Jumped away from my desk hearing that unmistakable throbbing.
N473DC - trundling westwards I presume from Biggin - invasion stripes and all. Maybe I'm in for a few more trundling around. Tickets still available to see the assembly of them at Duxford.
Memories of driving up to Coventry for a DC-3 flight down to Biggin Hill Airshow in 1992 - walked straight off the Dak across the grass into the best grandstand - didn't have tickets so had to move seats a few times as their rightful owners turned up somewhat indignant. Good seats for the obligatory Vulcan display and even a shiney 10.
Memories of going up to Coventry for Mike Colletts(?) Air Atlantique Air Show when he managed to get seven DC-3 airborne at once.
Memories of my father - over 6500 hours or 5000 sectors in 10 years on DC-3's; including Rome - Heathrow non-stop in 7.5 hours which has always impressed me for endurance for a relatively small aircraft. Perversely his only RAF flight on a Dakota was his very last before being de-mobbed. Then on Dakota's for his first in ten years in Civvie Street.
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 2:11 pm
by om15
Mid 1980s, we operated two Dart Herald freighters, flying flowers and tomatoes from the Channel Islands during the day and Royal Mail during the night, at peak times over Easter, Mothering Sunday and so on we operated one or two Daks to supplement the flowers flights, G-AMPO and G-AMPY if memory serves.
On one occasion we operated a Dak on night mail that was painted up for filming, complete with roundels and invasion stripes, looked rather odd.
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 2:27 pm
by ian16th
Talking about the DC3/C-47/Dakota, anyone seen the version that was armed?
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Wed May 22, 2019 3:56 am
by Alisoncc
Ian was that the one the guy standing at the back door with a 303.
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Wed May 22, 2019 4:44 am
by bob2s
The armed DC3 was designated as a AC-47D aka Puff the Magic Dragon Had 3 mini guns on the side,aimed by flying in a turn.
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Wed May 22, 2019 8:58 am
by ian16th
I was thinking of the Russian built one with a turret.
A windy afternoon perched on a carefully researched suitable vantage point high in the Weald of Kent within a hundred yards or so of the centreline of the corridor mapped out in the NOTAM. Sods Law they were two hours after their expected ETA and a couple of miles west of the centreline. Great sound and somewhat distant sight. Terrific view looking south towards Beachy Head 15 in view at one time. Now to scan YouTube. FR24 confirms they were generally west of centre throughout but you cannot complain at such a sight. Spotter nerd mode off.
As the first waves of the Allied forces would have landed by now, I feel it is appropriate to thank all those we gave their life for the Europeans not having German as their second (or even first) language.
I feel it is appropriate to thank all those we gave their life for the Europeans not having German as their second (or even first) language.
Hear Hear!
I hope you will also express your thanks in the Russian language. After all, it was the Soviets who contributed way more than 80% of the fighting effort to defeat the German flavour of fascism.
Anyway, what's wrong with having a second, or third language. It's not a bad thing, y'know. I speak four languages (six if you include Vulgarian and Jockanese).
At an English prep school I was required to attempt to learn the rather useless language of Latin, despite the Roman army having collapsed and melted away in the fifth century. I also had to learn the much more useful language of the frrench, despite Brits (mostly English) having gubbed the ffrench at Agincourt, Crecy, Trafalgar, Waterloo and Mers-el-Kebir. I learned Norwegian because I lived in the country and Arabic for a similar reason. Nothing to do with invasion or occupation.
The success, or perhaps one should say non-failure, of Overlord was very largely due to the brilliant but unseen success of Op Fortitude and of the code-breakers at Bletchley. Without the success of maskirovka (to borrow a word from somewhere East of the Dnieper), Overlord would have been a bloody disaster. I think it's a pity that there isn't a memorial to them, or perhaps a street name in honour of them, somewhere along the coast of Normandy.
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Thu Jun 06, 2019 8:46 am
by CremeEgg
Hear hear - I must admit to the odd speck of dust or something making the eyes water yesterday. An immense operation. Look at photos of the harbours in southern England stuffed full of ships.
One veteran being interviewed on the Beeb the other day refusing to be termed a hero as branded by a youngish reporter who probably had to look at Wiki to see what WW2 was. The veteran comes back with a line I'd never heard before " We are just veterans; the heroes are down there" as he points to the ground. The inane reporter then asks how that made him feel. He shot her a disdainful look and quite rightly kept his silence, which spoke more than a thousand words.
I feel it is appropriate to thank all those we gave their life for the Europeans not having German as their second (or even first) language.
Hear Hear!
I hope you will also express your thanks in the Russian language. After all, it was the Soviets who contributed way more than 80% of the fighting effort to defeat the German flavour of fascism.
Anyway, what's wrong with having a second, or third language. It's not a bad thing, y'know. I speak four languages (six if you include Vulgarian and Jockanese).
At an English prep school I was required to attempt to learn the rather useless language of Latin, despite the Roman army having collapsed and melted away in the fifth century. I also had to learn the much more useful language of the frrench, despite Brits (mostly English) having gubbed the ffrench at Agincourt, Crecy, Trafalgar, Waterloo and Mers-el-Kebir. I learned Norwegian because I lived in the country and Arabic for a similar reason. Nothing to do with invasion or occupation.
The success, or perhaps one should say non-failure, of Overlord was very largely due to the brilliant but unseen success of Op Fortitude and of the code-breakers at Bletchley. Without the success of maskirovka (to borrow a word from somewhere East of the Dnieper), Overlord would have been a bloody disaster. I think it's a pity that there isn't a memorial to them, or perhaps a street name in honour of them, somewhere along the coast of Normandy.
We are in agreement about languages. I dislike ancient Greek but I am happy I speak a tolerable (I hope) English. The value of Russia in the second world war is unfortunately one of vast sacrifices particularly for little reward. The millions of Russians killed (not the highest per million of people) lost their lives to allow one dictator to rule over them rather than the other. And it is more painful while the US and the UK preferred to spend dollars rather than lives ( overseas commonwealth nationals excluded) Stalin wasted mainly lives - and this is painful. For that reason you are right the Russians do deserve a huge thank but their post war behaviour leaves much to be desired. I understand we need to mark the difference between the leaders and the army.
And I still need to express my thank to the UK for keeping the Germans away from their island for almost 18 months thus providing an excellent base for the US to run the D-day and everything else done past December 7th 1941 like the attacks in the Romanian oil fields.
Re: Dakota's over Normandy
Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 6:33 am
by Karearea
DAKS OVER NORMANDY - Mass Take Off From Duxford - video runs ~12mins.
