"That's All Brother" the World War II Normandy D-Day lead C-47 Airplane

In April 2019 at the New Orleans Lakefront airport "That's All Brother" was headed to Normandy for the 75th Anniversary of D-Day. Charles Marsala of AWE News interviewed pilots Rick "Doc" Hecker and Mitch Mitchell along with U.S. Army General Arthur Abercrombie (ret.) during their three-day layover.

The Big Easy Wing of the Commemorative Air Force is located in New Orleans and hosted "That's All Brother" for this significant event. The Big Easy Wing currently has two vintage planes and coordinates with the New Orleans World War II Museum in hosting annual vintage plane expos geared to honoring World War II at the Lakefront Airport.

On June 5, 1944 the C-47 airplane named "That's All Brother" was the lead plane of the 800 strong aircraft invasion of Normandy France.
Over 13,000 men paratroopers jumped that day, which changed the fate of the world.

"That's All Brother" was discovered in 2015 by the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Texas Wing and refurbished at a cost of $3,000,000.00.
It will lead 30 planes for the 75th Anniversary of D-Day in 2019 flying over Normandy.

The Texas Wing was started in 1961 and has over 100 members. One of its most famous members was Lt. Col. Dick Cole, who was Jimmy Doolittle's co-pilot in the Tokyo raid of April 18, 1942. Lt. Col Cole was born September 7, 1915 and passed away on April 9, 2019.

The CAF is a non-profit that owns 166 aircraft, of which 131 are in airworthy condition, 18 are undergoing maintenance, 15 are in restoration, and two are in storage. The entire collection of CAF aircraft is known as the CAF Ghost Squadron. The CAF is in over twenty-five states and sixty cities with over 12,000 members.

The origin of the Commemorative Air Force can be found in an organization called the "Confederate Air Corps" created by Oscar Harper in Montgomery, Alabama in 1953. The original name, Confederate Air Force, started as a simple tongue in cheek joke, poking fun at the organization's ragtag beginnings.The CAC established several features that later became key characteristics of the CAF: folksy, tongue-in-cheek southern humor; a membership structure based on each member having the equal rank of colonel; and a rallying cry of "Semper, Mint Julep".

In 1957, Lloyd Nolen and four friends purchased a P-51 Mustang. Their first airshow was held on March 10, 1963.
In 1965, the first museum building was completed at old Rebel Field, Mercedes, Texas. Following a 2001 membership vote, the group changed its name to Commemorative Air Force effective January 1, 2002. Many felt the name Confederate Air Force was confusing and did not accurately reflect the purpose of the organization.

The main objectives of the CAF are:

To acquire, restore, and preserve in flying condition a complete collection of combat aircraft which were flown by all military services of the United States and selected aircraft of other nations for the education and enjoyment of present and future generations of Americans.
To provide museum buildings for the permanent protection and display of these aircraft as a tribute to the thousands of men and women who built, serviced, and flew them.
To perpetuate in the memory and in the hearts of all Americans the spirit in which these great planes were flown in the defense of our nation.
To establish an organization having the dedication, enthusiasm, and esprit de corps necessary to operate/maintain/preserve these aircraft as symbols of our American military aviation heritage.
Note: On June 5, 1944 at 11:30pm 20 C-47 took off with Pathfinder Troops to position markers / beacons for US radar. Those markers were dropped at approximately 1:00am; however only one landed in the right place. That's All Brother used the Pathfinder markers as best as possible on June 6th. ..

Normandy
Airborne and pathfinder forces did not see combat again until June 6, 1944, at the commencement of the D-Day landings of Operation Overlord. Pathfinders taking part in the Allied parachute assault on Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944, were trained by the Pathfinder School at RAF North Witham of which the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) designation was Army Air Force Station 479.
At 21:30 hours on June 5, about 200 pathfinders began to take off from North Witham, for the Cotentin Peninsula, in 20 C-47 aircraft of the 9th Troop Carrier Command Pathfinder Group. They began to drop at 00:15 hours on June 6, to prepare the drop zones for the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. They were the first American troops on the ground on D-Day. However, their aircraft were scattered by low clouds and anti-aircraft fire. Many never found their assigned landing zones. Some of the landing zones were too heavily defended. Some were flooded.

While the bad weather and heavy anti-aircraft curtailed the effectiveness of the pathfinder teams on D-Day, the overall airborne drop was a success.

Видео "That's All Brother" the World War II Normandy D-Day lead C-47 Airplane канала AWE NEWS