Aircraft can deliver troops and useful capabilities, but the first landing leaves the problem of how those forces will survive. Air-deployed troops facing entrenched, mobilized defenders can suffer badly if heavy units fail to reach them quickly. Ukraine and Operation Market Garden supply comparisons in this argument. Airborne forces add flexibility and another approach to an operation while remaining dependent on support.
Notable Point · 1:55:50-1:56:53
Airborne troops need heavy forces to sustain an assault
Air deployment gives an invasion flexibility, but troops facing prepared defenders still need heavy support to arrive quickly.