"Seven Australian D-Day Vets honoured at the Normandy parades" Topic
9 Posts
All members in good standing are free to post here. Opinions expressed here are solely those of the posters, and have not been cleared with nor are they endorsed by The Miniatures Page.
For more information, see the TMP FAQ.
Back to the WWII Discussion Message Board Back to the Wargaming in Australia Message Board
Areas of InterestGeneral
World War Two on the Land
Featured Hobby News Article
Featured Link
Featured Profile Article
Current Poll
Featured Book Review
|
| Sparker | 07 Jun 2014 4:02 p.m. PST |
link Good to see some representation of the thousands of Aussie Servicemen who took part in Operation OVERLORD… Thank you for your Service gents. |
 Legion 4  | 07 Jun 2014 4:05 p.m. PST |
Indeed !  |
| Rich Trevino | 07 Jun 2014 8:26 p.m. PST |
|
| andygamer | 07 Jun 2014 10:05 p.m. PST |
Are they all air force veterans, Sparker? |
| Sparker | 07 Jun 2014 11:09 p.m. PST |
Not sure. The majority of Aussies involved in D-Day were in the Allied Air Forces although there were plenty in the Naval Forces and a handful in British Army units. Of course its possible that a few served in Canadian or US units too, or that subsequently settled down under…Citizenship in the English speaking world wasn't quite so trammelled by officialdom in those halcyon days! link |
| Cardinal Hawkwood | 08 Jun 2014 3:57 a.m. PST |
mostly Airforce.to put a bit of flesh on the link above. I am not sure where the citizenship thing is going.A number of Australians became prominent senior officers in the post war RAF.
As of 1 June 1944, Australians comprised the following proportions of the total aircrew strength of each of the RAAF squadrons stationed in the UK: No. 10 Squadron: 93.1 percent, No. 453 Squadron: 100 percent, No. 455 Squadron: 60.5 percent, No. 456 Squadron: 68.6 percent, No. 460 Squadron: 48.2 percent, No. 461 Squadron: 72.8 percent, No. 463 Squadron: 56 percent, No. 464 Squadron: 34.3 percent; No. 466 Squadron: 66.8 percent, No. 467 Squadron: 51.5 percent
Australian and British pilots of No. 453 Squadron RAAF in Normandy during July 1944
Australian members of No. 196 Squadron RAF photographed on 4 June 1944 with one of the squadron's Short Stirling aircraft in the background. This squadron towed gliders carrying the British 6th Airborne Division to France on D-Day (6 June 1944) |
| Cardinal Hawkwood | 08 Jun 2014 4:02 a.m. PST |
I liked the old bloke who said ,in response to being asked how he felt being in Normandy again replied that is was nice to be on the ground there for the first time..prior to this visit he had only ever seen it from the air. |
| thehawk | 08 Jun 2014 4:13 a.m. PST |
There were a few individuals who played important roles. Dick Pirrie was pilot of a small craft that sat off one of the British beaches and would have got a DSO but as he was blown to pieces this was downgraded to Mentioned In Dispatches.
Dacre Smith was gunnery observer standing in the mast of a destroyer that almost ran aground firing at bunkers. |
| andygamer | 08 Jun 2014 12:19 p.m. PST |
Thank you, gentlemen. (Thanks to the TMPers too.) |
|
looks at some WWII German tank-hunters.
