Silent Wings at War Combat Gliders in World War II

by Lowden, John L.

• ISBN13: 9781588340344
• ISBN10: 1588340341
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-09-17
• Publisher: Smithsonian Books

Summary

The pilots were known as "suicide jockeys" and the aircraft they flew were called "flak bait." Towed behind modified bombers or transport aircraft, Allied combat gliders were used in some of the riskiest missions of World War II, landing miles behind enemy lines with specially trained assault forces. InSilent Wings at War, John L. Lowden combines his own recollections with those of fellow veterans to create a vivid, gritty, jocose memoir of war as he and other glider pilots and their passengers knew it. These true tales of courage, as well as command blunders, make a substantial contribution to WWII literature.

Author Biography

John L. Lowden flew as a second lieutenant in the 1st Allied Airborne Army in Europe during World War II. His awards include the Air Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Bronze Arrowhead of initial assault troops, and seven unit battle stars. He lives in Wilmington, N.C.

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
Walter Cronkite
Prologue	xv
Matthew B. Ridgway
Preface	xvii
Great Moments: Cartoons By Dale Oliver	xxi
From Depression Kid to Handcuff Volunteer	1	(8)
Learning on the Job-the Hard Way	9	(9)
We Toughen Up and Ship Out	18	(13)
The Bastard Child Becomes Legit	31	(12)
The Bloody Shame of Victory in Sicily	43	(15)
With the 1st Air Commando Group in Burma	58	(7)
Prayerful Times in the Night Sky over Normandy	65	(16)
Southern France: The Purple Shaft Award with Barbed Wire Cluster	81	(11)
Single Thrust in Holland: An Allied Defeat in One Week	92	(26)
Bastogne: The Hole in the German Doughnut	118	(14)
Homegrown Hazards and a Foothold in the Fatherland	132	(7)
Rhine River Crossing: ``Take No Prisoners for Seventy-two Hours''	139	(19)
Desperate Measures in a Moribund Nazi Germany	158	(3)
Paris in the Spring---and Home, Sweet Home	161	(5)
Epilogue	166	(7)
Appendix 1	173	(2)
Appendix 2	175	(1)
Appendix 3	176	(1)
Bibliography	177	(1)
Index	178