Original Item: Only One Available. Now this is a truly amazing parachute canopy we have to offer here. This 1st Foliage Pattern camouflage T-5 Parachute Canopy was used by a trooper of the 82nd Airborne Division who landed east of Groesbeek and Groesbeek Heights on September 17, 1944. Nearly 50 years after the battle, a Dutch citizen by the name of Joen van der Beek came across a shallow hole and decided to investigate it. After a little bit of digging in the ground, a bit of camouflage was unearthed. Upon further excavations the whole canopy was able to be removed. Turns out the troopers in the area were using their parachute canopies to better conceal themselves while in foxholes and fighting positions. Buried with the canopy was evidence of a brutal firefight. Spent casings, ejected misfires and grenade pins were found beneath the canopy. Unfortunately those items are not with the canopy.

The condition of the parachute is exactly what you would expect after being used as a means for concealment during combat and being buried for more than 50 years. There is staining throughout the fabric and multiple tears, rips, holes and loose stitching. There’s no doubt that this was an item that was definitely used for more than it was intended for.

Also included is a custom acrylic box for display that measures: 28" x 9" x 8"

This is an undeniably beautiful piece of history and would look great in your WWII 82nd Airborne and Allied collections! Comes more than ready to display!

1st Pattern Foliage T-5 Parachute
The T-5 parachute was standardized in June 1941 and many of these first pattern chutes were heavily employed in all theaters of action. They saw extensive use in training, the early airborne operations in North Africa & Sicily, as well as the daylight drop of Operation Dragoon in Southern France. White T-5's remained standard throughout the war in the Pacific theater of operations such as Nadzab, Noemfoor, and Corregidor.

First pattern harnesses were equipped with cadmium plated hardware and 2,500 lb V-rings for reserve attachment. By 1943 white harnesses were manufactured with the larger 5,000 lb D-rings, but this was short-lived as the camouflaged units were introduced in the 2nd quarter 1943. The simple snap hook with the locking pin was common on the earliest rigs, but by early 1942 had been replaced by the large sliding gate "humpback" fastener.

This example of the T-5 Parachute is not white and appears to be the 1st Foliage Pattern camouflage used. The foliage pattern was composed of dark green and olive colored shapes arrayed on a khaki backdrop. The short-lived original pattern was composed of irregular shapes in a pattern repeating approximately every 18 inches along the length of the material. In late 1943, a simplified pattern based on the standard five-color camouflage printed Army/Marine HBT pattern was adopted. The brown splotches were switched to dark green, and the light brown, olive, and green splotches were all combined into a mid-olive green shade. ​

Operation Market Garden
Operation Market Garden was an Allied military operation during the Second World War fought in the Netherlands from 17 to 25 September 1944. Its objective was to create a 64 mi (103 km) salient into German territory with a bridgehead over the River Rhine, creating an Allied invasion route into northern Germany. This was to be achieved by two sub-operations: Seizing nine bridges with combined U.S. and British airborne forces (Market) followed by land forces swiftly following over the bridges (Garden).

The airborne operation was planned and undertaken by the First Allied Airborne Army with the land operation by XXX Corps of the British Second Army. Although the largest airborne operation of the war up to that point,[e] Market Garden's ultimate outcome remains debated: The operation succeeded in liberating the Dutch cities of Eindhoven and Nijmegen along with many towns, and limited V-2 rocket launching sites. However, it failed to secure a bridgehead over the Rhine, with the advance being halted at the river.