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Thread: Normandy

  1. #1

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    Normandy

    I woke up in time to watch the D day celbrations on tv, no alarm clock, just woke up, and glad to see it. Cant belivee how nice he weather is there today, really a rare thing.

  2. #2
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    My wife and I visited Normandy a few years back. Here's a PDF version of the presentation I gave at my EAA Chapter.

    http://www.wanttaja.com/normandy.pdf

    It was spooky to stand next to the church in Ste Mere Eglise at night, with the dummy paratrooper hanging from the steeple, while our tour guide played the scene from "The Longest Day" on a portable DVD player.

    Ron Wanttaja

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    Wow RW, I'd wish I could have seen your entire presentation but the PDF was great! My dad landed in France a few days after the initial invasion. I can only imagine.

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    It’s such a powerful thing to see and be a part of. My Brother in law’s Dad was a Medic on Omaha Beach. I can’t even wrap my head around what that experience must of been like for him. It’s so important that we do everything we can to teach our kids about WWII and what happened so that knowledge can be used for peace. The past few summers my nephews have come along to Oshkosh with us. The second oldest gave a presentation in class this year on the Atomic Bomb and the B-29 and it’s role in ending WWII. The teacher corrected him in front of the class stating that it was a B-52 and not a B-29 that dropped the Atomic Bombs on Japan. He then showed her pictures from Oshkosh of him standing in front of Doc and Fifi and videos of them flying with the Airshow announcer describing the atomic bomb drop. She promptly apologized to him and told him to go on with his presentation. It’s so important that we educate our kids so the events of WWII never happen again. My Grandpa helped liberate Dachau Concentration Camp. He flew with B-17, B-24 and B-26 units out of England. He captured Aero Space Medical Equipment from the Nazis that was later put to use in our space program and was a major part of putting a man on the moon. He earned a Bronze Star and a French Croix De Guerre for his efforts. My oldest Nephew and I went to his grave at Fort Snelling National Cemetary Yesterday to pay our respects. Every chance I get I try to teach him about WWII. Please do everything you can as well to impact the lives of our young people so our world never has to go through these events again.

  5. #5
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    Many war movies on TV today including one of the worst ever flying yarns entitled Fighter Squadron from 1948. The good guys are flying P-47's and the Germans they encounter in dogfights are flying P-51's with German crosses on the fuselages. The producers and director obviously thought nobody would notice. Really awful.

  6. #6
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    The father of a friend of mine was a glider pilot at Normandy. He had been a reporter at his local paper in civilian life, and wrote an article about his D-Day experience. I'm traveling right now, or I'd post the story.

    Like most of the true heroes when they talk about their experiences, the tales they initially told included more hilarity than heroism. In his case, there was going to be an anticipated second glider assault, and they sent him and his friends back to England on about D+3.

    When his ship docked, and every time the truck transporting them back to base stopped, they were initially swarmed by medical personnel, thinking they were returning wounded. All they found were a batch of dirty, disheveled, and hungry Waco jockeys. There had been no provisions to feed them on the way back....

    Which leads to a discussion of the second victory in Normandy. We honor the soldiers, airmen, and sailors who risked their lives that day, and rightly so. But there was a second victory on 6 June 1944... or should I say, the culmination of a victory.

    One of my favorite military aphorisms is, "Amateurs study tactics. Professionals study logistics."

    The bravery of the fighting men that day would have been for nought without the massive logistical effort that ensured they had the guns, ammo, food, and, sadly, medical care when they needed it.

    Two years before D-Day, the Allies were LOSING the Battle of the Atlantic. Yet, by June 1944, there was enough to require the building of TWO TEMPORARY HARBORS to be able to pass the gear to the troops. The Germans in Normandy were armed, to some extent, with captured weapons. The Allies brought their own, more than the Germans could ever imagine.

    Normandy was an incredible culmination of a victory in the art of logistics.

    So, ladies and gentlemen, please charge your glasses, and drink to the men on the beaches, the men in the gliders, the men in the LCVPs (go, Coasties!), the men in the parachute harnesses, the men in the cockpits, the men in the warships and troopships, and the others who risked their lives that day so tyranny could be opposed.

    Now, charge your second glass to the unsung victors of D-Day. The planners in England and Washington, the doctors and nurses, the quartermasters, the MPs guarding supply dumps, the merchant mariners, the men on the destroyers and corvettes, the Marines of the FMF and their Royal Marine equivalents, the dockworkers, the factory workers, the "Dollar a Year" men... and to all else who contributed to victory.

    Ron Wanttaja
    Last edited by rwanttaja; 06-06-2019 at 12:07 PM.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Floatsflyer View Post
    Many war movies on TV today including one of the worst ever flying yarns entitled Fighter Squadron from 1948. The good guys are flying P-47's and the Germans they encounter in dogfights are flying P-51's with German crosses on the fuselages. The producers and director obviously thought nobody would notice. Really awful.
    I agree it's silly to anyone with an IQ above room temperature (and 90% of pilots, too :-).

    But...what else COULD they use?

    T-6s? Awfully recognizable, too.

    Hellcats? A better choice, but try get the Navy to support a movie glorifying the Army Air Forces.

    Keep in mind that Mustangs once received "recognition stripes" in the ETO because bomber gunners kept mistaking them for BF-109s!


    Ron Wanttaja

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    Quote Originally Posted by rwanttaja View Post
    I agree it's silly to anyone with an IQ above room temperature (and 90% of pilots, too :-).

    But...what else COULD they use?

    T-6s? Awfully recognizable, too.

    Hellcats? A better choice, but try get the Navy to support a movie glorifying the Army Air Forces.

    Keep in mind that Mustangs once received "recognition stripes" in the ETO because bomber gunners kept mistaking them for BF-109s!


    Ron Wanttaja
    They could have used real combat footage and cockpit close-ups(mock ups), models and special effects like so many other flying movies from the 40's depicting war in Europe and the Pacific. This production was pure laziness and stupidity.

    The P-51's used in the movie were bubble canopy D models.

  9. #9

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    Ron- you’re Normandy PDF is absolutely amazing! So interesting to see and so informative. Your trip looks like a once in lifetime experience! So cool and what an opportunity! Thanks so much for sharing this! I’ve already linked my nephews to the PDF so we can start to get some ideas for our own trip! Thank you so much for making this amazing resource available.

  10. #10

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    Mark17, I was just there at Fort Snelling National Cemetery on Memorial Day weekend visiting my parents.

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    Last edited by champ driver; 06-07-2019 at 04:56 AM.

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