before. FWIW, I am an American paratrooper. I also have German wings. I’m currently in the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team (which explains my reaction to AmunRa’s post! ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/24 "2010-07-20T19:08:49Z")
The original Norwegian Bergan rucksack looked something like this [http://www.whatpriceglory.com/pic/bergen\_os.jpg](http://www.whatpriceglory.com/pic/bergen_os.jpg) with a triangular frame (very old-fashioned now). Despite the disappearance of this type, all such large pack/rucksack things get called a ‘bergen’ in the Army. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/25 "2010-07-20T19:42:54Z")
> [@Lust4Life](#): > > Are you sure about that? Yup - as \*\*muldoonthief \*\*explained it’s well documented in _Band of Brothers_ (both book and TV series), and most books focusing on the pre D-Day jumps mention it at least in passing as well. I may have the specifics wrong though. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/26 "2010-07-20T20:23:46Z")
The American chute of the period had no deployment bag, and pulled the canopy and rigging lines all out in one, so you went from near flying speed to zero like **that**. The opening shock was very great and combined with a too high dropping speed ripped off canteens, musette bags and anything else not strongly fastened on. The British type leg bag looked like this [http://www.militaryimages.net/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/3159/cat/all/what/allfields](http://www.militaryimages.net/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/3159/cat/all/what/allfields) Here’s another series of images of a model showing how you held it [http://www.newburyscalemodelclub.org.uk/2010/06/07/amp-miniatures/](http://www.newburyscalemodelclub.org.uk/2010/06/07/amp-miniatures/) It was strapped to the leg and after everything had settled down you pulled the release pin and, grasping the rope firmly through the friction sleeve, slowly payed the rope out to its full extent. Letting it fall invariably resulted in a broken rope. Paying it out too fast resulted in friction burns, forcing the user to let the rope go, with the same result. After the war a newer type came out where you just pulled the release and let it go. As the BoB book relates, none of the Americans had seen this device before the night, so not surprisingly they didn’t know how to use it properly. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156/27 "2010-07-21T10:28:47Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > I understand completely. I simply assumed you were American military, trained many years ago and things had changed. I didn’t realize you were in the British military. I should have caught that. Especially from the word “bergan”, which I’ve never heard before. > > FWIW, I am an American paratrooper. I also have German wings. I’m currently in the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team (which explains my reaction to AmunRa’s post! Hoooooorah! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paratroopers/547156.md?page=1)