Cornelius Ryan WWII papers, box 017, folder 02: Harold Thomas Kennedy

KENNEDY, Harold Thomas Tex 23 437 Troop Carrier Group.

Box 17, #2

Morning Gliders 82nd

LL I TEX 23

For Cornelius Ryan Book about D-Day

THOUSANDS OF MEN, ON LAND AND SEA AND IN THE AIR, PARTICIPATED IN THE INVASION OF NORMANDY BETWEEN MIDNIGHT JUNE 5, 1944 AND MIDNIGHT JUNE 6 , 1944. IF YOU WERE ONE OF THEM, PLEASE ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.

What is your full name ? Harold Thomas Kennedy

What was your unit and division? 437th Troop Carrier Group 86 Sqd. Where did you arrive in Normandy , and at what time ? St. Marie Eglise, 0405 AM What was your rank on June 6 44 ? Flight Officer What was your age on June 6 , 1944? 22 Were you married at that time ? yes What is your wife's name ? Opal Marie Kennedy Did you have any children at that time ? one What do you do now? Instructor Missile Dept, Sheppard AFB Texas When did you know that you were going to be part of the invasion ? I believe the crew's for the night landings were selected about 2 weeks prior to the invasion What was the trip like during the crossing of the Channel ? Do you remember , for example , any conversations you had or how you passed the time ? The trip was rough- I was flying as pilot with a co-pilot name Frank Kology from Penn we had a jeep + a Capt + M/Sgt riding in the jeep from the 82nd airborne. we were flying formantion at soft above the channel and we spent most of our time dodgeing the gliders + towships C-47's above us we only had 2 formantion lights to follow on each tow ship it was also raining and at that time in the morning it seem to be the darkest

What were the rumors on board the boat , ship or plane in which you made the crossing? ( Some people remember scuttlebutt to the effect that the Germans had poured gasoline on the water and planned to set it afire when the troops came in ). as stated above we were to busy However we were only thinking of the landing at night- which was a fear of all glider pilots. Haveing never been shot at before we really diden realize what was coming

- for Cornelius Ryan 2 - Your name M/Sgt Harold T. Kennedy

Did you by any chance keep a diary of what happened to you that day? No + you also should no that it was against regulations to keep a diary (ha ha) Were any of your friends killed or wounded either during the landing or during the day? we lost 18 of 32 glider pilots that night- I remember 4 personal friends killed out right on the landing Do you remember any conversations you had with them before they became casualties? only one- F/O Kiel from Kentucky told me before take off, that only the best die first + he was the worst- I never saw him again. Were you wounded? not by gunfire, but my back + kidney was pulled out of shape by the landing, which was upside down + straight in Do you remember what it was like -- that is do you remember whether you felt any pain or were you so surprised that you felt nothing? I dont recall of feeling anything- except my concern about my crew

Do you remember seeing or hearing anything that seems funny now, even though it did not, of course, seem amusing at the time? Yes, when I cut off from tow- F/O Kology told me that he could see a green light on our right- I pulled up to slow down + made a climbing turn to the right + hit a tree with my right wing went up on my rear / of Mack + straight in. The jeep ---- tried + did come foward + push the nose straight up. which in turn left me 10 ft in the air- I felt no pain- but when Kology said get out. I did + fell 10 ft on my head

Do you recall any incident, sad or heroic, or simply memorable, which struck you more than anything else? sad yes- all the troopers who were hung in trees- most of the path finders by which the Germans hung by there necks + cut there insides out

- for Cornelius Ryan 3 - Your name HAROLD T. KENNEDY M/SGT.

