.: Pat McCumiskey's 1/35 Dragon Sherman Tank vs German Paratrooper Diorama.
Fallschirmjäger participated in many of the famous battles of World War II, early operations included the skilful airborne seizure of Fort Eben-Emael allowing for the early capture of Belgium, operations in Holland (including the shock defeat at the Battle for the Hague) and major successful airdrops in Norway and Denmark in May 1940.
Their most famous airdrop was in the Battle of Crete in 1941, where the entire 7th Air Division was deployed, with the German 5th Mountain Division as the follow-up. Crete was captured, but the high casualties among the Fallschirmjäger convinced Hitler that such mass airdrops were no longer feasible—though surprise was lost even before the drops started, and the battle might have caused fewer German casualties otherwise. The Allies would come to a similar conclusion near the end of the war, as each successive large-scale airdrop resulted in higher and higher casualties.
The 3rd battalion, 3rd Regt, 1st Fallschirmjäger Division fought against elements of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division and the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade during the Battle of Ortona, Italy, from December 20, 1943 to December 28, 1943. The battle was dubbed "Little Stalingrad"[10] for the deadliness of its close-quarters combat. Fallschirmjäger also played a key role in the Battle of Carentan, as depicted in Band of Brothers, during the Battle of Normandy in 1944.
