I gleaned these references from the WEB with a few searches on
"operation Varsity." Some of the personal accounts are quite
moving.
If you find any thing of interest send it my way and I will add it.
Paul Reese
Back to the David Sage Hays home page.
Operation
Dragoon Charles Doyle, of the 509, describes the 509's
actions during the first day of the Invasion of Southern France.
My Longest Day by Jack Trovato, of A Company, 194th GIR. A very moving narrative describing Jack's experiences during Operation Varsity, the airborne phase of the Rhine crossing.
Legend An Interview with Colonel Edson Raff about his jump during Operation Varsity as Regimental Commander of the 507 PIR.
Operation Market Garden - Glen Derber, of the 501 PIR, captures the experiences of an airborne machine gunner fighting in Holland through an extraordinary diary that he was able to maintain during the war.
Do a page search on "Varsity" over half way down the page. Tells which groups participated in Operation Varsity.
Gerald M. Devlin's book "Silent Wings" has a chapter that discuss [Operation Varsity] in detail.
Picture of and infomation about John Lowden who provided information for Jim.
Operation Varsity Air Force Magazine March '96
The 62d Troop Carrier Squadron had trained in towing CG-4A gliders since 1943. At long last, the training would be put to use on March 28, 1945. The squadron was tasked in Operation VARSITY, the crossing of the Rhine and invasion of Wesel, Germany. This all important operation resulted in 885 successful glider sorties placing over 4,800 paratroopers and 2,000,000 pounds of equipment into northern Germany. The 62d, operating 20 aircraft each towing Waco gliders, led the 314 TCG (remember "Primus in Toto") in the airdrop of the17th Airborne Division's medical teams.Airline/tanker quarterly
Airborne Jeep page. I had no idea the gliders were so big.