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John McCallion May
Scotch - no nickname
60 pathfinders 20 mins. past midnight sealed 3-4 weeks before. Each day mosquitoes
photographed ”looked like football pitch”.
Professional rivalry - U.S.Airborne troops had 2nd parachute - Br. only one.
Expected high casualties
11 men in his section
Small electric torches, narrow focus, spike on end.
Rommel's asparagus to be blown by plastic explosives...had to fall in certain way.
The ’'Bus Drivers”
lights about 25 yards apiece from ground...not easy to see.
Pathfinders - plane No. 2 dropped before No. 1...where are the decoys?
A "tentacle” - Air Support Signal Unit
1l - 1 lt, Sgt. filter
Keevil - loaded into Sterling - nobody had ever dropped from big Sterling - hole in floor.
drawing
Bar to prevent boys from hitting tail gunmen
Sg. Ldr explained that a man couldnft hit - ’’Hitting the Bell.”
20 in Sterling
’’She rather delicate, rather tempermental - so you mustn’t move too much.”
Struck him that he’d never seen RAF wear
You are never afraid, but you are afraid of being afraid...the fear of letting the
down.
The WAF * s...the sudden reversal...they became sisterly, motherly ’’Look after yourself”
They kissed the men good-bye.
The finality of the door closing.
Dorothy 25, wife; 1 was aged 2; 6 and 7. all boys. Girl was august...living in Dover
(heavily bombed. Married Feb. ’37. " I’m coming back.”
Albany Place in Dover...wife heard planes going over, knew he was there and thought
"Why didn’t he tell me.”