1933 Indian Gum #25, Geronimo ⭐ U.S. Army Lore
Geronimo was a Native-American Apache known for his supreme bravery and tactical expertise.
He fought to protect his native Apache homeland against the military forces of both Mexico and the United States.
In 1940, the U.S. Army was testing out the feasibility of training soldiers to parachute into battle, and needless to say that the troops were feeling apprehensive.
The story goes that the night prior to the first test jumps, a Private named Aubrey Eberhardt was boasting that he wasn’t afraid to jump.
The other soldiers called his bluff by saying “You’ll be so scared you won’t even remember your own name!” to which he reportedly replied, “All right, dammit! I tell you jokers what I’m gonna do! To prove to you that I’m not scared out of my wits when I jump, I’m gonna yell “Geronimo!” loud as hell when I go out that door tomorrow!”
And he did, starting a new tradition among parachuting troops.
I remember yelling "Geronimo" when diving off the diving board at the pool as a lad, perhaps you did the same.
Notwithstanding the tradition, I was a Master Parachutist in the U.S. Army with over 65 jumps logged and I never once yelled "Geronimo"!😂