In times of great crisis , people generally show either great ingenuity or self - reliance ; others do incredibly stupid things. Do you remember any examples of either ? YES ALWAYS YOU DO INCREDICLY STUPID THINGS - SUCH AS RUNNING THROUGH FIELDS WHICH ARE MINED + SAW PEOPLE SHOT OFF TOES EVEN TO GET OUT OF THE FEAR OR DIEING. ALSO BASICALLY AMERICANS ARE SOFT WITH THE OTHER PEOPLE, AND BECAUSE OF THIS MANY DIED. Where were you at midnight on June 5, 1944 ? BEING BRIEFED + LOCKED UP AT ROWSBUTY ENGLAND ALSO STANDING ON THE RUNWAY GETTING READY FOR A 0200 TAKEOFF Where were you at midnight on June 6 , 1944? TRYING TO GET A 75 HOWZ TO OPERATE TO HOLD THE GERMANS BACK FROM COMING OVER A BRIDGE (WHICH WE DID) 5 TANKS IN ALL

Do you know of anybody else who landed within those 24 hours ( midnight June 5 to midnight June 6 ) as infantry , glider or airborne troops , or who took part in the air and sea operations , whom we should write to ? COL. CURT FRISBIE- USAF AND UNKOWN COL. DON FRENCH- USAF AND UNKOWN CAPT. W. WINTERSOLE USAF COOK AFB CALIF. ----------------------- IN CLOSEING- IT TOOK US 7 DAYS TO GET OUT - AND I BELIVE IT WAS ON THE THIRD NIGHT BEFORE THE BEACH FORCE REACHED ARE MADE CONTACT WITH US . WE THE GLIDER PILOTS BROUGHT OUT 68 PRISONERS, AND ON THE SOUTHERN FRANCE, HOLLAND + WESEL GERMANY MISSION WE BROUGHT OUT THOUSANDS HOWEVER THE 101st + 82nd AIRBORNES ON NORMANDY WERE THE VERY BEST TROOPS EVER TRAINED ------------------------------ I WILL LEAVE REDSTONE ARSENAL THE 24th OF JUNE + WILL RETURN TO SHEPPARD AFB TEXAS ASSIGNED TO THE MISSILE DEPT.

PLEASE LET US HAVE THIS QUESTIONNAIRE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE , SO THAT WE CAN INCLUDE YOUR EXPERIENCES IN THE BOOK. WE HOPE THAT YOU WILL CONTINUE YOUR STORY ON SEPARATE SHEETS IF WE HAVE NOT LEFT SUFFICIENT ROOM, FULL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT WILL BE GIVEN IN A CHAPTER CALLED "WHERE THEY ARE NOW; YOUR NAME AND VOCATION OR OCCUPATION WILL BE LISTED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP.

THANK YOU MISS OR MRS WARD FOR SUCH A NICE LETTER HAROLD T KENNEDY M.SGT -USAF Cornelius Ryan Frances Ward Research , The Reader's Digest

May 14, 1958

Dear Mr. Kennedy:

Thank you very much indeed for your message of March 4th to Mr. Ryan, indicating your willingness to help us with his book about D-Day. I was appalled this morning to find that it had been so long neglected, and I hope very much that you will for- give the terrible delay in answering it. I can only say, by way of apology, that we have been simply overwhelmed, as well as very gratified, by the wonderful response which the Air Force and Army request for information have been bringing us. Please believe that we not only want but really need your story. As the Air Force Times' article may not have expressively stated, this will not be another strategic history of the invasion, but the story of the twenty-four hours as men lived them and remem- bered them. Since we have been specifically looking for the men who flew the gliders into Normandy, it is especially ironical that your letter should temporarily be lost in the rush.

As the Times' story probably stated Mr. Ryan will interview many of the people who agree to contribute to the book, and so I should like very much to know whether or not you would be available for interview at Huntsville during the next two or three months of this year. In the meantime, since we are dealing with literally hundreds of men, we are finding it necessary to keep an individual file on each per- son who agrees to help us. So I hope you will be willing to complete the enclosed record and return it to me at your earliest convenience. We have assembled these questions in the hope that they will serve you as well as us, by perhaps recalling some long forgotten incidents, but most of all by indicating the kind of information which we are seeking.

We shall look forward very eagerly to your reply. I certainly hope that you will overlook our incourteous delay, for yours is one of the stories which we want very much to tell. Thank you so very much for any help that you can give us.

Sincerely,

Frances Ward Research Department

Master Sergeant Harold T. Kennedy 864 Strategic Missile Squadron Redstone Arsenal Huntsville, Alabama