D Day - June 6, 1944 - was an exciting day. We had at last invaded the German stronghold on the continent of Europe Around this time we had to carry our carbines (rifles) with live ammunition in our pockets. We also had to carry our gas mask with us Our command was prepared for any counter invasions. The Germans could have parachuted troops to England to try to sabotage the invasion. It also could have been possible for the invasion to fail and we could have faced a German invasion of England. We were glad that neither happened.
Another day that I’ll never forget: Four of us were on duty at the supply ware- house on Christmas Day 1944. All of a sudden we saw a big line of GI trucks heading our way. We looked and each had two B-l7 engines on them. So with forklifts and ropes we unloaded 253 engines. We not only had to unload them but we had to place them in proper storage. We were tired when we finished late that day.
At dusk one evening I saw another sight that I’ll always remember. It was toward the end of the war in Europe. The English bombers went out at night. The American bombers went out during the day. On this particular evening we heard the roar of airplanes. We didn’t know what was happening so we went outside. Flying low were hundreds of B-17s f lying in close formation and each had their red and green wing lights on. What a sight! The sky was filled with B-17s from one end to the other. We just stood there and looked. After a little while we started to cheer and wave at the planes. Most of us I think had tears in our eyes because we knew it could not be long before the war in Europe would be over.
Some reports I hung onto:
