{"id":28944,"date":"2020-03-17T00:14:07","date_gmt":"2020-03-17T00:14:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/03\/17\/paratrooper-exercise-is-all-about-preparation-and-the-jump\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:46:59","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:46:59","slug":"paratrooper-exercise-is-all-about-preparation-and-the-jump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2020\/03\/17\/paratrooper-exercise-is-all-about-preparation-and-the-jump\/","title":{"rendered":"Paratrooper exercise is all about preparation \u2014 and the jump"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

TOLEMAIDA AIR BASE, Colombia \u2014 Under a covered pavilion near a steaming runway at Colombia\u2019s Tolemaida Air Base, dozens of American paratroopers lie sweating on a concrete slab. Green and brown camouflage face paint drips from their brows. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division can\u2019t move much \u2014 they\u2019re loaded down with rifles and nearly 100 pounds of gear. In less than an hour, it will all drop out of a C-130 aircraft moving 150 mph. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group\u2019s banter quiets to make way for directions from jumpmasters moving from one soldier to the next, making sure buckles and straps are in place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spc. Parker Firth is quieter than usual. After 22 jumps, he admits he\u2019s still scared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen the doors open, it\u2019s not in your hands anymore,\u201d the 22-year-old said. \u201cYou just got to believe in the parachute to open. Whatever happens happens.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"U.S.
In this Jan. 26, 2020, photo, U.S. Army Spc. Parker Firth readies for a jump in Melgar, Colombia, as a fellow paratrooper helps secure his equipment. (Sarah Blake Morgan\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For these 75 American paratroopers from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, this weeklong training exercise with the Colombian Army is not a deployment \u2014 a word reserved for occasions like the New Year\u2019s Eve mobilization that sent members of the division\u2019s Immediate Response Force to the Middle East, amid rising tensions with Iran<\/a>. For now, 2,500 division paratroopers remain in the Middle East on standby. <\/p>\n\n\n\t