The bridge was captured by British and Canadian troops, who swooped into enemy territory by glider and parachute on D-Day - 6 June 1944.

BBC: Veterans remember Dunkirk rescue

They want the 2nd Battalion Parachute Regiment - known as 2 Para - to encircle the movement, along with elite US troops from the 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions, the paper reported.

BBC: UK troops still 'ready' for Afghanistan

The exploits are straight out of a Hollywood movie: nighttime parachute drops behind enemy lines before the D-Day invasion in France, shootouts with SS troops, dodging Nazi collaborators, helping hundreds of downed American airmen elude capture.

WSJ: Ex-CIA chief aided WWII hero's Arlington burial