Two A400s confirmed for mass drop of 181 paras for D-Day commemorations

Plans for 181 British paras to jump into Normandy as part of the 80th anniversary D-Day commemorations will go ahead with two A400M Atlas transport aircraft being made available.

It had earlier been feared that the plans might have to be scaled back due to a lack of available RAF transport aircraft, but Defence Minister James Cartlidge told the Commons two A400s would be taking part.

He also explained why the number of paras was so specific, matching the number of men who landed on Pegasus Bridge in the early hours of 6 June 1944.

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"It's 181 because that is the number of paratroopers who, at 16 minutes past midnight on D-Day itself, landed and took the bridge that we named Pegasus," he told MPs.

Mr Cartlidge was referring to Benouville Bridge, a road crossing over the Caen Canal, between Caen and Ouistreham, which was the objective of members of D Company, 2nd (Airborne) Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry.

This glider-borne force, part of 6th Airlanding Brigade, landed near the bridge in the opening minutes of the Allied invasion of Normandy. The unit also captured the nearby Ranville Bridge over the River Orne.

Both bridges were renamed Pegasus Bridge and Horsa Bridge respectively, in homage to the unit's emblem and the type of glider they flew in on.

Paratroopers from 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team will be making the jump from the A400Ms, and the Parachute Regiment's Red Devils parachute display team will also jump into Normandy.

The A400M Atlas has proven its versatility by recently being involved in the dropping of aid in Gaza.

The RAF's previous transport aircraft, the C-130 Hercules, was retired in June last year.

But the MOD was quick to point out how the A400M, being a more modern and capable aircraft, offers many advantages over the C-130J.

This includes a greater range and payload capacity – almost twice that of the C-130J.

The A400M was central to the evacuations from Afghanistan and Sudan, and the MOD said it was "proud to house the biggest tactical transport fleet seen in the UK for the last 50 years".