PARACHUTE TEST PLATOON

To make the odds fair for the first jump out of a plane, the commander made the men pick numbers out of a hat to get the jumping order. Bribes went as high as fifty dollars for the right to jump first, but none were accepted. When it finally came time to jump, the first enlisted man in line froze at the door. The commander gave the man another opportunity to jump, but still, he froze. With this, the honor of being the first enlisted man to jump went to Private William N. (RED) King.

Quoting from a part of the citation awarded to the Test Platoon from Secretary of the Army, John Marsh, "The Test Platoon, Parachute Troops and Air Infantry, United States Army, is commended for meritorious conduct in the performance of hazardous service from July to September, 1940...It pioneered experimentation to determine the feasibility of employing paratroopers in modern warfare..."​

​​First Lieutenant William T. Ryder

Second Lieutenant James A. Bassett

Warrant Officer C.W. (Tug) Wilson

Sergeant John M. Haly

Sergeant Benedict F. Jacquary

Sergeant Lloyd (Mac) McCullough

Sergeant Lemuel T. Pitts

Sergeant Grady A. Roberts

Sergeant Hobart B. Wade

Private First Class Tyerus Floyd Adams

Private First Class Willie F. Brown

Private First Class Floyd Burkhalter

Private First Class Donald L. Colee

Private First Class Louie D. Davis

Private First Class Edgar R. Dodd

Private First Class Johnnie A. Ellis

Private First Class Mitchel Guilbeau

Private First Class J. Hardin

Private First Class George W. Ivy

Private First Class John M. Kitchens,

Private First Class Lester C. McLaney

Private First Class Joseph L. Peters

Private First Class John F. Pursley Jr

Private First Class Benjamin C. Reese

Private First Class Alsie L. Rutland

Private First Class Louie D. Skipper

Private First Class Raymond G. Smith

Private First Class Harris J. Wallace

Private First Class John A. Ward

Private First Class Thurman L. WeAkS

Private First Class Carles M. (Swifty) Wilson

Private First Class Obie B. Wilson

Private John E. Borom

Private Leo C. Brown

Private Jules Corbin

Private Ernest L. Dilburn

Private Joseph E. Doucet

Private Aubrey Eberhardt

Private Frank Kassell Jr

Private Richard J. Kelly

Private Sidney C. Kerksis

Private William N. King

Private John 0. Modisett

Private Robert H. Poudert

Private Albert P. Robinson

Private Thad P. Selman

Private Robert E. Shepperd

Private Arthur W. Swilley

Private Hugh A. Tracey

Private Steve Voils Jr.

​​​These 48 men were members of the original Parachute Test Platoon:​

​​1940-1945

​​ In 1940, the 29th Infantry Regiment provided more than 200 volunteers to be part of the newly activated Parachute Test Platoon. Of those 200, only 48 were chosen; one first lieutenant, one second lieutenant, six sergeants, and 42 private first classes or privates. Each of these men had to meet the strict qualifications of at least one year's service (preferably on enlistment), not over 30 years of age (preferably under 25), good physical condition (athletically inclined), desire to be transferred to a parachute organization, willing to ride in and jump from airplanes after instructions, unmarried desirable, and recommended by commanding officers.

On August 3, 1940, the Test Platoon made a "jump into history" when they made their first jump out of a C-33 aircraft at 1500 feet. They had been training for the jump since early July. They went to Lawson Field in early July to start their training of special physical exercises, jumps from six and ten foot platforms, forced runs and marches to strengthen legs and ankles, lots of push-ups to build up the arms and shoulder strength, learning how to pack their own chutes, jumping techniques, and lots of physical exercises. Later, in July, the platoon went for a week's training on two parachute towers. The training was to be held in Hightstown, NJ. One of the towers had cables to control the opened, descending canopy. The other was free falling. It pulled the canopy to the top of the tower then released it and allowed the jumper to make a free descent and landing.