BRITISH and French paratroopers have jumped into action together as part of a major training exercise to improve their ability to operate as a team.

More than 500 paratroopers from Colchester-based 16 Air Assault Brigade and 11e Brigade Parachutiste jumped onto the STANTA training area in Norfolk.

It was part of the Exercise Eagles Amarante which is challenging the joint force to restore stability to a troubled region.

The soldiers jumped from RAF C130 Hercules and French Armee de l'Air C160 Transall transport aircraft to capture a foothold in hostile territory.

Over the coming days, extra troops and equipment will arrive on the area to build up combat power, before the joint force attacks key enemy positions.

Major Christopher Prior, Second-in-Command of 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment said: "We’re practicing a scenario where we go into a country that’s been destabilised through internal conflict. Working with the French allows us to figure out how we deal with the language barriers, the planning differences and the equipment differences as well."

Lt Col Sebastian from 1RCP said: "We know we could be deployed at any time. Airborne troops are perfectly suited to emergency action so that’s why we prepare with exercises like this. It’s a great opportunity to work with the British Army and ensure we are ready to deploy on operations together."

The two-week long exercise started on September 27, with 1,800 British and French troops and 300 vehicles and helicopters converging on Wattisham Flying Station in Suffolk to begin planning and organising missions.

The training is designed to improve links between 16 AAAB and 11e BP, which both provide their armies’ rapid reaction forces and are at the forefront of Franco-British military co-operation.

Together they form the Interim Combined Joint Expeditionary Force (I-CJEF) which is ready to deploy at short notice on operations anywhere in the world.

The partnership was validated in 2013, with Exercise Eagles Amarante part of an ongoing programme of joint training.