RAW VIDEO: See paratrooper's POV as he steps into the air

See what it looks like for a paratrooper to step into thin air over a drop zone in this footage of a recent jump in the Netherlands to commemorate the anniversary of WWII's Operation Market Garden. Army Jumpmaster Staff Sgt. Paul O'Brien of the 82nd Airborne Division provides the footage. (Army / DVIDS)

[launchpad]

Jumping is the most violent, noisiest thing, ,,, followed by the most peaceful and calming thing till hitting the

[leokimvideo]

Imagine doing this in a war, your a target while your floating down and still a target until you find cover

[jeffjoles]

1. the balls of the feet
2. the side of the calf
3. the side of the thigh
4. the side of the hip, or buttocks
5. the side of the back

These are the five points of contact for a good PLF (Parachute Landing Fall), as taught at Army Airborne School. Sometimes, you get only three points of contact as demonstrated in this video: feet, ass, head. But, as any jumper will tell you: any jump you walk away from is a good jump.

[brownie]

Graduated jump school in 1973. November will be 50 years ago. Served in the 82nd Airborne. Other than the new gear, helmets, and square chutes this jump is just as I remember. Now I'm old and fat. But even after all these years, when I see the 82nd being reported - my reaction is that this is MY unit. Those are MY boys.

[Daniel-hvgv]

As a german paratrooper i did this 20x. In snow, by night, with 25 kg epuipment and in desert. Never regret it. Now i'm a papertiger.😅

[dano]

It's been about 34 years since my last jump with the 82nd. I smile and get a bit of that feeling back whenever I watch these videos. Thanks for the ride. AATW.

[leonardtan]

To think those brave men jumped off those planes over 70 years ago in complete darkness with flak rounds and bullets whizzing by. Thank you to both past and present soldiers for all you have done to keep the world save.

[whodat]

Both my dad and I are Airborne. My dad’s first time to ever fly on an airplane was during Jump Week.

[andrescab]

Like our platoon sergeant use to say: you jump out out the right way, and you let the Almighty to the rest.

[francescocalzolari]

All my military jumps have been long before GoPro was invented...
Nice to see other people living those strong emotions I will never forget.

[jumboJetPilot]

Well, at least I’ve flown paratroopers, SEALs, various other Special Ops forces, and more equipment than I could possibly recount, to and from various theaters. But jumping out? These guys are braver than I am.

[Paul_Wetor]

This is impressive to see. Not only the POV of the jumper, but seeing all those other parachutes in the sky.

[rickb]

My father was in the 82nd in WWII and was a part of this. "Devils In Baggy Pants, " is what a German soldier called them. There's a book by that name about the 82nd and my dad is mentioned by name in it.

[ubmuhkehcubol]

Exit, descent, landing. Fear, relief, panic. Will never forget the ground rush.

[CuttySobz]

I find it profoundly easier in a psychological sense to walk off the plane instead of having to jump out.

[conan]

ive been retired for 20 years and havent jumped in 25 yet i STILL miss jumping from a perfectly good airplane more then anything else i did. For those still in the harness ...despite the agony of prejump ...packed in a plane for hours ... and bouncing around with tons of gear the time you have...FEW on planet earth can do what we did and are still doing

[scottcraig]

Brings back great memories for me….19 years old, Canadian Airborne training, the number 1 jumper on my side of the C130, 1000 feet AGL, watching the countryside go by, waiting for the green jump light! What a rush!!

[iandamianluciferwilson]

Takes me back some. First time I went on vacation with my wife she couldn't understand why I was excited to be going on a plane. She said "You have flown hundreds of times". I replied "Yeah but I have never landed in one"
It's not as much fun though.

[Rowsey]

I love seeing that full color 82nd patch. ❤ It reminds me of the paratroopers of WWII. My Dad and I both wore that patch about 30 years apart. I was a Combat Engineer and he was a Pathfinder.

[Robert_Douglass]

Oh, man, this takes me back. My first jump onto Fryar Army Airfield, I did just about everything wrong. Luckily during Jump Week all you had to do to get a GO for each jump was to be able to walk away from it.

My first landing, I got dragged by my chute nearly a hundred feet, the wind was so strong. I screwed up and popped BOTH my canopy release assemblies when I should have just popped one, and I had to go chasing after my canopy 🤣. I also remember limping for about a week, but I'd never felt better or happier in my life except for having my two kids. My second jump, upon landing, I just laid there and laughed. The jumpmasters and the medic on the LZ looked at me funny and I heard one of them say I was delirious, and I straight-up said "No, I'm not!". I said something else to prove I was lucid and I was just happy as a pig in slop at having experienced not only a parachute jump, but one that went right, meaning I remembered to pop only one canopy release assembly and collapse my chute. The other three jumps went as smooth as they were expected to, and I eventually graduated from Jump School and reported to my unit at Fort Bragg.