List of French airborne units from the Interwar period to the present
Chuteur Opérationnel Instructor and Moniteur Brevet of the
French Armed Forces .
Chuteur Opérationnel Brevet of
Commando Parachute Group of the French Army.
Paratrooper Moniteur Brevet of the French Armed Forces.
French Army Parachute Brevet.
The history of French
airborne units began in the
Interwar period when the
French Armed Forces formed specialized
paratroopers units. First formed in the
French Air Force , they were rapidly integrated into the
French Army ,
French Navy ,
National Gendarmerie and from the
British Armed Forces . Some were later included in the postwar
French Armed Forces .
French Army
Parachute and airborne divisions
Parachute Brigades and Groups
Parachute Demi-Brigades
Parachute centers of formation and schools
C.E.T.A.P
B.E.T.A.P
E.T.A.P
Foreign Legion
Seven Flame grenade of the
Foreign Legion .
Legion parachute companies, battalions and regiments
Parachute (Airborne) Commandos of the Foreign Legion
Parachute
Commandos of the
11th Parachute Brigade (11e BP) include:
Parachute, Underwater Demolition and Diving Units of the
6th Light Armoured Brigade (
French : 6e Brigade Légère Blindée, 6e BLB ) include:
1st Foreign Engineer Regiment (1er REG)
[8]
PCG Teams (Combat Engineer Divers,
French : Plongeurs du Combat du Génie ), former DINOPS Teams of Nautical Subaquatic Intervention Operational Detachment specialized in Parachute, Underwater Demolition and Diving.
Parachute, Underwater Demolition, Diving Units and Commandos of the
27th Mountain Infantry Brigade (27e MIB) include:
2nd Foreign Engineer Regiment (2e REG)
[9]
PCG Teams (Combat Engineer Divers,
French : Plongeurs du Combat du Génie ), former DINOPS Teams of Nautical Subaquatic Intervention Operational Detachment specialized in Parachute, Underwater Demolition and Diving.
[10]
Mountain Commando Groups (GCM)
[10]
Troupes de marine
Marine Infantry Parachute Regiments
1st Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment (
1re CIA , 1re CP, PPL, 1re CCP, French SAS,
1er BIA ,
4e BIA ,
2e RCP or
4th French SAS , 1er BC.SAS, 1er BP.SAS, 2e BP.SAS, 1er BPARA.SAS, 1er BCCP, 1er GCCP, 1er BPC, 1re D-B.P.SAS, D-B.CCP, D-B.CCP.SAS, 1re DBCCP, 2e DBCCP, B.P.Colonial
BPC , BEPC, BP-OM,
B.P.I.Ma , then
1er R.P.I.Ma part of
COS ).
2nd Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment (2e BCCP, 2e B.P.Colonial 2e BPC, 2nd Colonial Parachute Regiment 2e RPC, then 2e RPIMa).
3rd Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment (3e BCCP, 3e GCCP, 3e BCCP, 3e B.P.Colonial 3e BPC, 3rd Colonial Parachute Regiment 3e RPC, then 3e RPIMa), (
Commando Parachute Group Teams).
(
5th Marine Infantry Parachute Battalion [
fr ] (5e BPIC, 5e BCCP, 5e BPC, 5e BPIMa - dissolved).
6th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment (6e BCCP, 6e GCCP, 6e B.P.Colonial 6e BPC, 6th Colonial Parachute Regiment 6e RPC, then 6e RPIMa - dissolved).
7th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment [
fr ] ) (7e BCCP, 7e GCCP, 7e BCCP, 7e BPC, 4e BCCP, 7th Colonial Parachute Regiment 7e RPC, 7e RPIMa, then 7e RPCS - dissolved).
8th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment (8e B.P.Colonial 8e BPC, 8e GCP, 8e B.P.Choc 8e BPC, 8th Colonial Parachute Regiment 8e RPC, then 8e RPIMa), (
Commando Parachute Group Teams).
Battalions and Colonial Parachute Groups
1st Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (1e BCCP, 1e GCCP, 1e BPC, then B.P.C.).
2nd Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (2e BCCP, 2e GCCP, 2e BPC, then 2e RPC).
3rd Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (3e BCCP, 3e BPC, then 3e RPC, 3e RPIMa).
4th Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (4e BCCP - dissolved).
5th Colonial Parachute Infantry Battalion (5e BPIC - dissolved).
5th Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (5e BCCP then 5e BPC - dissolved).
6th Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (6e régiment parachutiste d'infanterie de marine) (6e BCCP, 6e GCCP then 6e BPC, then 6e R.P.C - 6e R.P.I.Ma).
