PREPARATION FOR D-DAY - DAKS OVER DUXFORD

[Gil Boyd]

On a very windy day blowing 10 -18 knots all the preparation was being made for the jumps leading up to 6th June in Normandy and the 75th Anniversary of D-DAY.
Sadly the wind on the ground put paid to that today D-DAY -2 hopefully a chance tomorrow for practice jump or two over Duxford before they embark for the big jump on the 6th where over 200 International Paras will drop on French soil once more.

Here are some photos of our brothers from America and Canada who had to fly over to take part in the ground training to ensure they were ready for the drop on the 6th, and for the French to check their passports. "Never asked for them in 1944"

Also many serving and ex members of 2 and 3 PARA dressed in the archaic British 38 and 44 pattern equipment taking to the skies for the chance to jump on this Commemorative occasion in Normandy.
Serving members of The Second Battalion The Parachute Regiment show of their wears of today fresh back from Afghanistan....AGAIN!!!
The Apache of 656 Sqn Army Air Corps and all before the general public were allowed in early this morning.
UTRINQUE PARATUS and Good Luck to all, safe landing in whatever winds!!!

Information

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[Lee Enfield]

https://scholars.wlu.ca/cgi/viewcont...09&context=cmh

A friends father was with 1 Can. Para. and always said that he wasn't sure whether he had jumped on D-Day or D-1...

From reading about it he probably jumped after midnite, but the flack was enough to keep them from checking their watches...

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

I would like to thank you and others here for sharing your impressions and photos on this remembrance of such a significant day in human history with those of us unable to be there.

[Gil Boyd]

No worries at all. I'll try and update accordingly as things materialise on the jump here on UK soil and put anything I get back from my museum colleagues in Normandy

It was heartwarming to see so many friends from past operations all getting together for this "once in a lifetime event between all our joint Airborne Brotherhood nations" especially those that lost so much on Operation Herrick.

It made a difference on the 6th June 1944 and it will do exactly the same on the 6th June 2019, 75 years later that men gave their lives so that we could all be free.

[Gil Boyd]

Tomorrows Itinery at Duxford the Home of 19 and 242 Squadrons RAF WW2 and the home of Sqn Leader Douglas Bader's fighter wing Royal Air Force.

5 June 2019

• IWM Duxford gates open 10am
• 10am-6pm Large WW2 airborne exhibition (AirSpace Conservation Hall)
• 10am-6pm 16th Air Assault brigade display and demonstrations
• 1.40pm – 2.10pm Take-off all aircraft formations
• 2.10pm-2.15pm Mass formation over IWM Duxford heading off to Normandy
• 2.15pm-2.45pm D-Day aircraft parade

Great to see 101 and the 82nd standing next to each other on photo 5 without fighting.................ha ha memories at Fort Bragg in 1974

[GeeRam]

Aren't they jumping into France tomorrow, the 5th June?

I see not too many of the guys in British kit are wearing boots, crunchy - no doubt for safety reasons, as unlike the US, we deemed a proper jump boot design a frivolous waste of wartime resources.

[mrclark303]

Great pics Gil, many thanks for sharing mate, I'm sure the veterans will be chuffed at the efforts made by today's airborne warriors...

Love to be there to see it

[Gil Boyd]

GeeRam,
Our 38/44 Pattern kit was crap compared to the U.S Paratrooper. We were a formation in part made up of Lions but led by Donkeys. Noone really cared except when changes were made to the helmet and the smock, everything else was issued to ALL units.
Why ankle supports were never a priority, especially when most injuries were indured by ankle breaks, who knows???

[Flying10uk]

A friend's father went into action on the eve of D-Day, before the main beach landings, by glider and was landed at or near Pegasus Bridge. Sadly he died, in action, during the Normandy Campaign. A few years ago my friend showed me the wallet, complete with all the contents, that was in her father's pocket the moment he died in 1944. The wallet was one of the personal belongings that was returned to the family by the army. I thought it a very poignant moment and felt very privileged to be allowed to hold such an object. One of the other objects that she also showed me were his service medals, claimed by the family after his death, but never worn for obvious reasons. The medals were like new, still with their original boxes and packaging, but never having had the ribbons attached. Again I felt very privileged to be allowed to handle these items and what stood out was the almost new looking condition of these original medals and ribbons because they had never been worn.

[Gil Boyd]

Many men in fact on returning from war, either threw their medals away in disgust in the way they had found their country on their return, with noone really caring about what they had seen or did during the time away, or never were issued any to start with.

I had seven veterans in my village who became close friends, as all ex Military, we could chew the fat and pull up a sandbag, but never did we talk about what each had endured over a large time span of Military service. I was a mere sprog with 5 tours in Northern Ireland, and would never challenge their wartime service as it was non stop, where at least with NI you could come home after 4 month tours.

One night my son who was serving in 2 PARA at the time, and five of his closest friends from the Battalion came home for the weekend on leave from Afghanistan. One of the D-DAY veterans a Royal Marine with 48 Commando on Juno beach, like them was, "Last man standing" at the bar that night!

He had had a few and for the first time in 70 years started to recount how he had landed with his brother, wished him a happy birthday, and then never saw him again when they got off the beach and moved inland.
The story and the way he told it, had a profound impact on my son and his close mates and a few tears were shed between hard men...............very moving occasion indeed.

Along with the other village veterans, I had a hard battle to get them their rightful medals from the MOD Medal Office at RAF Innsworth at the time, but it was a proud day to get them all and each court mounted so they could wear them at our village Remembrance Day the following year.
Not one survives today, all gone to Valhalla for ex servicemen, but their memories, laughs and the comradeship we all shared will live with us all until we die!