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Glider Pilot Regiment
A Dutch school damaged by mortar fire, being searched for German snipers by Sergeant J Whawell and Sergeant J Turrell of the Glider Pilot Regiment
Active21 December 1941- 1 September 1957
CountryUnited Kingdom
BranchBritish Army
TypeArmy Aviation
RoleAir transport and airborne infantry
Part ofArmy Air Corps 1942-1949
Glider Pilot and Parachute Corps (1949-1957)
Motto(s)Nihil est Impossibilis
"Nothing is Impossible"
ColorsNone issued
Engagementsinvasion of Normandy
Operation Market Garden
Invasion of Sicily, Crossing of the Rhine
Battle honoursNormandy Landing, Pegasus Bridge, Merville Battery, Arnhem 1944, Rhine, Southern France, North-West Europe 1944-45, Landing in Sicily, Sicily 1943[1]
Commanders
Colonel CommandantThe Rt Hon Alan Francis Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, KG (1942-)
Insignia
Beret colourMaroon

The Glider Pilot Regiment was a specialist British unit of the Second World War which was responsible for crewing the British Army's gliders in airborne operations. The regiment was established in 1942 and saw action in the European Theatre of World War II, before being disbanded in 1957 with its personnel transferred to the Army Air Corps.

Formation

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Glider Training Squadron

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The German military was one of the pioneers of the use of airborne formations, conducting several successful airborne operations during the Battle of France in 1940, including the Battle of Fort Eben-Emael.[2] Impressed by the success of German airborne operations, the Allied governments decided to form their own airborne formations.[3] This decision would eventually lead to the creation of two British airborne divisions, as well as a number of smaller units.[4] The British airborne establishment began development on 22 June 1940, when the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, directed the War Office in a memorandum to investigate the possibility of creating a corps of 5,000 parachute troops.[5] On 21 June, 1941, the Central Landing Establishment was formed at Ringway airfield near Manchester; although tasked primarily with training parachute troops, it was also directed to investigate the possibilities of using gliders to transport troops into battle.[6][7] It had been decided that the Royal Air Force and the Army would cooperate in forming the airborne establishment, and as such Squadron Leader L.A. Strange and Major J.F. Rock were tasked with gathering together potential glider pilots and forming a glider unit; this was achieved by searching for members of the armed forces who had pre-war experience of flying gliders, or were interested in learning to do so.[8] The two officers and their newly-formed unit were provided with four obsolecent Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bombers and a small number of Tiger Moth and Avro 504 biplanes for towing purposes. Within a few months of the unit being formed the War Office and Air Ministry would begin to draw up specifications for several types of military gliders to be used by the unit; these would eventually take the form of the General Aircraft Hotspur, General Aircraft Hamilcar, Airspeed Horsa and the Slingsby Hengist. These would take some time to be designed and produced, however, and for the time being the fledgling unit was forced to improvise.[9]

General Sir John Dill, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, inspects a training glider at the Central Landing Establishment at RAF Ringway, December 1940.

A Glider Training Squadron was formed, and the first test-flights were conducted using British Aircraft Swallow light aircraft which had their propellors removed to simulate the flight characteristics of a glider; they were towed by the Whitley bombers using tow-ropes of varying number and length for experimentation purposes.[10] However, the resources available to the squadron were meagre, particularly since it was believed that Britain was in imminent danger of being invaded; many senior officers in the armed forces believed that the development of the airborne forces establishment would divert desperately needed resources away from the defence of Britain for very little gain.[11] As such, appeals were made throughout Britain for civilian gliders to be donated to the squadron, with the first four arriving in August; three of them had been manufactured in pre-war Germany. Within a short period of time several more were acquired, and these were used to train instructors, glider pilots and newly-formed ground crews. Accidents were quite frequent in these early months, primarily due to the hemp tow-ropes breaking during flight; these problems were only solved with the introduction of nylon tow-ropes imported from the United States of America.[12]

