Sights & Sounds

These clips bring to life some of the sights and sounds from IX Troop Carrier Command operations in World War II. Some are video clips from wartime film and others are sound files. The size of each file is listed near the end of each file description.

This clip begins with a recording made by Mutual Network war correspondent Paul Manning as he rode in the lead ship of the southern stream of the 439th Troop Carrier Group crossing the Rhine River, on 24 March 1945. The aircraft was flown by the commanding officer of the 439th, Col. Charles H. Young, and crew. The mission, Operation VARSITY, was the largest one-day air assault of the war (see Rhine River Crossing for more information). The 439th was one of four groups in which each C-47 towed two Waco CG-4A gliders. Manning's recording ends with a narrative he made after he returned, so the background noise is considerably reduced. The entire tape, which lasts approximately 8 minutes, was broadcast at 11:00 a.m., EST, on WOR in New York, on 25 March 1945. In this excerpt, which lasts 2:36, Manning mentions that he hopes he doesn’t see any flak, and not long after that you can hear the sound of anti-aircraft fire. This file is very manageable (131 KB), but you will need a RealOne Player to listen to the audio. If you don’t have one, the download is free (see below).

This is color footage, recently discovered in the Library of Congress. Thanks to Doug Wilmer and his Tow Rope Productions for this gem. This is a clip that includes footage not long after take-off. The double-tow formation flew in pairs of pairs (two tugs and four gliders), echeloned to the right at 10-minute head-to-head intervals between serials of 36 tugs, and 12 minutes between serials of 40 tugs. This is a large file, 4.8 MB, so if you don’t have a broadband connection make sure you download it to your hard drive and run it from there.

This is a 6.5 MB video file of archival film of the Normandy take-offs. Suggest that you first read a poignant description of the take-offs by Josh Logan, then run the clip. (For a much smaller file -- same sequence, but audio only, see below.)

This is an audio file from the archival film of Normandy take-offs (see above). This is a small file (44 KB), but you will need RealOne Player to hear it (see RealOne downloading instructions below).

Click RealOne Player to go to RealOne download site. This player provides good sound and video viewing, too.

Click Windows Media Player to go to Windows Media download site.