War Crime Wednesday: Targeting Parachutes

             War Crimes are generally defined by how much unnecessary suffering an action causes, as we’ve discussed in the past. Today we are addressing a war crime that results from a lack of action, shooting parachutes. Parachutes were invented in 1783 France, long before the first airplane. Since their inception, parachutes have been used for dropping people and things onto places and targets. As a result, this purpose has changed very little throughout history.

             The tactical advantages of falling cannot be understated on a battlefield. In some cases, parachutes are used to protect. In other cases, parachutes are a means to attack. So, what is the war crime? When the parachuter is a pilot or air crewman that is evacuating their disabled aircraft, they are considered hors de combat (out of combat) by the Geneva Convention. In some cases, bailing out of their vehicle is considered a form of surrender. As such, killing airmen who are bailing from their vehicle is a war crime.

             But not all parachutists are surrendering. A well-known elite few are almost certainly parachuting onto your position with the intent to engage in combat, the paratroopers. The Unites States has the Airborne, Germany has the Fallschirmjager, Russia has the VDV, and many other nations possess their equivalent. These units are combatants and the defending force is not expected to wait for them to land before engaging them. Therefore, shooting at a paratrooper is not a war crime while targeting a downed airmen is.