There was a certain carefree atmosphere present in the squadron in the first few months of its existence; new recruits were not obliged to pass a medical test to join the squadron, and it attracted a number of adventurous-minded men with a passion for flying, including a sergeant who had flown a Messerschmitt during the Spanish Civil War.[13] These first pilots had been volunteers recruited from all of the branches of the armed forces, primarily the Army; however, as the squadron began to expand and conduct training exercises, arguments broke out between the RAF and the Army over the recruitment and training of the pilots.[14] Senior RAF officers regarded gliders as aircraft, and as such believed that the squadron should come under RAF control, and therefore only trained RAF personnel should be trained as glider pilots. However, their opposite numbers in the Army put forward the argument that since the glider pilots would fight alongside the troops they had transported once the glider landed, the pilots should be Army recruits and the squadron should come under its jurisdiction.[15] After a great deal of debate, a compromise was brokered between the two services: the pilots would be recruited from the Army, but they would be trained by the RAF.[16] All new glider pilots recruited in this fashion were expected to reach high standards to ensure were able to pilot and land their glider, to fight alongside the troops they transported, and to act as a signaller and liason officer; consequently, only those volunteers who reached demanding physical and mental standards were accepted as recruits. Once accepted, they would attend a twelve week course at an RAF Elementary Flying Training School in order to learn how to fly a light aircraft, and then move onto a Glider Training School for a further twelve weeks. They would then spend a final six weeks at an Operational Training Unit and graduate as a glider pilot.[17]

The first demonstration of the squadron's abilities took place on 26 September, when Prince George, Duke of Kent witnessed a demonstration of the fledgling airborne establishment's capabilities; four parachute-drops were conducted, and then two gliders were towed by civilian aircraft.[18] This was followed on 26 October by a night exercise being conducted by the squadron, with two Avro 504s towing four gliders, and on 13 December five gliders were towed to Tatton Park, where they landed alongside sixteen parachutists dropped from two Whitley bombers.[19][20] All of these exercises were conducted using civilian gliders, and the first military glider, a General Aircraft Hotspur, only arrived at Ringway on 6 February 1941. Initially conceived of in June 1940, and with the first prototype being flown in November 1940, the Hotspur was able to carry eight fully-armed airborne troops and upto 1,880 lbs of cargo, and would become the primary glider that all glider pilots used for training.[21] However, procuring more gliders proved to be problematical, with the delivery of Hotspurs and the newly-designed Airspeed Horsa falling drastically behind expectations; the first Horsas were not expected to be ready for delivery until early 1942, and more Hotspurs were ordered in an attempt to make up for this shortage. This was a problem in itself, however, as the Hotspur was only intended to be used for training purposes and could accomodate fewer troops and smaller amounts of equipment than the Horsa.[22][23]

Glider Pilot Regiment

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Two Hotspur Mark IIs in free flight over the Oxfordshire countryside.

To accomodate its growing size, the Glider Training Squadron was moved from Ringway to Haddenham, Oxfordshire, in December 1940, and by March 1941 the first twelve Army volunteers from the Army-RAF training program arrived, joined shortly after by a further sixteen volunteers from RAF Bomber Command.[24] After several months of training, and the arrival of more Hotspurs, the squadron was able to set up a Glider Exercise Unit and perform several exercises to demonstrate the squadron's abilities; three Hotspurs were towed and released in September, and in December a fully-loaded Hotspur was cast off from 10,000 feet and was able to land back at its airfield from a distance of twenty miles.[25] Then, on 21 December, the squadron was officially renamed as the 1st Battalion, Glider Pilot Regiment, forming part of the Army Air Corps, which was created on 24 February, 1942.[26][27] The regiment was to be commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Rock, who was promoted at the same time, with his second-in-command the newly-arrived Major George Chatterton.[28] This coincided with the establishment of 1st Airborne Division, which by early 1942 consisted of several parachute brigades and 1st Airlanding Brigade; the latter was to land airborne troops by gliders, which would be provided by the regiment.[29]

Upon its formation the regiment gained the use of an airfield near Salisbury Plain as a training depot for all new recruits, and on 15 January 38 Wing of the RAF Army Co-operation Command was formed with the express purpose of transporting 1st Airborne Division, which would include utilizing the gliders and pilots of the regiment.[30] The Wing immediately began to train in the art of towing gliders, and on 16 April it was sufficiently advanced to give a demonstration for the Prime Minister; twelve Whitley bombers carried a force of paratroopers, and nine Hawker Hectors each towed a single Hotspur glider. Impressed by the display, the Prime Minister directed the Chief of Air Staff to accelerate the number of obsolete bombers being made available to the regiment; at the same time, Horsa gliders began to arrive in large numbers and could be used for further training.[31] By mid-1942 38 Wing had expanded to include three full-strength squadrons dedicated to towing gliders, with a fourth at half-strength, and it had been provided with a variety of towing aircraft; these included Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle bombers, which had been produced for the RAF but were regarded as inferior in quality, and a small number of C-47 Dakota transport aircraft imported from America.[32] On 17 August, 1942, 2nd Battalion Glider Pilot Regiment was formed under the command of the newly-promoted Lieutenant Colonel Chatterton, and this expansion was matched by an increase in expectations by the War Office; it expected the regiment to possess 1, 064 fully-trained glider pilots by July 1943 for future airborne operations.[33] Tragically, Rock was wounded in a training accident on 27 September; he died of his injuries on 18 October, and was replaced as commander of the regiment by Chatterton.[34]

