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Enemy Air-Borne Forces, Military Intelligence Service, Special Series No. 7, December 2, 1942
[DISCLAIMER: The following text is taken from the wartime U.S. War Department publication. As with all wartime intelligence information, data may be incomplete or inaccurate. No attempt has been made to update or correct the text. Any views or opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the website.]

72. THE DROPPING ZONE FOR PARACHUTISTS

Parachute troops are therefore likely to be dropped in depth around any airdromes or areas selected for attack, instead of being concentrated on the site itself.3 After carrying out short preliminary tasks, they will then form up for coordinated attack. The use of smoke laid by aircraft in the actual dropping zone of parachute troops is considered unlikely. Parachute troops are, however, well equipped to make tactical use of smoke on the ground. They also may carry a few tear-gas bombs.

3 Parachute troops can be landed in most but not all types of country. The ideal is to have an area of unobstructed, flat, soft ground, some 1,000 by 600 yards, which constitutes a zone on which some 50 troops can be put down simultaneously every 5 minutes with comparative safety and lack of confusion. Hedges and occasional trees really constitute no obstruction, but rocky or obstructed grounds, or high winds (over 30 miles per hour) will normally cause injuries.
 

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