German paratroopers march into town after spending seven long days of severe fighting. German ...

German paratroopers march into town after spending seven long days of severe fighting. German paratroopers of General Kurt Student’s XI Air Corps – were highly trained and motivated. For ten days they, and the elite mountain troops that were sent to reinforce them, hunted and were hunted by the Australian, New Zealand, British, and Greek soldiers, as well as Cretan farmers, townspeople, and police. Fighting was savage and bloody. In the countryside and villages of the Heraklion and Retimo sectors, the Germans were driven from their objectives. The Allies denied the airfields to the enemy but were cut off from each other as they fought bitter battles on their flanks. At Maleme, the Germans captured the airfield and flew in desperately needed reinforcements. Over the next week they drove the Allies east to defensive positions around Suda, capturing the port at Canea on the way. By 26 May Freyberg reported that his position was hopeless and his men had reached their limit: food and ammunition was in short supply, they had no motor transport, and communications were sporadic at best. The three forces established to defend the sectors around the airfields could not support each other. The German Air Force had unchallenged mastery of the skies and, therefore, dominated the battlefields during daylight hours.