Wartime operations

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Operation Freshman

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Main article: Operation Freshman

The first operation conducted by the Glider Pilot Regiment took place on the night of 19 November, 1942, when two gliders and their pilots participated in Operation Freshman. By mid-1942 it had come to the attention of the British government that the Norsk Hydro chemical plant in occupied Norway had begun to produce large quantities of heavy water for Nazi Germany and was stockpiling it for use in developing the Nazi atomic weapons programme. The decision was therefore taken by the government that the plant and the stockpiles of heavy water would have to be destroyed in order to impede the German programme.[35] A number of options were considered for the destruction of the plant, but it was ultimately decided that a raid by glider-borne airborne troops would have the greatest chance of success; the area around the plant would be difficult to land in, but a possible landing site for gliders was located, although it would require considerable skill on the part of the glider pilots in order to land safely.[36] The Headquarters staff of Combined Operations at the War Office was tasked with devising a plan for the glider-borne assault on the plant, as it had been with previous airborne and commando operations, such as Operation Biting.[37] This would be the first British airborne operation ever to use gliders; all previous operations had been conducted solely with parachutists.[38] Thirty-two airborne troops divided into two teams would be transported in two Horsa gliders towed by two specially-provided Handley Page Halifax heavy bombers. The decision was made to not call for volunteers for such a dangerous mission, and instead the two best pilots in the regiment were picked, Staff Sergeant M.F.C. Strathdee and Sergeant P. Doig; the two men would pilot one glider, and the other would be piloted by two Royal Australian Air Force personnel.[39]

The pilots were given extensive training for the operation, which included night-flying and practice deploying the glider's undercarriage, which would detach and float to earth via an attached parachute, to ensure the carriage did not damage the glider as it landed; in total both pilots completed more than fourty-four hours worth of flying time. They also accompanied an RAF bombing raid near Oslo so they could examine the Norwegian terrain and likely weather conditions.[40] After their training had been completed, on 17 November the sappers and glider pilots were transported to an RAF airfield at Skitten in Scotland, with the operation scheduled to commence two days later.[41] The first aircraft–glider combination took off from the airfield at 17:50 on 19 November, with the second following at 18:10; after circling the airfield several times the two combinations headed out across the North Sea towards their objective.[41] Neither glider reached its intended destination, and the operation was a failure. The first combination reached Norway, but was unable to locate the landing zone, and poor weather conditions forced the Halifax to cast off the glider and return to base; the glider itself, piloted by Strathdee and Doig, crash-landed, killing both pilots and most of the airborne troops. The rest were taken prisoner by German troops and subsequently executed in accordance with the Commando Order issued by Adolf Hitler in October 1942, which stated that all Commando troops were to be executed immediately upon capture.[42] The second combination shared a similar fate; the Halifax crashed into a mountain, killing its crew, and the glider made a forced landing some distance away; three airborne troops died in the impact, and the rest were captured and executed within a short period of time.[43]

Operation Ladbroke

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Main article: Operation Ladbroke

Operation Fustian

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Main article: Operation Fustian

Operation Tonga

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Main article: Operation Tonga

Note: Tetrarchs and Hamilcars!