7th Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion (7e BCCP, 7e GCCP then 7e BPC - dissolved).
8th Colonial Parachute Battalion (8e Bataillon de Parachutistes Coloniaux) (8e BPC, then 8e R.P.C - 8e R.P.I.Ma).
10th Colonial Parachute Battalion (10e BPC).
Colonial Group Parachute Commando of Madagascar (GCCP Madagascar - dissolved).
Colonial Group of Parachute Commandos of Afrique équatoriale française AEF (GCCP AEF - dissolved).
Marine Infantry Parachute Company (CPIMA and 6e CPIMa - dissolved).
10e B.P.C
G.C.C.P.M
G.C.C.P A.E.F
C.P.I.Ma
Parachute Artillery
35th Parachute Artillery Regiment of the
11th Parachute Brigade marching on
Bastille Day military parade ,
Paris .
Parachute Cavalry
1st Parachute Hussar Regiment of the
11th Parachute Brigade , on Bastille Day, Paris.
Parachute Engineer
Parachute Infantry
Patrol Chasseurs
General Parachute Infantry
21e R.I.A.P
French Air Force Commando de l'Air, Parachute Chasseur, British Army Special Air Service (S.A.S) & 1er R.P.I.Ma
1st Parachute Chasseur Regiment / 1st Air Infantry Battalion (
French : 1e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes ) (601e G.I.A, 602e G.I.A, 1re C.I.A, 1er BCP, then 1er RCP),
[1] (
Commando Parachute Group Teams).
2nd Parachute Chasseur Regiment /4th Air Infantry Battalion (
French : 2e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes ) (4e BIA, 2e RCP SAS, then
1er RPIMa French ); also known as
4th Special Air Service of
British Army and assigned to
Special Air Service Troops ).
3rd Parachute Chasseur Regiment /3rd Air Infantry Battalion (
French : 3e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes ) (3e BIA, 3e RCP, 2e RCP SAS, then
1er RPIMa French ); also known as
3rd Special Air Service of British Army and was assigned to
Special Air Service Troops ).
4th Parachute Chasseur Regiment (
French : 4e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes ), (4e RCP - dissolved).
5th Parachute Chasseur Regiment (
French : 5e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes ), (5e RCP - dissolved).
9th Parachute Chasseur Regiment (
French : 9e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes ), (9e RCP, merged with 1er RCP).
[1]
14e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes [
fr ] ('14th Parachute Chasseur Regiment' (14e RCP - dissolved).
18e Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes [
fr ] ("18th Parachute Chasseur Regiment") (18e RCP - dissolved).
Shock Paratroopers
1er B.C
2e B.C
3e B.C
5e B.C
2e B.P.C
11e B.P.C
12e B.P.C
G.C.M.A
French Train Parachute Regiments
Parachute Companies and Regiments
Air Support Companies (CRA).
Air Delivery Regiment (RLA - dissolved).
1st Train Parachute Regiment (
French : 1er Régiment du Train Parachutiste ) (1er RTP).
Airborne Bases
Parachute Command and Support
Matériel
Vietnamese, Laotien and Cambodian Parachute Units
Algerian Parachute Units
French Air and Space Force
Past and present
Fusiliers Commandos de l'Air units have included:
French Navy
Naval Fusiliers and Commandos include the following Forces
Fusiliers Marins and
Commandos Marine
FORFUSCO
National Gendarmerie
Paratroopers of the
National Gendarmerie include:
Medics
Combat medics in the
French Armed Forces are part of the
French Defence Health Service . Each French
regiment ,
battalion ,
company and unit has its own specialized combat
medics , with ranks designating various unit level sizes.
For French Regiments engaged in combat, the leading Medical leadership would be a colonel or Lieutenant-colonel and can also be designated as Parachute
Medical-Colonel of the Army (
French :
Médecin -Colonel Parachutiste de l'Armée ).
For
Foreign Legion Regiments, Medics can be French and Legionnaires, while the leading Medical leadership would be a Colonel or Lieutenant-colonel and can also be designated as Foreign Parachute Medical-Colonel (
French : Médecin-Chef Parachutiste des Régiments, Bataillons et Compagnies Etranger de Parachutistes ).
See also
References
Bibliography
E. Micheletti et J. Baltzer, Insignes et brevets parachutistes de l'armée française , éditions Histoires et Collections, 2001,
ISBN
2-913903-11-8 .
Collectif, Histoire des parachutistes français (History of French Paratroopers), Société de Production Littéraire, 1975.
External links
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Current units
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Defunct units
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Infantry &
marching regiments Saharan Legion units
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