PVT Julius A. “Holin” Dietz
Today we honor and remember PVT Julius A. “Holin” Dietz of the 101st Airborne Division
PVT Julius A. Holin of 2nd Platoon, Charlie Company, 326th Airborne Engineer Battalion (AEB), 101st Airborne Division, was born in Connecticut to Jacob Holin and Helen “Lillie” (Licht) Holin on March 17, 1923. Julius was their only son.
Helen married Jacob in Detroit on October 10, 1920, but they divorced around 1926. She was remarried on December 7, 1928, to Andrew Elvin Dietz, who adopted and raised Julius, thus giving him his last name. This made finding any information about Julius difficult because he used the name Holin as a paratrooper, but public records still had him officially registered as Dietz. Helen Dietz would eventually have two additional children with Jacob, Elvin and Adolph, making Julius their big brother.
Julius Holin enlisted into the United States Army in Detroit, Michigan, on May 18, 1942, and was attached to the 326th Airborne Engineer Battalion. Initially, the 326th was a regiment of the 101st Division, but it was redesignated as the 326th AEB on August 15, 1942 – the same day the 101st became an airborne division.
After participating in all the division’s exercises and maneuvers, the 326th AEB deployed to England on September 5, 1943. While in England, Julius and the other paratroopers of the battalion underwent additional training, which not only focused on their physical condition, but also on using their weapon systems. The 326th Engineers also trained in glider loading and glider flights during additional tactical exercises at the battalion and divisional level.
Private Holin’s platoon was attached to the 1st Battalion, 501st PIR. Together with the Regimental 2nd Battalion, their mission was to destroy one of the railroad bridges and two of the four highway bridges crossing the Douve River in the vicinity of Carentan. Unfortunately Julius Holin would never take part in achieving these goals.
On June 5, 1944, Holin’s plane, a C-47 of the 100th Troop Carrier Squadron, 441st Troop Carrier Group, numbered 42-101019 and part of serial 14 (Chalk #30), took off at around 23.30 hours from Merryfield Airfield in England and headed for Drop Zone D. There it was to drop its stick of paratroopers around 01.26 hours on D-Day.
As the plane reached the French coast, it was pounded by intense anti-aircraft fire. An aircraft on the port side was hit and blew up in mid-air, causing Private Holin’s port engine and wing to catch fire - along with the C-2 explosive bundles held under his plane for their parachute bundle drop.
A second heavy burst of flak then hit the forward section of the plane, killing the radio operator SGT James Freda and wounding PVT Julius Holin. The same burst of fire may also have killed or seriously wounded the pilot, CPT John McCue, and his co-pilot, LT Earnest Wheeler.
The stick’s jump master, LT Howard L. Huggett, and his No.2 man, PVT Edward J. Namowicz, were ready to jump when Namowicz discovered he also had been wounded. Upon LT Huggett's advice, Private Namowicz was told to jump and not stay in the plane as previously ordered by a memo. Wounded men were told not to jump but stay in the plane and return to England.
The plane was hit a third time by flak, with shrapnel bursting through the bottom of the aircraft between PVT Namowicz and LT Huggett, hitting Namowicz’s reserve parachute strapped to his chest. The aircraft was now on fire and went into a dive.
Lieutenant Hugget noted that the pilot and his co-pilot were slumped forward and no communication could be made to the crew through intercom. Believing the plane was losing control, he gave the order to jump. Witnesses saw the plane crashing in flames near the village of St. Pellerin just east of Carentan. The entire crew and PVT Julius Holin perished in the crash.
Another Screaming Eagle had soared to the ultimate height. 🦅
While the others just barely survived their intended drop, it still did not end well, as most of the men who landed safely were taken prisoner by the Germans that day, including LT Huggett. They would spend the duration of the war in German Prisoner of War camps.
PVT Julius A. Holin rests eternally in the Machpelah Cemetery in Ferndale, Oakland County, Michigan.
Happy Birthday in Heaven, Julius. Lest We Forget! 🇺🇸