Introduction

In the dark days of 1940 Britain and the Commonwealth stood very much alone. Most of Europe was enslaved by the Nazis. The Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, was anxious that Britain should develop ways of striking at the enemy, and he ordered that 5,000 parachute troops should be recruited and trained.

It was quickly realised that developing a well trained parachute force alone would not be enough. Parachute troops, who are often landed well behind the front line, can carry limited amounts of heavy weapons and supplies. To be effective they would need to have weapons and logistical support landing with them. How could that be done?

What I will cover

I will start with a short background outlining how the airborne forces, both parachute and glider-borne, were developed in 1940. I will introduce the four main military gliders used by the Allies – from the small Hotspur used for training, to the massive tank-carrying Hamilcar. I will explain how the future pilots of the Glider Pilot Regiment were selected and trained. 

 The session includes a realistic talk-down of what it was like to fly a Horsa glider into Normandy just after midnight on 6th June 1944, to seize the bridge over the Caen Canal at Benouville, later to be called Pegasus Bridge. 

Throughout I link the overall story to the experiences of individual soldiers. You will see recently-recorded interviews with four of our veterans, as they tell you what it was like to fly these huge gliders into a live battlefield.

You will hear how the developing skills of the glider pilots were matched by the improved operational effectiveness of the Airborne Divisions, from the disappointing invasion of Sicily in July 1943, to the successful crossing of the Rhine in March 1945.