ALL EXPERIENCED PEOPLE UP FRONT

That's it Tap or Ray decided that there should be four experienced people in the two aircraft flying formation with Major Tappan Some of the others had newly assigned pilots with less time and no combat experience Maybe Ray was looking after the Co pilot as well and wanted to make sure that he had good people together at critical positions Sure that's why P J Warren is flying with Tap One of the best that P J Same thinking went into the assignments on the lead element Col Stiles has Downhill and Poling Suppose Flight Leaders are expendable they have one experienced pilot per wing while leading an element What the hell if the Co pilot has to fly with someone it might as well be G Boliver Grimes

Nothing to do now but wait The airborne forces have yet to arrived we have the 82 nd again Dropped 505th and the 504 th in Sicily and Italy wonder who we will have on this trip Kind of funny the Air Force gets paid extra for flying paratroops get paid extra for jumping They don't like airplanes but have to use them to do their job The crewmembers want no part of jumping out of airplanes if there is any chance of a safe landing Takes all kinds of people and everyone thinks he has the best deal

The word is that the mission is on for tomorrow night take off late on June 4 th That will make D Day on 5 th Might as well hit the sack long day tomorrow and a longer night The Co pilot could sleep in any day of the week The best days were when the weather was bad and no flying The other days started with Paul Cook opening the door calling out names and announcing breakfast at six flight line at seven So what was the Co pilot doing awake at the crack of dawn with no place to go Of all the days that he could use a little extra sack time he's wide awake Might as well get dressed and go to the mess hall The mess hall shared with the 50 th Squadron was not only full and buzzing with conversation but there was a long line

The line moved a bit slower today fresh eggs any way you wanted them sunny side up over easy or burn em The Co pilot observed that rations improved when missions were scheduled Was it the fresh eggs that brought everyone to the mess hall or was it the excitement of D Day The 62 nd Operations was full The pilots were checking the board for changes in personnel or flight position All the same as yesterday Some of the pilots were giving Capt Roush a hard time for not scheduling himself They just wanted to make him explain again that when Major Tappan was on a mission he had to remain behind can't take a chance of losing all the good men at once We understand that Ray but how come you are not going on the mission 1 st Lt Richard D Stevens had been a Flight Leader since l June He was not scheduled to fly while the other two newly appointed Flight Leaders Don Broaddus and Ed Bohnsack were leading elements How come you're not going Steve Because that damn Roush won't change the schedule Doc put me in the hospital for nothing and they set up the flights while I was gone All I had was an ingrown hair in the wrong place

JESSIE JIGGS RUSSELL PAINTS THE STRIPES

Out on the flight line Master Sergeant Jessie Russell was checking with the crew chiefs to make certain that all aircraft were ready and that the invasion stripes were well covered Communications Chief Bill Watson was also on the job making sure those radios work Even if we had radio silence they have to be in working order Most important is the navigation system

June 4 th is dragging on The weather is not the best Possible postponement of the invasion Eighteen 62 nd Glider Pilots have been sent to the 53 rd Troop Carrier Wing based in the group of fields west of London Ramsbury Membury Welford Greenham Common and Aldermasten Flight Officer Louis H Zeidenschneider about 5'6 120 pounds when wet was in this group No one called him Louis or Lou Few or any knew what the H stood for he was just Zeidenschneider a friendly little guy looking for a poker game or a crap game

The Co pilot was relieved but only for a moment when word was passed that the invasion was postponed 24 hours Another long day and evening he would just as soon get it over with and if all went well the restriction would be lifted and he could enjoy the social life in Nottingham For the first part June 5 th 1944 was much the same as yesterday and the day before that except that the sun was shining The hours slipped by and the Co pilot fund himself again at Operations hoping someone might have been removed from flying for any reason and he would find an empty left seat No such luck Glenn Grimes and all the crewmembers were checking the aircraft and watching the 508 th Parachute Infantry Regiment get their equipment on Must be a hundred or more pounds on each Some have a spare chute some don't

THE COLONEL STARTS THE TAKE OFF RUN

June 5 was 23 hours and 20 minutes old when Col Clayton Stiles released the brakes and started rolling The two wingmen on either side rolled with him as the other element leaders followed with their three aircraft Nine aircraft would be rolling or airborne by the time Col Stiles cleared the taxiway 6,000 feet on the other side of the Saltby Army Air Base Without interrupting the timing or spacing Major Arthur Tappan followed with the second nine aircraft of the 62 nd The Co pilot watched the airspeed pulled the wheels up adjusted the cowl flaps and milked the wing flaps up while keeping a lookout for other aircraft Grimes flew formation Palumbo unfolded his charts Hensley watched and listened to the engines and Wodinsky tuned in to the static Col Stiles was checking with Lt Col Thomas Shanley 2 nd Battalion 508 th Parachute Infantry Regiment as Fred Evans made a wide slow turn to allow the other elements of the 314 th to catch the first nine

The pilots had done this so often that it took no more than ten minutes from take off till they were a tight group of 60 Gooneybirds Easy with all the lights on navigation formation and the amber recognition Fred fell in five minutes behind the 315 th Group and maintained 133 miles per hour ground speed and 1,500 feet altitude to the Severn River

Not much for the Co pilot to do keep his eye on the gauges watch the formation ahead and an occasional light on the ground He tightened the parachute straps and watched the English Channel approach as the formation descended to 500 feet The Co pilot decided it was a good time to use the biffy and made his way to the tail It was a nice smooth ride and the 508 th troopers were relaxed talking and for once not airsick On the way back to the cockpit the Co pilot climbed up and looked 41
out the astrodome What a view in the moonlight C 47's as far as he could see to the front and rear Hundreds of them and this is just from the 52 nd Wing Strapped himself in again and reminded Grimes that it was time to turn off the navigation lights Grimes nodded OK

FLATBUSH and HOBOKEN BUT NOT NEW YORK

The next 56 miles from Flatbush the Marine Lighthouse on the Isle of Portland would take the Co pilot to two ships in the Channel marked with a green signal light Somewhere in this area Capt Clyde Pappy Taylor was now on board a ship with crew and members of the Pathfinder troops that had departed North Witham with eight other aircraft Pappy was bumped by one of the other Pathfinders and required to ditch the only 62 nd crew that did not complete their mission Made sense to Pappy that if you had to put it in the water land close to a ship They never even got their feet wet Fortunately there were three planes assigned to each Drop Zone by the First Pathfinder Group to arrive 30 minutes ahead of the main body.