ÜberJumper
1st Aug 06, 2:57 PM
Just read this and be amazed...
http://www.pro-g.co.uk/features/article/01-08-2006-102.html
The flight to Cherbourg took a little over an hour, giving our pilots the opportunity to perform an elegant aerial ballet, flying in a constantly shifting formation that gave everyone on board chance to take photos of our companion plane. Flying in formation with another plane is simultaneously a thrilling and nerve-wracking experience. First, you have the horrified reaction of "LOOK HOW CLOSE HE IS!" but once you get past that, it's very hard not to be captivated by the grace and splendour of seeing one of these classic transport planes flying alongside you, practically within touching distance.
There was almost a palpable sense of disappointment when we touched down in Cherbourg - "To hell with the game, let's do that again!" - though that was short-lived as we boarded coaches for St. Mere Eglise, where we were to have lunch and meet an American paratrooper from the airborne assault on the town on the eve of D-Day. The veteran claimed that he was the only paratrooper in history to ever "shit himself twice" (metaphorically speaking)... firstly when he made the drop into the flak-filled Normandy skies, and secondly when he realised that they'd missed their intended drop-zone by several kilometres because of the bad weather. Even more eye-opening was discovering the reason behind his decision to join the paratroopers: Paratroopers got hazard pay of $50 a month over and above a soldier's regular pay, which equates to a heck of a lot of beer when you realise that in 1944 it only cost 10 cents a pint...
So cool! I so wish I was there :-(
http://www.pro-g.co.uk/features/article/01-08-2006-102.html
The flight to Cherbourg took a little over an hour, giving our pilots the opportunity to perform an elegant aerial ballet, flying in a constantly shifting formation that gave everyone on board chance to take photos of our companion plane. Flying in formation with another plane is simultaneously a thrilling and nerve-wracking experience. First, you have the horrified reaction of "LOOK HOW CLOSE HE IS!" but once you get past that, it's very hard not to be captivated by the grace and splendour of seeing one of these classic transport planes flying alongside you, practically within touching distance.
There was almost a palpable sense of disappointment when we touched down in Cherbourg - "To hell with the game, let's do that again!" - though that was short-lived as we boarded coaches for St. Mere Eglise, where we were to have lunch and meet an American paratrooper from the airborne assault on the town on the eve of D-Day. The veteran claimed that he was the only paratrooper in history to ever "shit himself twice" (metaphorically speaking)... firstly when he made the drop into the flak-filled Normandy skies, and secondly when he realised that they'd missed their intended drop-zone by several kilometres because of the bad weather. Even more eye-opening was discovering the reason behind his decision to join the paratroopers: Paratroopers got hazard pay of $50 a month over and above a soldier's regular pay, which equates to a heck of a lot of beer when you realise that in 1944 it only cost 10 cents a pint...
So cool! I so wish I was there :-(