The 101st Airborne, including Colonel Johnson and his men, was ordered to seize 15 miles of highway, including several bridges, in the Netherlands as part of the combined airborne/armored Operation Market Garden. The 501st PIR landed and organized itself. Always among his men, Johnson provided an example of leadership in the battlefield as he led his men to seize their objectives and get into good positions once a British armored corps linked up with them. Although part of Operation Market Garden failed, the 501st, led by "Jumpy" Johnson, had seized its objectives.