As I sat in my seat on the C47, I couldn’t help but think about home.  My mind drifted away from the mission at hand to my favorite pub back in Surrey.  I could nearly taste the delicious cold ale on my lips when my thoughts were snapped back into focus as the jump leader, Shad0w64, had us stand up.  We called out our equipment checks and latched our static cables to the wire humming over our heads.

The plane shuddered as the door was flung open revealing nothing but darkness, propwash filling the cabin.  Our pilot, Bartsass, expertly lined up on the lights of our target, the German Longwy-Virton FB, adjusting the throttles to idle to make our approach as silent as possible.  The DZ approached and I stepped towards the door, peering out at the faint lights of Virton twinkling in the distance to the south.

I was first out the door.  As the platoon's sniper, my job was to set up a covering position west of the infantry camp which had been established between Virton and Longwy along the allied front.   My parachute opened with a reassuring jolt, and I took account of my surroundings.  A flak battery opened up below as the rest of the squad exited the aircraft, bright orange tracers drawing a line across the night sky.  I was relieved to see each one of them with a good chute.

As I landed in a hedge, I immediately heard the unmistakable staccato chatter of an MG34 firing at close range.  Expecting to hear the sound of bullets ripping through my flesh, I quickly realized he was sitting in the open, spraying my mates, never having seen me come down behind him.  I took quick aim (he was only 50m away) and fired, killing him quickly.  Unfortunately, he was able to get four of my friends before I could get him.  As the rest of the team’s charges were placed on the infantry tent, I ran and took position on the opposite side of the ridge to the southwest with a clear 200m shot.  I quickly dropped another LMG who had attempted to take cover in a berm. 

At the same time, an Opel troop truck had left the FB depot and was driving up the hill I was on.  As he got closer, I took aim and fired.  The round, still traveling at 750 meters per second,  shattered the driver's window. He slumped over the wheel while the truck slowly drifted to a halt.  I turned my attention back to the FB and watched infantry pour out of the tents and try to take defensive positions.  Several members of the Covert Ops squad, including Maxxim had shown up by truck and were attacking the base from the north, diverting the infantry’s attention as a second C47 roared overhead.  I took aim at a MG34 gunner who deployed his weapon in the open in a futile attempt to shoot at the descending paratroopers.  His brief death scream was drowned out by the sounds of battle.  Blood painted the green grass red, as the barrel of his gun smoked in silence.

I turned my attention on the flak battery, which had punched holes in the C47 and was now turning its attention on the attacking infantry.  As both the infantry camp and the vehicle depot succumbed to satchel charges, the enemy became desperate.  The gunner of the FlaK28 was spraying wildly, only pausing for his partner to keep shells feeding into the receiver.  As the barrel swung around away from me, I adjusted my optics for the increased range, and fired.  The bullet entered the back of the supporting crewmember, and he dropped like a fresh sack of potatoes.  The gunner did not notice his departed comrade for several moments, giving me enough time to adjust my aim, and wait for him to stop.  Spotting his dead partner, the gunner paused, the deafening silence encompassing the air around the battlefield.  He looked around in paralyzing fear at the sea of dead men, most of which wearing his uniform, that surrounded his position.  My heartbeat, steady and rhythmic, beat in my ears.  I released my breath slowly, and with definite purpose, squeezed my trigger.  The sharp crack of my rifle broke the death silence of the area and the round entered the chest of the gunner.   His limp body rolled out of his seat and lay still on the ground, helmet slowly rolling away.

I stayed in my position for several more minutes, watching for any hidden enemies waiting to leave their cover.  When none showed, I recovered my rifle and casings, and checked my map. Virton was only 2.7 kilometers to the west, and I started a slow jog, stopping only to check my surroundings for any hidden surprises.  According to my watch, it was 41 minutes after leaving Montfaucon when I entered our AB to the welcome of some friendly French soldiers.  It’s a good day to be alive.

Submitted by ''Sport20"

We publish after action reports written by players. If you would like to submit a report or are interested in becoming an official WWIIOL War Correspondent, contact MOTORMOUTH.