<P> The 101st Airborne Division ( `` Screaming Eagles '' ) is an elite modular specialized light infantry division of the US Army . Trained for air assault operations , it has been referred to as `` the tip of the spear . '' It is the most potent and tactically mobile of the U.S. Army 's divisions . The division 's strategic and tactical mobility has no equal in the world . The 101st Airborne is able to plan , coordinate , and execute brigade - size air assault operations capable of seizing key terrain in support of operational objectives , and is capable of working in austere environments with limited or degraded infrastructure . These particular operations are conducted by highly mobile teams covering extensive distances and engaging enemy forces behind enemy lines . Its unique battlefield mobility and high level of training have kept it in the vanguard of US land combat forces in recent conflicts . More recently , the 101st Airborne has been performing foreign internal defense and counterterrorism operations within Iraq and Afghanistan . </P>
who was in the 101st airborne division in ww2
an elite modular specialized light infantry division of the US Army