Henry Pennock
Graduating High School as a young man in the early 1940’s may come as a shock to the youth of the 21st century. While many today’s children push for an exceptional GPA and corresponding SAT scores, new adults had a choice of whether or not to join the war efforts. Henry Pennock was one of many tested to join the fight, but he failed an eye exam and was sent away. After a brief study session, however, Henry memorized the eye chart for his second attempt and was accepted into the training program, this time to become a paratrooper. At that age, it would be inspiring to hear a young man motivated to fight for his country out of a sense of pride and patriotism. Pennock, however, chose the paratroopers to get more attention from the ladies, with higher pay being a close 2nd place.
“Close to 8,000 guys were flying in my class,” Pennock tells John Kopp of the Philly Voice. “Only about 2,000 or 2,500 got their boots. Most of this wasn’t that they weren’t physically capable. It was mental.” Over 70 years after joining the service, Henry Pennock’s recollection of his time served is brilliant. It took him just four weeks of paratrooper training at Fort Benning, Georgia before being considered ready for combat. After just five jumps from an airplane, only one being at night, Pennock was assigned to the 101st Airborne division and on his way to Europe.
Pennock reached Bastogne, Belgium just in time to meet the German’s final push in the European Theatre during the Battle of the Bulge. Just two days after arriving, the Germans bombed the city forcing the 101st to retreat outside of the city’s outer limits. “Bastogne was so important because the Germans wanted to get to Antwerp,” Pennock said. “They had to go through Bastogne to cut off the Allied advance. Patton, with his tanks, was up in the Holland area yet.” With horrible winter conditions, reinforcements and medical supplies weren’t available making the fight against the Germans all but impossible. On December 27th of 1944, General George Patton’s Third Army helped to liberate the 101st Airborne after nearly 30 days of fighting. “Bastogne, it was unbelieveable. It was mayhem, with trees coming down. Everything under the sun was hitting you,” Pennock says. “It was a miracle that you could survive under so much firepower.” Pennock himself felt incredibly lucky to have survived having fought off frost-bitten limbs and several shrapnel wounds.
After recovering from his wounds in Chester, England, Pennock quickly returned to the 101st to assist in the liberation of the Kaufering concentration camp in April of 1945. Being the home of thousands of suffering prisoners, Henry remembers the difficulty in accepting what he’d seen. “It’s hard to imagine what you saw there. You’ve seen pictures of it. We weren’t allowed to give them anything. If you gave them a chocolate bar, it would kill them… They were so bad off. They needed medical attention. Even though you wanted to help them, you just felt so bad when you saw how they were mistreated.”
The following month, the German’s accounced their official surrender. Pennock’s fight continued as he forward deployed to the Paris to fight in the Pacific Theater. His final jump was made before the Japanese surrendered on September 2nd of 1945. To this day Pennock shows the scars of battle. While he has missing cartilage, an injured ankle, and marks from his close calls with frost-bite, Henry Pennock more than anything is proud of his service. At 92 years old, Henry Pennock of Bucks County Pennsylvania, was awarded three Purple Hearts and three Brone Star Medals. The United States flag flies high in front of Pennock’s home.
“My attitude now is, keep a strong military and it will keep us safer than anything else.”
-
160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment - The Night Stalkers
Read MoreThey were born out of a doomed operation, but their role has become irreplaceable. Their brothers in arms count on them in the most difficult of times while they remain the enemy’s worst nightmare. Battle-proven, always resilient, and lethal, they are highly respected among all the services and have often...
-
Operation Hump: 173rd’s Legendary Operation in Vietnam
Read MoreSoldiers take cover in a crater during the Vietnam War (Courtesy Photo/U.S. Army) Operation Hump is a legendary operation conducted jointly by Australian and American Airborne forces in Vietnam. The Friendly composition consisted of the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, as well as a battalion from...
-
The Elusive Blue Air Assault Beret
Read MoreBlue Air Assault Berets: A Brief Chapter in Military History In the accounts of military tradition, berets have often stood out as symbols of honor and excellence, providing soldiers with an extra element of pride. They adorn soldiers' heads, signifying their commitment to a unique calling. While everyone in the...
-
Wisdom from the Community: Top Five Pieces of Advice for New Paratroopers
Read MoreWisdom from the Community: Top Five Pieces of Advice for New Paratroopers Hear ye, hear ye! Young paratroopers, we believe you deserve some valuable advice because you are at a stage where you need it to shape your military career. Because we care, we reached out to our community to...