Operation Dragoon

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Main article: Operation Dragoon

Operation Market-Garden

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Main article: Operation Market Garden

Operation Varsity

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Main article: Operation Varsity

Operation Varsity was the airborne landings in support of the amphibious crossing of the Rhine by British Commonwealth and US ground forces in 1945. Following the losses incurred by the Regiment's at Arnhem, with 90% killed, wounded or taken prisoner of war, the regiment was built up to strength for Varsity by seconding pilots from the Royal Air Force.[44]

Post-war

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The battle honours of the Glider Pilot Regiment were added to the modern Army Air Corps in 2007[45]

See also

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[edit]
  • Two Hotspur Mark IIs in free flight over the Oxfordshire countryside.
    Two Hotspur Mark IIs in free flight over the Oxfordshire countryside.
  • Captain Ogilvie of the Glider Pilot Regiment (who landed in his kilt) during Operation Market Garden on 18 September 1944. Ogilvie was one of many Glider pilots killed in this operation
    Captain Ogilvie of the Glider Pilot Regiment (who landed in his kilt) during Operation Market Garden on 18 September 1944. Ogilvie was one of many Glider pilots killed in this operation

References

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Notes

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  1. ^ Baker, pp. 312, 314-5, 317-8, 329-30
  2. ^ Flanagan, p. 6.
  3. ^ Harclerode, p. 197.
  4. ^ Harclerode, p. 107.
  5. ^ Otway, p. 21
  6. ^ Otway, pp. 28-29
  7. ^ Smith, p. 7
  8. ^ Smith, p. 7
  9. ^ Smith, pp. 7-8
  10. ^ Smith, p. 8
  11. ^ Smith, p. 9
  12. ^ Smith, p. 8
  13. ^ Lynch, p. 32
  14. ^ Smith, p. 10
  15. ^ Lynch, p. 32
  16. ^ Lynch, p. 32
  17. ^ Otway, p. 36
  18. ^ Smith, p. 9
  19. ^ Smith, pp. 9-10
  20. ^ Lynch, p. 31
  21. ^ Smith, p. 13
  22. ^ Otway, p. 36
  23. ^ Smith, p. 14
  24. ^ Smith, pp. 16-17
  25. ^ Smith, p. 17
  26. ^ Otway, p. 42
  27. ^ Smith, p. 24
  28. ^ Lloyd, p. 29
  29. ^ Smith, p. 20
  30. ^ Smith, p. 27
  31. ^ Smith, p. 27
  32. ^ Smith, pp. 28-29
  33. ^ Smith, p. 30
  34. ^ Lloyd, p. 30
  35. ^ Dahl, p. 193
  36. ^ Otway, p. 70
  37. ^ Otway, p. 70
  38. ^ Otway, p. 73
  39. ^ Smith, pp. 34-35
  40. ^ Smith, pp. 35-36
  41. ^ a b Otway, p. 72
  42. ^ Lynch, p. 35
  43. ^ Lynch, p. 35
  44. ^ http://www.assaultgliderproject.co.uk/gpr.html
  45. ^ http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speechesandarticles/a_speech_by_hrh_the_prince_of_wales_at_the_50th_anniversary__241235889.html

Bibliography

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  • Baker, Anthony (1986). Battle Honours of the British and Commonwealth Armies. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 0711016003.
  • Dahl, Per F. (1999). Heavy Water and the Wartime Race for Nuclear Energy. London: CRC Press. ISBN 1844157369.
  • Dank, Milton (1977). The Glider Gang: An Eyewitness History of World War II Glider Combat. Cassel. ISBN 0304300144.
  • Dover, Major Victor (1981). The Sky Generals. Cassell. ISBN 0-30430-480-8.
  • Flanagan, E. M. Jr (2002). Airborne - A Combat History Of American Airborne Forces. The Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89141-688-9.
  • Flint, Keith (2006). Airborne Armour: Tetrarch, Locust, Hamilcar and the 6th Airborne Armoured Reconnaissance Regiment 1938-1950. Helion & Company Ltd. ISBN 1-874622-37-x. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: invalid character (help)
  • Harclerode, Peter (2005). Wings Of War – Airborne Warfare 1918-1945. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 0-30436-730-3.
  • Lloyd, Alan (1982). The Gliders: The story of Britain's fighting gliders and the men who flew them. Corgi. ISBN 0552121673.
  • Lynch, Tim (2008). Silent Skies: Gliders At War 1939-1945. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military. ISBN 0750306335.
  • Otway, Lieutenant-Colonel T.B.H (1990). The Second World War 1939-1945 Army - Airborne Forces. Imperial War Museum. ISBN 0-90162-75-77.
  • Saunders, Hilary St. George (1972). The Red Beret – The Story Of The Parachute Regiment 1940-1945. White Lion Publishers Ltd. ISBN 0-85617-823-3.
  • Smith, Claude (1992). History of the Glider Pilot Regiment. Pen & Sword Aviation. ISBN 1844156265.
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