The Paratroopers Command received a delegation from Sohag University as part of the university’s awareness-raising efforts, in cooperation with the Popular and Military Defense Forces Command and the Armed Forces’ Morale Affairs Department, to raise the awareness and inform the students of the Armed Forces’ capabilities and potential, enabling them to defend the nation’s security and safeguard its sacred sites.
Al-Nomany emphasized that the paratrooper units are one of the shields of the armed forces, possessing advanced thinking, planning, performance, and combat systems.
He praised the paratroopers who work with determination and resolve to achieve the highest levels of combat efficiency to carry out all tasks assigned to them under various circumstances.
He extended his thanks to Lieutenant General Abdul Majeed Saqr, Minister of Defense and Military Production and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, and Lieutenant General Ahmed Khalifa, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces.
For their important role in organizing such student visits to various military units, they provide a firsthand insight into the specialized, professional activities carried out by paratroopers and the advanced combat capabilities possessed by the paratrooper forces.
Dr. Khaled Omran, Vice President for Community Service and Environmental Development and Head of the Delegation, added that the day’s activities began with receiving the university delegation and listening to a lecture on the origins and development of the paratrooper units.
A visit was also organized to the historical hall, which houses the heroic deeds and sacrifices of the paratroopers during the wars that Egypt fought.
A visit was also made to the paratrooper landing pad and the main jumping wing.
He explained that the visit included watching free-fall performances by the students.
Moreover the students expressed their happiness with this visit, through which they were able to learn about the distinguished history of the Paratroopers Unit and the tremendous military capabilities of the Egyptian army.
They also expressed their pride and admiration for what they witnessed on the ground in terms of the advanced level of training and how to build future leaders. They saluted all the nation’s defenders across Egypt.
It is worth noting that the idea of establishing the Egyptian Paratroopers began in 1946 after the Egyptian military attaché in England visited some paratrooper units there. In 1951, four Egyptian officers were sent to Britain to receive a jumping squad, and they carried out the first parachute jump in the Egyptian skies on June 10, 1952, which later became Paratroopers Day.
The first Paratrooper Battalion was established in 1955 under the command of Saad Eddin El Shazly, and later developed into the 170th Paratrooper Brigade, the first and oldest paratrooper brigade in Egypt.