-
Operation Restore Democracy: The Landing that Never Happened
Read MoreOperation Restore Democracy: The Landing that Never Happened In the early 1990s, Haiti's democracy was in constant crisis, and the island was being governed by unconstitutional leadership. The regimes kept changing but lacked national and international legitimacy, leading to U.N. sanctions. The United States created a multinational force (MNF) to...
-
The Evolution of Airborne Operations: From World War II to Present Day
Read MoreThey called it "The Iron Rain." On the fateful day of June 6, 1944, as part of Operation Overlord, more than 13,000 paratroopers from the American 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions leaped into the night sky, their hearts racing, their minds set on one goal: the liberation of Europe from...
-
Boots On Ground: The 82nd Airborne in the Battle for Iraq
Read MoreTransporting you from your favorite reading nook literally into the boots of the 82nd Airborne in the Battle for Iraq, Boots on the Ground by Karl Zinsmeister details the story of the frontline in a way that often isn't covered in the headline news story. A frontline reporter traveling with the 82nd,...
-
The Essentials: The C-17 Globemaster
Read More"The Essentials" Series is a monthly blog related to Airborne culture. We target fundamental topics such as Airborne equipment, culture, traditions, trivia, etc. While we have a semi-annual plan on the topics, we remain open to ideas from paratroopers like yourself. So, feel free to reach out and propose a...
-
The Filthy Thirteen: The True Story of the Dirty Dozen
Read MoreTightly bound to one another in times of war, unforgiving in the way they approach a battle, and legendary in their bravery, the story is told of the US paratroopers of the US 101st Airborne Division in The Filthy Thirteen. Finding the courage to parachute behind enemy lines in the...
-
Battle of Yongju: The Battle of the Apple Orchard
Read MoreAlso known as the Battle of the Apple Orchard, the UN orchestrated the Battle of Yongju to fight back against the North Korean forces during the Korean war. In this offensive maneuver, the US 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team—or the US 187 RCT was called on to move in front...
-
The Chosen Few: US Paratrooper's Battle in Eastern Afghanistan
Read MoreBringing you to a more recent battle in a different part of the world, The Chosen Few by Gregg Zoroya is a detailed account of how a U.S. Paratroopers company fought in eastern Afghanistan in 2007. In hopes to go in on a single, swift mission in order to befriend the isolated...
-
No Better Place To Day: The Battle For La Fiere Bridge
Read MoreIn this first-person narrative, Robert M. Murphy transports you right into the battle at La Fiere in the early morning hours of D-Day. Taking you through a firsthand account of close-quarters combat in the industrial war of the 20th century, Murphy covers all sides of the war, from the paratroopers...
-
Airborne Equipment: The Waco CG-4A Glider
Read MoreDuring World War II, the U.S. Army Air Forces utilized military gliders as a method of delivery to battle. These one-time use, engineless aircraft were towed in pairs near to the front lines of battle, typically by a Douglas C-47 military transport aircraft, carrying troops or supplies to bolster advancing...
-
Over 100 years of bravey: The 173rd Airborne Brigade
Read MoreThe 173rd Airborne Brigade is a United States Army airborne infantry brigade formed on 12 June 1917 at Camp Devens, Massachusetts. It is one of the oldest airborne units in the United States Army and has a rich history of service and combat operations. A WORLD AT WAR During World...
-
War: Through the eyes of the 173rd Airborne in Afghanistan
Read More"Brotherhood has nothing to do with feelings; it has to do with how you define your relationship to others. It has to do with the rather profound decision to put the welfare of the group above your personal welfare. In such a system, feelings are meaningless. In such a system,...
-
Into The Viper's Nest: The First Pivotal Battle Of The Afghan War
Read More"I set out then to report this story from many points of view - American and British, from soldier to general, from diplomat to president. It seemed to me that only by getting behind the scenes could anyone pretend to understand what was happening. And it seemed far better to...
-
You can Jump from a plane. How about jumping into a book?
Read MoreAs paratroopers, we know you've got discipline and are always on the lookout for that new book title that will leave a lasting impression. The global library has never been more diverse, yet you want something you can relate to. The good news is that we've reached out to our...
