Screaming Eagles will drop in on Las Vegas

Monday, June 2, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

The words of Gen. William C. Lee, the father of the U.S. Army airborne forces, ring as true today as they did more than half a century ago during the dark days of World War II.

"The 101st (Airborne Division) ... has a rendezvous with destiny," said the North Caroline-bred direct descendant of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

"Our badge is the great American eagle. This is a fitting emblem for a division that will crush our enemies by falling upon them like a thunderbolt from the skies."

Now in their 70s and 80s, the former paratroopers of the legendary Screaming Eagle Division of World War II, will gather this week in Las Vegas to recall glory days at Normandy on D-Day and at Bastogne in the Battle of the Bulge, where they played a major role in defeating Nazi Germany.

A few of the old soldiers of the 502nd Parachute Regiment of Company B will even relive their youth by participating in a simulated parachute jump Friday at Flyaway, 200 Convention Center Drive. Most other activities will take place Thursday through Saturday at the Debbie Reynolds hotel-casino.

About 180 veterans of the 101st and their families will attend the convention.

Friday marks the 53rd anniversary of D-Day.

"You live one life but you have many different lives -- the life with your family, the life at work and the life you shared with others during service time," said Mort Smit, a 20-year Las Vegas resident who served as lieutenant in the 101st during World War II and retired as a captain.

"The only thing we have now is our memories to pass on from generation to generation. And it is important to remember the sacrifices we made in World War II because it preserved the freedom we enjoy today."

The sacrifices by the 101st Airborne in World War II were many and staggering.

At Normandy, where the fate of the last half of the 20th century was decided, 3,836 Screaming Eagle casualties were recorded -- 868 killed, 2,303 wounded and 665 missing or captured.

At Bastogne, where the Germans attempted a last-ditch breakthrough effort to split the Allied forces and prolong the war, 3,458 Screaming Eagle casualties were realized -- 482 killed, 2,449 wounded and 527 missing or captured.

In Holland, where the paratroopers saw much action, 3,301 more Screaming Eagle casualties were registered -- 752 killed, 2,151 wounded and 398 missing or captured.

At Normandy, where Smit organized 125 men from six scattered units who survived the jump, victory was not as certain as some movies portray it to have been.

"D-Day could have been a fiasco," he said. "Our planes were shot out of the sky before some of the men could even jump. Still, enough of us made it to take out the big German guns. If we didn't do that, they would have wiped out the troops coming ashore. It could have been a terrible tragedy."

As for the simulated indoor jumps at Flyaway, Smit, 79, mused: "At least this time, no one will be firing live ammunition at us."

Also during World War II, the 82nd Airborne Division played a vital role. That group also has held conventions in Las Vegas. Smit noted that a couple of members of the 82nd are expected to attend this convention.

"In the airborne, everybody from the cook to the general jumped," said Smit, who made eight training and two battle jumps and lost part of a hip when he fell on a grenade in battle. "Even the chaplain jumped. Raymond Hall, a Protestant minister, was the first."

Activities scheduled for this week include tours of the Imperial Palace Auto Collection and the Debbie Reynolds Hollywood Museum on Thursday, a tour of the Strip, the Flyaway event and the banquet on Friday and the business meeting and a tour of the Fremont Street Experience on Saturday.

Several noted members of the Screaming Eagles have confirmed they will be in attendance.

Among them is Col. Robert Jones, past president of the 101st Airborne Division Association and current chairman of the board of the national group that has scheduled its 52nd annual meeting July 30-Aug. 2 in Knoxville, Tenn.

Jones won the Distinguished Service Cross and Silver Star among his numerous decorations. He had the distinction of serving at both Normandy and at the Chosin Reservoir, one of the most famous battles of the Korean War.

Some of the others who are scheduled to attend have lived lives right out of a Hollywood movie script.

Sam Carp, one of the original jump platoon members, was a Major League prospect at shortstop whose career was cut short by the war. Ben McIntosh is an Indian who served as a sergeant in the Army and later became chief of his tribe.

Smit even got to re-create a movie scene in battle.

In retreat from German soldiers, he dove into a small muddy pond. Remembering a scene from a movie where a soldier used a reed to breathe while underwater, he took the barrel off his M-3 and sucked air through it, avoiding capture.

After the war, Smit became a sales manager and vice president with the Bulova Watch Co., in New York, where he worked directly under the company's chairman, retired Gen. Omar Bradley, the supervising commander of the D-Day landing.

The 101st Airborne went on to distinguish itself in other wars, including Vietnam, and remains a vital part of today's American military.

Smit is proud to note that his 18-year-old granddaughter, Jennifer Smit, enlisted in the Army this year and will become a member of the 101st Airborne Screaming Eagle Division.