260815-A-IH863-1005
U.S. Army Reserve Soldiers of the 404th Civil Affairs Battalion join military veterans and members of the New Jersey Stephen R. Koch Chapter of the 82nd Airborne Association at a historic marker in Robbinsville Township, N.J., Aug. 15, 2026, to commemorate the 86th anniversary of the U.S. Army Parachute Test Platoon’s first test jumps. In 1940, the platoon’s 48 members traveled from Fort Benning, Ga., to Hightstown, N.J., where they conducted tower jumps, refining the tactics and techniques that have shaped modern airborne operations. The commemoration coincided with the 404th Civil Affairs Battalion sunsetting its airborne status, connecting the unit’s final days on jump status to the earliest origins of New Jersey's Army airborne history. (U.S. Army Reserve photo by Staff Sgt. Scott Griffin)