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Further Reading

Atlas Drop

Atlas Drop began in 1996 and is an annually scheduled exercise which helps to train U.S. European Command's forces to response regionally. This exercise was designed to further cross training and interoperability between the two militaries in company level bi-lateral airborne operations as well as platoon level live fire exercises.

Atlas Drop 2002 (14-25 January 2002) is a U.S. Army Southern European task force airborne-led bi-lateral field training exercise and platoon level live fire training in the Cap Serrat and Renal training areas of Tunisia with elements of the Tunisian armed forces.

About 600 U.S. Army and Air Force troops in Europe joined together with paratroopers form the army's Southern European Task Force (Airborne) to participate in Atlas Drop 02, a bi-lateral exercise between United States and Tunisian military forces, which was conducted in Tunisia January 14-25, 2002.

SETAF'S 173rd Airborne Brigade led a battalion sized task force of select units from the1st battalion, 508th Airborne Infantry Regiment, the 3rd Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment, an air ambulance section from the 30th Medical Brigade, and explosive ordnance disposal specialist from Germany.

The Air Force provided transportation support from the 37th Airlift Squadron in Germany, drop zone control from the 321st Special Tactics Squadron from England, and five medical personnel from the Air Force Reserve Command in the United States.

During the two-week exercise, brigade soldiers conducted a joint U.S.-Tunisian jump exchange, live-fire exercises and squad, platoon and company level situational training. One change from the previous year's Atlas Drop was the addition of the 173d Airborne Brigade Reconnaissance Company. The BRC's surveillance and hide teams positioned themselves in the hills near Cap Serrat and kept a constant lookout on the valley.

Before infantrymen from Co. C 1-508 Airborne Infantry Battalion could conduct their live-fire assault and breach and trench line, engineers from the assault and barrier platoon, 173d Combat Support Company moved tons of soil, improved the wooden structure of the trench and constructed a cement culvert to help drain the trench.

After the jump exchange, paratroopers from both countries faced each other in a formation and exchanged wings at a ceremony.