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| MISSION DATE | SERIAL | TC GROUP | CODE NAME | AIR FIELD | # CG-4A | # HORSA | INF. DIV. | LOAD | LANDING ZONE | TIME OVER LZ | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mission Date | Serial | TC Group | Code Name | Air Field | # CG-4A | # Horsa | Inf. Div. | Load | Landing Zone | Time LZ | Notes |
| 1944-08-15 | 14 | 435 | Bluebird | -Tarquinia | 0 | 35 | 2nd (Independent) Parachute Brigade Group | 330th Antitank Air Land Battery, 64th British Light Artillery Battalion | O | 18:14:00 | |
| Fog over LZ caused C-47s and glider to returned to Tarquinia. Two gliders released over Corsica. Take off again was at 18:00 hours ten minutes before Dove mission was due to take off. | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 15 | 436 | Bluebird | -Voltone | 40 | 0 | 2nd (Independent) Parachute Brigade Group | 64th Airlanding Light Battery, RA, Q 1st ABTF with 512th Aiborne Signal Co. | O | 08:22:00 | |
| Troop Carrier Narrative #1 for 15 August 1944 Serial 15 was accomplished with 40 C-47's towing 40 CG-4A Gliders of which three of the gliders were non-effective. Of the three, one lost a wing in the air in the Corsica area, losing both crew and airborne pssengers; a second was lost soon after take-off but made a successful landing on the water, crew and passengers being rescued; the tird was unable to take-off but joined another serial with the 437th Troop Carrier Group. Confusing orders scrubbing the mission and later orders to continue to destination involved a delay in the Corsica area of sustantially an hour. The ground haze and fog had burned off entirely by the time the LZ was reached and 37 gliders were released over the LZ and all appeared to make a successful landing. The fighter cover was excellent and nothing outside of routine appeared other than above noted. the weather conditions were extremely favorable. No ground fire was encountered and little activity observed on the inland roads. Capt B. L Lengyel and Major S. M Bryan went on the mission as intelligence observers. --S. M. Bryan, Major, Air Corps Groups S-2. --AFHRA 436th Mission report. | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 17 | 442 | Dove | -Folonica | 47 | 0 | 550th Glider Infantry Battalion | O | 18:19:00 | ||
| 1944-08-15 | 18 | 441 | Dove | -Grossetto | 48 | 0 | 1st Co 550 Bn 602 FA Bn | O | 18:27:00 | ||
| This Groupo was split to different LZs; 99th TC Squadron/441st TC Group, Chalk 1-12 | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 18 | 441 | Dove | -Grossetto | 36 | 0 | 1st Co 550 Bn 602 FA Bn | A | 18:28:00 | ||
| This Serial was split to two different LZ; 100th TC Squadron/ 441st TC Group, Chalk 13-30: On the afternoon of August 15th, at 1544 hours the eighteen planes took off anew [after dropping paratroopers], this time towing eighteen CG-4A gliders. The thirty-six GPs (glider pilots) carried full field equipment, plus, hand grenades, smoke grenades, BAR rifles (Browning Automatic rifles) and ammunition, and .45 caliber pistols. The gliders were loaded with personnel of the 1st Airborne Task Force and their equipment. The ceiling and visibility were unlimited (cavu). No enemy aircraft were encountered. En route there was an escort of P47s, and numerous P51s were descried at the LZ. The gliders were over the target at 1550 hours, and were released at an altitude of 700ft. above the terrain The LZ was located near the town of Saint Sauvear, France. The LZ was accurately located, and the Radar worked perfectly. The glider carried 33,399 lbs. of equipment, including jeeps, litters, machine guns, medical chests, radios, trailers, water cans, and rations. The gliders landed in good pattern. The eighteen planes returned at 2330 hours. On August 18th, the 36 glider pilots were picked up at Corsica. There were two casualties among the glider pilots: FO Ruehlman injured his right arm (between the wrist and the elbow) when the weapons carrier which he was driving in Southern France hit a land mine; F/O Roberts received a broken leg while en route to Corsica. The glider pilots were flown to an ATC base by three of the Squadron's planes from Grosseto, and from there (the ATC base) the glider pilots returned to England, and to Merryfield. 302nd TC Squadron/ 441st TC Group, Chalk 31-48: | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 19 | 440 | Dove | -Ombrone | 48 | 0 | 30 gliders - 602nd Field Artillery Battalion 18 gliders-Antitank Co., 442nd “Nisei” Infantry Reg. | A | 18:36:00 | ||
| 1944-08-15 | 20 | 439 | Dove | -Orbertello | 21 | 0 | Sig Co Co A Chem 2nd Pltn Co A Chem | O | 18:23:00 | ||
| Split Group to two different LZs | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 20 | 439 | Dove | -Orbertello | 26 | 0 | Sig Co Co A Chem 2nd Pltn Co A Chem | A | 18:44:00 | ||
| Split serial to two different LZs | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 21 | 438 | Dove | -Canino | 47 | 0 | 14 gliders - 2nd Chemical Mortar Battalion, A Co. 8 gliders - 512th Airborne Signal Co. 25 gliders - 676th Medical Collecting Co., 164th Medical Battalion | O | 18:51:00 | ||
| In the 438th only the 87th, 88th and 89th were sent to Italy. The 90th TC Squadron did not fly Southern France.--A0994-369-371 --89TH TCS, 438TH TCG. Upon the return of the ships form the first mission, the planes were refueled and marshalled for the glider mission. At 1359 hours the first ship from the squadron took off with its glider tow, quickly followed by the remainder of the ships. The glider behind tow ship #767 was found to be nose heavy and the freight had to be transferred to another glider and the ship and glider took off at 170 hours, flying the entire route alone. Each ship towed a C-4A glider containing a total of 68 men, 40,584 pounds of equipment and supplies. All gliders were towed to LZ O successfully, and all ships returned to this base without mishap. The first ship was over the LZ at 1850 hours and with the exception of ship #767, all the other planes cut their gliders within five minutes thereafter. Both missions were highly successful and there was no loss of plane or life. | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 22 | 62 | Dove | -Galera | 48 | 0 | 1st Airborne Division | 24 gliders - 887th Airborne Aviation Engineer Co. 18 gliders - HQ, 1st ABTF: 6 gliders Military Platoon, 1st ABTF | O | 18:59:00 | |
| 62nd Troop Carrier Group: Order of Formation was: 8th TC sqd chalk 1-12 , 51st TC sqd chalk 13 - 24, 4th TC Sqd chalk 25- 36, 7th TC sqd 37 - 48.
