Unternehmen "Merkur" - The Conquest of Crete 1914

Operation “Mercury” is considered to have been the first great airborne operation carried out in the history of war. Its result was a success, in so far as the planned objective was obtained. Certainly, an excessive number of losses ensued, practically a third of all the men employed. The number of losses was too high, but one learns from mistakes. Surely, if it had been a success, like Eben Emael, sooner or later, a new operation would have ended in greater butchery. It is undeniable that the operation obtained its objective, Crete, and absolutely all those who have analyzed it afterwards have drawn some conclusions from it. New operations surged from it and also new problems were thrown in to be resolved. The only truth is that had it been the tremendous failure that some accuse it of being, firstly, the objective would not have been attained and in the second place, such an operation would never have been repeated. In fact, from that moment onwards, the allies practiced and practiced until they refined these actions, until they softened the high losses of airborne operations. Today, more than 65 years later, the paratroopers are considered to be the elite of any army.