What is the difference between the 101st Airbourne and the 82nd airbourne?

Nothing really. Both were US paratrooper divisions used during WW2. The paratrooper division the same in their size and the type of equipment they used. But they were not the same as the typical US Infantry Division. The units within the 101st and 82nd were different of course. The paratrooper regiments were numbered 501 PIR, 502 PIR, 506 PIR and 508 PIR, etc where PIR means Parachute Infantry Regiment. They each had paratrooper artillery battalions and engineer battalions. The units saw combat in different areas. Early in the war, some of their Regiments were used individually and some where changed for other regiments. Their history and traditions are different. The 101st Airborne was created in WW2. But the 82nd "American Airborne" Division dates back to the 82nd "All-American" Infantry Division that saw service in France in WW1. The 101st Division evolved into a helicopter assault unit and no longer parachuted into combat. The 82nd Division remained a airborne unit.