Look Out Below! A Story of the Airborne by a Paratrooper Padre [Hardcover]

Francis L. Sampson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 20, 1989

The gripping story of how the author leaped behind enemy lines and into the midst of combat with no weapon other than the sword of the spirit, no protection other than the shield of faith. Here is the story of the airborne troopers told by the one who knew them best and with insights only a priest could possess. It is sometimes humorous, sometimes tragic, often heroic, but always honest and inspiring as seen through the understanding and sympathetic eyes of the paratrooper padre. Illustrated with photos.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Chaplain (Major General, Retired) Francis L. Sampson served as a chaplain with the 101st Airborn Division during World War II and with the 187th Regimental Combat Team (Airborne) in Korea. He volunteered in 1942, soon after he was ordained to the priesthood. After a rigorous training period he went overseas with the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment and jumped into Normandy on D-Day. He jumped into Holland and during the battle of the Bulge, at Bastogne, was captured and spent six months ina German Prisoner of War Camp. As Chaplain of the 187th RCT he made his third combat jump at Sunchon, North Korea. Later, as Chief of Chaplains and as President of the USO (following military retirement), he visited the troops in Vietnam every year from 1966 to 1973. He is a master Parachutist and has been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Distinguished Service Medal, Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Purple Heart and many other U.S. and foreign awards and decorations.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 266 pages
• Publisher: 101st Airborne Division Association; 2nd edition (April 20, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1877702005
• ISBN-13: 978-1877702006
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,253,867 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Paratrooper Padre, May 13, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Look Out Below! A Story of the Airborne by a Paratrooper Padre (Hardcover)

This book is a must-read for every American who values his freedom and who realizes that it depends on the brave sacrifices of others. When Steven Spielberg produced Saving Pvt Ryan, he unfortunately left out critical parts of this true story. It was the brave Catholic Chaplain Francis Sampson who actually did the dangerous job of Saving Pvt Ryan. Fr. Sampson was the chaplain to whom Fritz Niland went when he wanted prayer and help in going to locate the bodies of his 2 brothers who'd just been killed hours before in the Normandy invasion and he also was inform4ed of the death of his 3rd brother in Burma. The 4 brave Niland brothers--3 of whom went to Canisius College and 1 to Univ. of Buffalo in the 1930's before they entered the service along with their cousin Pete Niland--also 101st Airborne--and said brave family is acknowledged by Spielberg in the Prologue to Saving Pvt Ryan, would have made an outstanding movie of itself. But the life of Father Francis Sampson--who parachuted in 3 wars and was a POW twice in WW II and has been honored with hundreds of awards--is a hero whose outstanding life could easily alone become an outstandig movie. When you read Look Out Below! you'll get chills up your spine and tears in your eyes. What honor, bravery, love and guts! It makes me proud to be an American and a Catholic. God Bless Father Sampson, God Bless the Niland Family and God Bless America!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have for Airborne enthusiasts!, June 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Look Out Below! A Story of the Airborne by a Paratrooper Padre (Hardcover)

Saving Private Ryan was based on a short true account on page 86 of this book. Father Sampson of the 101st in Normandy is trying to help a young soldier find the cemetary his brother is in, when he is told that another brother is also dead, killed on the same day. Meanwhile, a third brother has been killed in the Pacific. Sampson gives a historical account of his life in the 101st. His tales of Normandy are especially riviting.

SN 6/7/1999

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of a kind!, August 29, 2006

By 

Toe Tag (Florida) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Look Out Below! A Story of the Airborne by a Paratrooper Padre (Hardcover)

This is a classic book of military history and a truly rare book. If you're reading it, either you where blessed to know Father Sampson or have an obscure interest in military history of the rarest kind.

Father Sampson joined the US Army and volunteered for the paratroops as a chaplain. He was an unarmed hero more concerned with the welfare of his troops he parachuted into Normandy, France on D-Day, protected only with his devotion to God and his uncompromising faith. He was later captured at The Battle of the Bulge and spent the rest of the war in a German POW camp where he continued to serve his men.

Father Sampson would later serve in Korea and Vietnam and earned a large number of decorations for courage under fire. He even received a Purple Heart for wounds. Sampson was the right name for a man so brave and pure of heart.

I won't spoil this story for you as a reader. It's a great read about a man who was much better, much more courageous and decent a man than I.

The book reads wonderfully and is a joy to own. What can I say about it? Not only is it an inspirational story and a great history book. But honestly, it makes me want to be a better Catholic.