Name Robert Mathias | ||
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Died June 6, 1944, Manche, France |
In 1944, Lt. Robert P. Mathias was a platoon leader with the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) in the 82nd Airborne Division. He was the first American officer killed by German fire on D-Day. As Mathias stood ahead of his men at 0227 hours on D-Day, ready to parachute from his C-47 Dakota over the English Channel on its way to Normandy, he was struck by a blast of fire, but nevertheless managed to lead his team out of the plane.{5}
References
Robert P. Mathias Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA