Making ‘toms’ out of ‘crows’

Press, 26 May 1984, Page 20

Making ‘toms’ out of ‘crows’

The Paras. By Frank Hilton. 8.8. C., 1983, 248 pp. Illustrations. $34.95. (Reviewed by Pau! Corrigan) This book is based on a 8.8. C. television programme, screened recently in New Zealand. The author has added a concise history of airborne forces. Historical chapters are interspersed between those dealing with the progress of 480 Platoon from “crows” to “toms” — from recruits to paratroopers. At first this was distracting, because it broke the thread in the 480 story. But the information was interesting, and in the end did not detract from the book. Why did 41 young men from throughout the United Kingdom want to join the Army in an age when soldiering is unfashionable because of rising pacifism, and when being a soldier means discipline, which many regard as old-fashioned? And having chosen to join the Army, why did these Bmen join what The Parachute lent would have them believe is the toughest unit in the British Army? More than 100 countries around the world maintain airborne troops. The biggest force is the Soviet airborne

corps, with 75,000 men in eight divisions. Among the smallest is New Zealand’s parachute-trained Special Air Service Squadron. Common to all airborne troops is the requirement that paratroopers be braver, tougher, fitter, and more resourceful than other soldiers. The boys of 480 were told when they arrived at Aidershot, more was expected from “paras.” The message was hammered home again later. “The men we are looking for will always be outnumbered by the enemy, and their light scales of ammunition and supply will make their hardship even worse. They must be physically fit and strong to march quickly from the dropping-zone into battle. They must have a strong reserve of stamina to survive 10 days of fighting, as at Arnhem. They have to be physically courageous, to stand and fight when the odds are against them. They have to be self-disciplined to curb all their natural fears.” The recruits gave various reasons for wanting to subject themselves to a punishing 22 weeks of regimentation, discipline, and physical hardship. Hilton says that at the beginning of 1982 the recession in Britain was at its

highest, yet joblessness was hardly a factor in their desire to join the airborne brotherhood. One recruit was bored with his trips to and from the local pub and wanted to better himself and become somebody. (He was later discharged because of asthma.) Another said that if you were going to join the Army then you might as well join the best because the rest, like the Royal Marines, were “just craphats.” Others said that they wanted adventure and travel. None said anything about fighting and dying for Queen and country. Yet that was what they were training for. It was apparent at the end of the course that the survivors had found pride in themselves and the skills they had learnt. The father of one of the recruits was pleased, too, when he thanked one of the sergeants “for making a man out of my son.” The 20 young men who completed the course were eventually transferred to each of The Parachute Regiment’s three regular battalions. But first, many of them were introduced to some of the realities of warfare when they were dispatched to Northern Ireland.