51st TC Squadron Report 51st TC Wing to the 62nd TCG; Order Number 4, para (e) Altitude of release over LZ's "O" and "A" - 1,000 | |||||||||||
| 1944-08-15 | 23 | 64 | Dove | -Ciampino | 47 | 0 | 10 gliders - 887th Airborne Aviation Engineer Co. 30 gliders - 83rd Chemical Martar Battalion, D Co. 7 glider - Division Order Detachment. | A | 19:03:00 | ||
| HEADQUARTERS 64TH TROOP CARRIER GROUP 21 August 1944 Operation Dove: Gliders were assigned Numbers 49 thru 95. The flight itself was uneventful. Many of the glider pilots said it was the smoothest flight they had ever been on. As they neared the coast dense smoke made them anxious as to what awaited them, but no enemy opposition developed. Over the target, which was obscured by smoke drifting in from the coast until they were almost over it, the scene was one of confusion. Gliders of preceding waves had apparently taken all available landing space. The glider pilots released however, and as they circled down small openings presented themselves. The air was full of gliders, each following its own pattern, trying to lose altitude quickly and get into very restricted spaces. Many were just about to set down in a small clear spot only to have a glider come in from another direction and beat them to it. To add to the confusion, vegetation which they had been told was grape vines turned out to be small trees. Sharpened 4x4 poles 12 to 15 feet high strung with wire appeared, ready to gut and destroy luckless gliders. Most of the casualties occurred on the landing. Several Pilots suffered broken legs as the unprotected noses of the gliders plowed into vines or furrows. Some were crushed as the load in the glider, torn loose by the shock of a crash landing, hurtled forward through the plywood noses. At the high altitude of release casualties would have been heavy if the enemy had opposed the landing with fire, but it this respect our men were lucky. The majority landed without injury t the occupants, although most of the gliders were damaged... | |||||||||||
Special thanks to Philippe Esvelin for his work on serials in his book Forgotten Wings.
SOUTHERN FRANCE
Serial
Roger Smith's southern France flight by Zach Cromley
The WITNESS TO WAR:
A glider pilots perspective-
Milt Dank, Glider Pilot, 91st Troop Carrier Squadron, 439th Troop Carrier Group, 1st Allied Airborne Infantry Forty-five to ninety seconds. That’s all Milt Dank says he had to land his four ton glider in the vineyards of Southern France while facing life-threatening obstacles. (4:50)
Courtesy of the National Archives / NWWIIGPA Collection
Caption on back: Invasion Gliders land after being towed to the coast of southern France by Douglas C-47 Transports of the 12th Air Force Troop Carrier Air Division, on the invasion's "D" Day. Dust can be seen as the Gliders land somewhere between Cannes and Toulon.
Courtesy of the National Archives / NWWIIGPA Collection
Caption on back: General view of anti-glider posts placed by Germans along the southern coast of France. (Petuis Area, France) 21 August 1944. [Field Marshal Rommel directed that thousands of these tall wooden poles be erected in open fields in Southern France so as to impede glider landings.]
Silent Wings Museum / NWWIIGPA Collection
Back Caption: Art Thomas, Great Pilot, Great Guy, Southern France. His Glider.
--"Jerry Schelley"
Courtesy of the National Archives / NWWIIGPA Collection
Caption on back: 15 August 1944. Seventh Army, La Motte, France. 1st Airborne Task Force. Airborne Troops leaving their glider for C.P. area, shortly after landings were made in southern France. Photo by Leibowitz, 163rd Signal Photo Company
Courtesy of the National Archives / NWWIIGPA collection
17 AUG.1944 7/MM-44-2151
7 ARMY, LE MUY, FRANCE.
T. F., Stack German euipment in the town square of Le Muy as German prisoners pass under glider pilot escort
Photo by Leibowitz, 163rd SIG. Photo Co.
OPERATION CODENAME DOVE
