大象传媒

Most of us had cause to be frightened ar some time on D.day but I did not expect to get my biggest fright before we had hardly started. We were detailed to take paratroops from Broadwell in Oxfordshire to a field beside the river Orne at Ranville near Caen. The first vic of three Dakotas led by Wing Commander Jefferson was due to drop at 00.57.00. The second vic led by Squadron Leader Cragg was due to drop at 00.57.20. I was the navigator of the lead aircraft of the third vic piloted by Flight Lieutenant Dixon. Our dropping time was 00.57.40.

We took off in loose formation aand I was busy for some time making sure that we were on the right course at the right speed to arrive at Ranville at the right time. Twenty seconds between aircraft is not a big margin so, as soon as things were running smoothly, I looked through the astro dome to see how close were to the six aircraft in front. To my horror there was nothing there but empty black sky. What had I done wrong? Where had I boobed? I looked back and saw the lights of aircraft stretching back as far as the eye could see and probably beyond. For some reason the first two vics had not formed up. I shot back to my position and for the next hour worked like never before making sure that we were on course and time to arrive at Ranville at the correct time.

We crept very slightly ahead of our time so that our ETA became 00.57.00 I should perhaps have instructed the pilot to knock two three knots off our speed but I figured that with nobody in front and the whole invasion behind us , early was better than late, and in any vase 00.57.00 was the leaders dropping time. We arrived and Jock Young our 4th.crew member (silly name) took over the map reading for the last few hundred yards. Then the fun started.

Gerry Brown, the wireless operator went to the rear to see the boys out. The first four left in orderly fashion, they were Military Police, but the fifth man with a mortar barrel stuffed up his jumper fell in the doorway and blocked the way for the others. By the time they got him back on his feet we were past the DZ. Gerry passed the information on but, because he forgot to release his microphone button he didn`t hear Dixon say that we would go round again so I had to nip back and tell him. They all went out in good order the second time round. With all the excitement only Jock noticed that we were being fired at but nothing hit and we made our uneventful way back to base. Because of the delay we were on the end of a very long queue for landing. It was a bit of an anti-climax and I didn`t mind the mild telling off I got for being 40 seconds early over the DZ.

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