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Interrogation Officer, proficient in seven languages, 325th Glider Infantry, Mission ‘Galveston’ on D+I at Landing Zone ‘W’.

‘My glider made a beautiful landing at Ecoqueneauville and I made my way south to my assembly point at Les Forges crossroads. Here I got the bad news that I had lost half of my six-man team in glider crashes. The good news was the others had already eight German prisoners for interrogation. I started off with German but with little response, so I switched to Russian with the question, “Vj Russkij chelovek?” (Are you a Russian?). Their reply was immediate, “Da, ya khochu ekhat’ na Ameriku” (Yes, I want to go to America). I slapped both my hands on top of my helmet and shouted at them, “Durak, durak. Ya tozhe!” (Crazy, crazy. Me too!).”’

The enemy included ‘volunteers’ from Eastern Europe and Soviet Russia. The Seventh Army had 13 ‘Ost’ battalions made up of non-Germans.

C-47s of the 34th Troop Carrier Squadron, 315th Troop Carrier Group at Cottesmore waiting to load 82nd Airborne paratroopers for D-Day.

U.S Army