# COMBAT BULLETIN 17 INVASION OF SOUTHERN FRANCE 14th AIR FORCE IN CHINA JEEP RAILROAD 26124

This 1944 U.S. War Department Combat Bulletin (No. 17) gives viewers a look at Operation Dragoon, the Allied push south after D-Day, Fighting in Burman, and a naval battle in the Pacific off the coast of the Mariana Islands. The bulletin begins with footage of Operation Dragoon. The Allied fleet waits for orders to invade Southern France. Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal discuses the operation on deck (00:39). The Allied convoy moves toward the French coast. Men make last-minute preparations on the decks, loading guns and stocking rations. Waco CG-4 Glider planes and C-47s take off for an airborne assault behind Nazi defenses (01:42). Footage shows the gliders landing, with several crashing. C-47s fly in the sky transporting hundreds of paratroopers (03:10). The paratroopers put on their helmets and begin to jump: there is a good aerial shot of the paratroopers landing. Paratroopers move through a rocky ravine and across rivers. They meet with French resistance forces. The 451st Bombing Group sits for a briefing. They take off (05:26), then they begin the bombing raid over Southern France. Fighter planes—they appear to be Lockheed P-38 Lightnings—strafe ground targets (07:00). Allied naval ships shell the French coast. Landing craft carry troops to shore (07:50). Troops arrive at beach east of San Rafael and meet heavy resistance. The Allied troops advance inland (09:18), walking through trees and across fields. On the beach, viewers see reinforcements and equipment…

- Kind: Film
- By: PeriscopeFilm
- Genres: Industrial and advertising
- Archive: [Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/26124combatbulletin17vwr)
- Licence or status: none stated by the archive
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

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