DAKS TO NORMANDY TRIP 4-5 June 2019
Eddie Douglas
After more than 70 years of an aviation hobby spotting and
photographing aircraft I have to admit that it takes something a
bit special to get me driving long UK distances nowdays to an
air event. That something special was the 75th anniversary of
D-Day that saw many events to celebrate the massive air, sea and
land invasion of Europe and the sacrifice of people from many
nations that within a year brought the horrors of WW2 to an end.
The Daks to Normandy event saw around 30 of the legendary DC-3
Dakota and C-47 Skytrain aircraft assemble at Duxford from
across Europe and the USA their country of manufacture. Many of
the stateside aircraft had come through Prestwick in Ayrshire on
the same route through Canada, Greenland and Iceland that was
used during WW2 for aircraft deliveries to the UK from the USA.
Prestwick had an open day for photographers during their transit
when around eight aircraft were present but this was
unfortunately marred by bad weather, so the Duxford event that
would host all the aircraft from the USA and the Europeans also
was greatly anticipated. There were of course the rumours of
what other aviation interest might also be around at the time
with President Trump attending the Normandy celebration and the
US carrier John Stennis being in the Mediterranean and due to
return home around that time, surely a detour to the English
Channel was possible said the rumours.
So an elderly team of my friend a numbers man, and myself a
photographer, put together a short trip down to East Anglia to
take in some very new as well as the old in the shape of biz at
Luton airport and two days at Duxford over 4-5 June.
Luton Airport
In brilliant sunshine and 20 degree temperatures we drove to Luton airport where some rooms at the Holiday Inn Express hotel give excellent ramp views and is frequented by aviation numbers people and photographers alike with a lookdown view of the biz ramp and airliner parking we got to logging and photography. The aircraft visible from the hotel vantage point are constantly changing and gave excellent opportunities to view the arrival and departure of bizjet and airliners and coupled with circuits of the airfield to the various areas a fine selection of log entries and photographs were taken. The setting sun sank in a clear sky as Gulfstream, Global and Cessna bizjet were moved around the ramp and hangers making ready for the next days work like carrier aircraft on a flightdeck.
Duxford
However Tuesday 4 June, the day before the Normandy paradrop, dawned cold, misty with a bitter east wind but not quite wet as we set course for Duxford where the weather was pretty similar. Undaunted by the poor light for photos I got stuck into making the best of things as Dakotas landed and took off from the assembled flightlines that made a spectacular sight and some memorable images were on offer. Six C-47 Skytrain were prepared to make a exhibition paradrop over the airfield in the early afternoon and the assisted veterans, regular paras and enthusiast jumpers in period costume were assembling to load up the aircraft that made for a very realistic if small scale image of what the real action in 1944 would have been like. It was while visiting the excellent Imperial War Museum hanger that I got chatting to an American and was invited to the Daks to Normandy Suite and it's elevated balcony at the western end of the museum building that overlooked the airfield. It was just in time to video the the landing of the Skytrains in black and white stripe invasion markings that had taken off for the parachute drop that unfortunately was aborted due to the weather. They were accompanied by a rare Hungarian registered Li-2 and they all taxied in to park below the viewing balcony to give unrivalled photo opportunities. The other hangars that contain the flying, static and restoration aircraft are always with a look at Duxford and then it was time to leave as the rain had set in and the East wind bit hard as we decided not to disrobe our waterproofs to find the cash for £9 gourmet burger plus mini chips at £4 and headed for the car park that we had decided would be our location for the next day to view the mass departure of the aircraft formation to Normandy for the anniversary paradrop.
The weather on the D-Day anniversary Wednesday 5 June turned out
a bit better with at least no rain but the heavy cloud continued
and this turned out to be the problem in France also where
conditions were not suitable for the paradrop aircraft to leave
Duxford at the planned time of early afternoon. So a flying
programme of resident aircraft filled the time with spirited but
cloud restricted displays by Expeditor, Mustang, Spitfire,
Wildcat and Thunderbolt among others.
The real bonus and surprise item was a mass formation of six
MC130J and six CV22 Ospreys from the Mildenhall based 352nd
Special Operations Wing that made a single flyby. This was a
remarkable sight and a unique tribute to the D-Day commemoration
and the paratrooper veterans of 1944 by their modern day special
forces counterparts. Much more appropriate than any aircraft
carrier. The origins of the Mildenhall SOW Unit go back to 1944
and the 2nd Air Commando Group that was assigned to south east
Asia in support of allied operations in that theatre of the war.
By late afternoon weather in Normandy had improved enough to
allow a late departure of the Dakota's from Duxford and nine
aircraft took off and flew to the west, turned and flew back
over the airfield and headed southeast en route to France. The
remaining aircraft were at readiness and then started a stream
takeoff to the west with a sharp banking turn overhead our car
park position to turn east and join up with the other aircraft.
The routing was over Southend, Eastbourne, Le Harve to the
Sannerville drop zone later landing at Caen and videos of the
formation and paradrop on Utube are well worth a look. It had
been a long wait for the spectacle but well worth it and a great
trip on such a memorable, moving and unique occasion.