At the time, I thought it was artillery fire coming up at us. As we crossed the edge of the drop zone, Don ordered the jump. I threw the switch that activated the green light over the rear cargo door. Ringler kicked out his equipment bundle and jumped. His troopers were right behind him.
Paratroopers make a considerable amount of noise when they jump.
They are all lined up tightly in a row, and their job is to get quickly out of the plane. PIR was no exception in this regard, their heavy boots pounded the aluminum floor of the aircraft as they were leaving. As soon as the jump was complete, the 65th regained normal air speed, resumed its original formation and returned to Mindoro on Leyte island. The paratroopers hit their targeted area, rallied to their officers and began their attack on Los Banos. It was almost a textbook operation.