Normandy Landing

36" x 48" x 2" Oil on Canvas, framed.

        The British Horsa glider shown on the ground in this painting could carry as many as 30 troops . It was constructed almost completely of wood.  Its tow line harness yoke was attached to both wings, unlike the usual tow line attached to the nose of the aircraft.  

          Perhaps the Horsa's finest hour came in the early stages of the Normandy Invasion when six Horsas loaded with infantry descended in the darkness of the morning of June 6, 1944, to capture and hold bridges over the Orne and Caen Canal, bridges that would allow German reinforcements to counterattack the Normandy landings.  Carrying a company of the Oxford and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, six Horsas piloted by members of the famed British Glider Pilot Regiment found their insertion points.  This exceptionally difficult and dangerous mission, so critical to the success of the beach landings, was accomplished due in no small part to the skilled airmanship of the six Horsa aircrews.  

Canadian Aviation Artists Association