Clusters of olive-green parachutes drifted down to a Mediterranean beach Tuesday in a group jump by 120 paratroop veterans, most of them Americans, to mark Israel's 40th anniversary. Three U.S.-built C-130 Hercules transports circled the dunes of Palmachim Beach, about 15 miles south of Tel Aviv, to drop the members of the International Association of Airborne Veterans. ``This is my show of support for Israel,'' said Jim Costa, 58, of Charlestown, N.H., who said he lost his left leg in the Korean War and has jumped five times since with an artifical one. ``I also wanted to make this my last jump and I thought there's no better place to do it than the place where Christ walked,'' said Costa, wiping sweat from his face as he moved toward a table laden with cakes and fruits. Some paratroopers came to express solidarity with Israel, but others said a sense of adventure attracted them. Cleo Crouch of Boca Raton, Fla., at age 72 the oldest jumper, said: ``I landed on my butt and my back hurts a little, but I'm fine.'' Crouch, a retired trucking company owner, said Tuesday's jump was his third. He said he first parachuted over the Rhine River on a combat mission in March 1945, then tried a freefall on a dare in 1985. ``Everybody thinks I'm crazy,'' said Crouch. ``Where I live, the guys my age are just sitting around smoking, drinking beer and eating too much. I feel I can do everything I want to.'' In addition to 80 Americans, the group included 30 West Germans, a few Britons and Canadians, a jumper from Denmark and one from Singapore. It was the Chicago-based association's second jump over Israel since its founding five years ago. The last jump it organized was in Taiwan in November. Karl Houy, 43, a physician from Neuenkirchen, West Germany, said he participated to overcome fear that began when he broke his leg jumping in 1983. ``I was scared and I wanted to prove to myself that I can still do it,'' he said. ``I have to tell you, though, that I didn't see much of the view. I just wanted to get down safely.''
