The Plan

The airborne plan was scheduled to begin before the main landings, and in darkness, in order to achieve the maximum surprise. The earliest troops into Normandy were, where possible, to be paratroopers who would be less sensitive to obstacles than their comrades in gliders. The paratroopers were to clear landing areas for later glider landings. The tasks were distributed between two brigade groups on a geographical basis as follows:

5th Parachute Brigade Group (Brigadier J.H.N. Poett) comprising the 7th, 1 2th and 1 3th Parachute Battalions, D Company of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and supporting arms and services was to:

1 Seize the bridges over the Orne using six gliders manned by the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and

2 Seize and hold the area of Pegasus Bridge and Ranville and clear the LZ's (landing zones) north of Ranville for glider reinforcements.

They were to land on DZ'N' with elements of the 7th Parachute Battalion on DZ W'.

3rd Parachute Brigade Group (Brigadier James Hill) comprising the 1 st Canadian Parachute Battalion, 8th and 9th Parachute Battalions and supporting arms and services was to:

1 Destroy the Merville battery 1'/2 hours before the first landing craft were due and

2 Destroy a number of bridges (e.g. at Varaville, Robehomme, Bures and Troarn) over the River Dives and thus prevent the enemy from attacking Ranville from the eastern flank.

They were to land on DZ 'K' and DZ 'V'.

In each case the airborne brigades would be spearheaded by pathfinders scheduled to drop at 0020 hours on 6 June. The main troops were due to come in about thirty minutes later.

WHAT HAPPENED ON D-DAY

The leading planes of 38th and 46th Groups of the Royal Air Force carried men of the 22nd Independent Parachute Company whose job it was to mark the dropping and landing zones. With them went the RAF Commander, Air Vice Marshal L.N. Hollingshurst, and on time the pathfinders jumped out into the night sky. One of the first to land was Lieutenant de Latour who featured in a Picture Post story on 22 July as the 'first' Allied soldier to land in France. On 9 September the same magazine carried a sad postscript picture of de Latour's grave with a temporary wooden cross. He was killed on 20 June, then a captain and is now buried in Ranville CWGC.

At the same time as the pathfinders flew over their objectives the coup de main party of Oxs and Bucks led by Major John Howard landed three of their gliders beside the Orne canal, between the two bridges. In ten minutes Pegasus bridge was theirs.

Thirty minutes later at 0045 hours the main bodies of the para brigades arrived and then, less than three hours after that, gliders brought in the heavy equipment and General Gale, the division's commander.

By the end of the day both Orne bridges were in Allied hands, despite German counter attacks, Ranville and the DZ's were secure, a linkup had been made with Lord Lovat's Special Service Brigade from SWORD Beach, bridges over the River Dives at Troarn, Bures, Robehomme and over a tributary of the Dives at Varaville had been blown and the Merville Battery had been put out of action, despite a bad start. Only seven of over 260 parachute aircraft used in the assault were missing, but twenty two of the ninety-eight gliders did not reach their LZ's. Some never made it to France due to broken tow ropes, and many landed in the wrong place. Of the 196 members of the Glider Pilot Regiment involved in the operation seventy-one were casualties. Some of the drops were very scattered so that only about 3,000 of the 4,800 men who landed fought as planned. 6th AB Division had achieved its objectives but it was thinly spread. The 6 June may have been the longest day for the men of the airborne forces but there was another one tomorrow and the Panzers were coming.