The 1st Airlanding Light Regiment was an airborne forces unit of the British Army's Royal Artillery during the Second World War.

During the battle of Arnhem that followed the regiment was one of the divisional units that formed a defensive ring around Oosterbeek.

Impressed by the success of German airborne operations during the Battle of France, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, directed the War Office to investigate the possibility of creating a corps of 5,000 parachute troops.

At the time, the battery was commanded by Major Pat Lloyd and, equipped with the First World War vintage 3.7-inch mountain howitzer, served on the North-West Frontier in India.

[7][nb 1] At this time the only way airborne forces could transport artillery guns and their towing vehicles by air was by using gliders.

The division in North Africa boarded the ships of the Royal Navy's 12th Cruiser Squadron at Bizerta on 8 September 1943.

Next they fired in support of the independent 2nd Parachute Brigade and the British 78th Infantry Division from mid-December 1943 to January 1944, at Casoli, Gessopalena and Roccascalegna.

[11] In England the regiment trained for operations in North-West Europe under the supervision of I Airborne Corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General Frederick Arthur Montague Browning.

Although they were not scheduled to take part in the Normandy landings, Operation Wastage was a contingency plan drawn up whereby all of the 1st Airborne Division would be parachuted in to support any of the five invasion beaches if delays were experienced.

[15][nb 2] In early September the regiment prepared for Operation Comet during which the 1st Airborne Division's three brigades were to land in the Netherlands and capture three river crossings.

[27] In the morning of the second day, 19 September, in order to support the paratroopers in Arnhem, the guns had to move to a new position beside the church in Oosterbeek.

The regiment's guns were called into action and caused significant damage to the un-armoured vehicles, armoured cars and half-tracks.

[30] Their guns were also called upon to break up German attacks on the landing zones, still defended by the 1st Airlanding Brigade, which were in danger of being overrun.

[35] All that morning the Germans using tanks, self propelled artillery and infantry attempted to break through the British line and reach the regiment's guns from the east.

Engaged in hand-to-hand fighting, infantry support was requested and the guns were firing at point blank range.

Cain was wounded disabling a Tiger tank, after which he brought one of the regiment's guns forward to finish it off.

[43] The following days took on the same pattern until the night of 25/26 September, when the remnants of the 1st Airborne Division were withdrawn south of the River Rhine.

In June some men left to join the 53rd (Worcester Yeomanry) Airlanding Light Regiment, part of the 6th Airborne Division.