RAF Rivenhall event remembers ‘forgotten’ WW2 airborne operation | Global News Avenue

The Varsity Operation “is a battle of World War II in Europe”, but it is largely unaware of it except for military history enthusiasts.

(On March 24, 1945, the British, Canadian and American troops took off mainly from Essex Airport and landed directly on the German line on the Rhine River.

The paratroopers and gliders filled with men fell into fierce fighting conditions, leading to rapid success, but life was enormous. About six weeks later, Western allies met in Berlin and announced their victory in Europe.

Chris Bullock organized an event at one of a departure airport in Raf Rivenhall to remember those who died and said “it’s an unknown story.”

“When you see the video of Rivenhall’s final brewing man, giving the thumbs and V-win mark V before they get into the glider, and you know some of them are not going home, and within three hours they’re dead – it’s important to tell the story,” he said.

Peter Davies, 102, took off from Raf Woodbridge, Suffolk, Dakota and carried it”17 pound gun, trailer and disengage from eight people’s guns.”

He volunteered to join the Glider Pilot Regiment in 1942 because he thought it would be “more exciting” than his as the Army’s private Royal Artillery Air Defense Force.

“It’s like driving a brick, there’s only one way, and it’s down,” Mr. Davis said.

“There are a lot of hell, we lose control, we lose most of a wing, and we get deeper into the enemy’s ground.

“When we hit the ground, I do mean hits – we were very wrong in a bunch of very angry Germans, and it was totally confusing.”

An American glider landed within 50m (about 160 feet), “no one is still alive because the Germans are there too.”

But, along with co-pilot Bert Bowman, he crossed the battlefield, reached their scheduled descent zone, and returned to England.

Bullock, 56, said: “The Allies landed directly on the top of the Germans, many gliders were shot down, and many paratroopers were shot dead in the sky – 80 people from Raf Rivenhall were killed alone.”

The Varsity Operation was the largest airborne operation in history, with more than 16,000 men sent to Germany on the same day.

Its purpose was to build a bridgehead on the Rhine to allow the allies to advance primarily to Germany and quickly towards the Russian army reaching from the east.

The first part was ground offensive plunder, “It was the largest river crossing ever and was done by British and Canadian forces.”

The purpose is to allow amphibious forces on the west side of the Rhine to the east along with the airborne troops.

The varsity team took place five months after a disastrous battle in Arnhem 90% of casualties caused by glider pilots.

Brian Latham, who was sent to Texas, learned to fly planes, one of hundreds of people “voluntarily” serving gliders.

“If we don’t volunteer, we’re told we won’t fly again, but join the infantry or get off the thunder,” said Mr. Latham, 101.

However, he soon realized that it was the Gilder pilot who was “a commando-like elite.”

“We are not tough people, they make it tough – I became a well-trained infantryman,” he said.

Mr. Latham flew from Raf Gosfield near Braintree, Essex, with a mortar section, with jeep and trailer and was dropped into ground smoke and large air defense fire.

“We just jumped into the smoke, it was all very exciting and we landed where Hamminkeln should do it,” he said.

“At that time, we were held by a bridge in the Royal Ulster rifle, which was attacked by German tanks until the British Second Army (had crossed the Rhine).”

Eventually, he was returned to England, but was happy not to return to Raf Broadwell in Oxfordshire because “we lost so many people”.

Of the 890 glider pilots who participated in the vacancies, more than 20% were killed or injured.

“We were sent to Germans who had never been there before, and we knew it was the fall of suicide,” Danny Mason said.

“But that didn’t bother us. We were young and thought keenly, ‘We’ll be fine, we’ll be fine.”

Mr Mason, 98, who lives in Shropshire, added: “We also think the Germans are losing and fighting in a bad state, which would be easy – but that’s not. We have a high casualty rate.”

At least 1,070 members Thousands of people were injured in the 17th U.S. Airborne Division and the 6th U.K. Airborne Division, including the Canadians.

“But within four to five hours, we did what we were going to do,” Mason said.

He traveled 600 miles across Germany in two weeks until he was injured.

“It’s a battle that ends the war, but no one is interested in it,” he said.

“I asked my old commander and he said it was because everyone had enough. It was six years of war and when Ve Day came, it was so big.”

Mr. Brock offers some other background.

“Three weeks after college, the Belson concentration camp was liberated. Two weeks later, Hitler committed suicide, and one week after Germany surrendered, it may be hard to talk about because the incident surpassed itself.”

Now he serves as the BBC’s international operations security manager, living near Raf Rivenhall, and began researching his story 10 years ago.

60 gliders towed by two RAF squadrons left the airport at 07:00 GMT on 24 March 1945, carrying part of the Sixth Airborne Division.

But some of this history is still lost.

“There is no record of who flew through which glider and what happened to everyone, only anecdotal evidence and personal stories that I managed to track down,” he said.

He commissioned the memory of “remember all those who escaped from Rivenhall and died that day”.

It will be unveiled at the March 23 eventWith military vehicles, static shelves, repeaters, speeches and Dakota flies.

The commemoration ceremony will be held the next day at 07:00 GMT.

Thanks to the Glider Flying Team Association and the Parachute Route Association.