D-Day Squadron Heads North

One of the most ambitious warbird adventures ever undertaken was scheduled to lift off from Oxford, Connecticut, Sunday as 15 Douglas DC-3 variants head to Europe to reenact the D-Day invasion. After 18 months of planning, the aircraft will launch early on Sunday for Goose Bay on Canada's northeast coast. Goose Bay was a vital staging base for the ferrying of aircraft during the Second World War and the stop there is being coordinated with the cooperation of the Royal Canadian Air Force. After "Goose" the flotilla will head through Greenland, Iceland and Scotland before rejoining at historic Duxford in southern England to prepare for the reenactment.

Among the aircraft taking part is That's All Brother, the aircraft that led the invasion and was rescued from the scrapyard at Basler Aerospace in Oshkosh to be rebuilt for the anniversary. The aircraft will fly over the beaches of Normandy and some will drop skydivers using modern adaptations of the round canopy parachutes that filled the skies on that fateful day. Many of the aircraft will take part in a reenactment of the Berlin Airlift after the D-Day activities and all plan to be back at AirVenture 2019 in Oshkosh in late July.