today in history - March 24, 1945

My father flew his 17th and most memorable mission Operation Varsity.
As a B-24 Liberator Pilot he flew many dangerous missions, but this low level
supply mission to this day still gives my father chills.
His commanding officer, Col. Flemming, by all accounts a great man,
flying the lead aircraft was shot down directly in front of my father.

At midday, 240 B-24s are sent to drop supplies flying at 300 to 400-feet;
(4 B-24s are lost (mostly to small arms fire),
4 damaged beyond repair and 103 damaged;
5 airmen are KIA, 30 WIA and 116 MIA.

Second only in magnitude to the Normandy invasion,
Operation Varsity was the Allied (British, Canadian and American) airborne operation
that took place at Wesel, Germany on March 24, 1945 The purpose of the operation
was to gain a foothold across the Rhine, so that Allied forces could cross into
Germany and bring the Second World War to a successful conclusion.