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- The Story of Glider 88 – the Battle for LZ 2
- Operation Dragoon – British Glider Chaos in Riviera Invasion
- Tommy Grant’s Operation Beggar – Horsas for Sicily Invasion
- 3 Commando – the Storming of Torre Cuba
- Paddy Mayne and the SAS Attack on the Second Battery
- The Story of Glider 110 – Glider Pilots Fight for the Ponte Grande
- Arnhem & Varsity Sketches by Glider Pilot Victor Miller
- The Story of Glider 50 – Hemmed In By Fire
- The Story of Glider 107 – Escape and Evasion
- The Story of Glider 46 – Kicking the Hornets’ Nest
- The Story of Glider 8 – Calm Before the Storm
- The Story of Glider 52a – Out of the Firestorm
- The Story of Glider 29 – A Tough Nut to Crack
- The Story of Glider Z – No Business Being There
- The Story of Glider 124 – A Life and Death Decision
- Surgical Strike – the Bombing of Syracuse in Operation Ladbroke
- Mystery Plane – Wellington Bomber Wreck off Cape Murro di Porco
- Photo Story: SAS SRS & Airborne – Agony & Ecstasy in the Med
- Wilf Oldham – Ordeal by Water.
- SAS Special Raiding Squadron (SRS) – The Cliffs of Cape Murro di Porco
- The Story of Glider 57 – The Cliffs of Cape Murro di Porco
- Lt J S D Hardy, RSO of 1 Border Regiment in Operation Ladbroke
- Operation Ladbroke, Fustian, Glutton, Bigot, Husky – or not?
- The Story of Glider Y – Bayonets & Threats of Execution
- Operation Ladbroke Sites – the Coup-de-Main Objectives
- Italian Cavalry Attack British Glider Troops on the Ponte Grande Bridge?
- The Story of Glider 52 & Gozo in Operation Ladbroke
- A US glider trooper in Operation Varsity – John Kormann’s legacy
- Chatterton vs Hopkinson – the Facts
- Glider Pilots to Blame for Operation Ladbroke Disaster? Part 3
- The Battle for Augusta – Jim Fern and the 6 Seaforths
- The Story of Glider 70 – Disaster for Medics in Operation Ladbroke
- Glider Pilots to Blame for Operation Ladbroke Disaster? Part 2
- SAS Rogue Heroes – Book Review
- The Story of Glider 26 – Combat Medics in Operation Ladbroke
- Glider Pilots to Blame for Operation Ladbroke Disaster?
- Unseen US document reveals impact of glider battle at Maleme
- South Staffords near Syracuse – rare photograph
- The Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment – Book Review
- Unpublished shot of a tank on the Ponte Grande
- Ray Atkinson, Halifax Tug Pilot in Operation Varsity
- The Story of Glider 126 – A Rare Good Landing
- The Lost Photos of Operation Ladbroke
- Nothing Is Impossible by glider pilot Victor Miller – Book Review
- PARAS Voices of the British Airborne – Book Review
- The SAS Pocket Manual – Book Review
- Battle plans for Staffords glider troops in Operation Ladbroke in Sicily
- Tullio Marcon – the story of his story of Augusta 1943
- Tullio Marcon: the Allied invasion of Sicily in the memories of a Balilla
- Terror off Terrauzza – Operation Ladbroke gliders in the sea
- Galpin’s Glider – New photo of Operation Ladbroke’s star landing
- Italian Artillery of WWII – Book Review
- Seizing Bridges, Building Bridges – Battlefield Tour Guide Roberto Piccione, Syracuse, Sicily
- Admiral Leonardi takes on the Royal Navy and the SAS
- Peter Davis of the SAS – a precious first-hand account
- Eben-Emael: The Glider Assault Myth is Born
- Operation Ladbroke, Sicily: Tugs to blame for releasing gliders?
- The Longest Weekend: D-Day Normandy 2004
- German predictions for Operation Ladbroke & airborne landings in Sicily
- Greatest Feats, Feats Forlorn: Jim Wallwork, Pegasus Bridge & Operation Ladbroke
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Tag Archives: Operation Ladbroke Sicily 1943
Italian Cavalry Attack British Glider Troops on the Ponte Grande Bridge?
The source was impeccable: the BBC. The news was incredible: Italian cavalry had charged British airborne troops holding the Ponte Grande bridge. In the middle of WW2, could it possibly be true? The thunder of hooves, clods of earth flying, weapons … Continue reading
Chatterton vs Hopkinson – the Facts
There is a story about Lt Col Chatterton and Maj Gen Hopkinson and the genesis of Operation Ladbroke that is so pervasive that it has almost become gospel. Certainly it seems to go completely unchallenged. But there is no evidence … Continue reading
Glider Pilots to Blame for Operation Ladbroke Disaster? Part 3
In his post-war book, the CO of the glider pilots blamed their ‘limitations’ for the ‘near disaster’ of Operation Ladbroke. Is the accusation true? In Part 1 we saw how the use of gliders in Operation Ladbroke, the opening assault in … Continue reading
Glider Pilots to Blame for Operation Ladbroke Disaster? Part 2
The CO of the glider pilots blamed their ‘limitations’ for the ‘near disaster’ of Operation Ladbroke. That was later. What did he say at the time? In Part 1 we saw how Operation Ladbroke, the glider assault that opened the invasion of … Continue reading
Glider Pilots to Blame for Operation Ladbroke Disaster?
After the failures of Operation Ladbroke, recriminations flew in every direction. The glider pilots were not exempt. Surprisingly, their own commander later blamed them the most. “It was … the nearest run thing you ever saw in your life”, the … Continue reading
Unseen US document reveals impact of glider battle at Maleme
Glider troops of Germany’s airborne forces landed around Maleme Bridge in Crete in May 1941. They were decimated. The Germans decided never again to mount a major airborne assault. The Allies drew the opposite lesson, as a previously unseen American document shows. … Continue reading
Nothing Is Impossible by glider pilot Victor Miller – Book Review
‘Nothing Is Impossible’ is the best account we have of Operation Ladbroke by somebody who was there. Now the second edition greatly expands Victor Miller’s original telling. Review of ‘Nothing is Impossible – A Glider Pilot’s Story of Sicily, Arnhem … Continue reading
PARAS Voices of the British Airborne – Book Review
If you like undiluted collections of veterans’ accounts of airborne operations, this book is for you. If however you prefer your history with, well, a bit of history, then you could find this book frustrating. Review of ‘PARAS – Voices … Continue reading
Battle plans for Staffords glider troops in Operation Ladbroke in Sicily
The 2nd battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment was chosen as the leading glider assault troops for Operation Ladbroke, the opening move of Operation Husky, the Allied invasion of Sicily. These are the orders they were given just days before the battle. … Continue reading
Terror off Terrauzza – Operation Ladbroke gliders in the sea
A peaceful beach today was once a scene of death. Its horror was painstakingly photo-graphed by the cameramen of a US film unit. Their images reveal a harrowing truth about Operation Ladbroke. In the corner of the bay where the cliffs of the Maddalena … Continue reading
Posted in All Posts, Battlefield Visits, Operation Ladbroke - Sicily 1943, SAS Special Raiding Squadron (SRS) in Sicily
Tagged 1 Border Regt, Glider Pilot Regiment, Gliders in sea - Sicily, Gliders in Sicily, Michael Samek, Operation Husky Sicily 1943, Operation Ladbroke Sicily 1943, SAS Special Raiding Squadron (SRS), Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) in Sicily, US glider pilots in Sicily
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Italian Artillery of WWII – Book Review
Books about the Italian artillery of WWII are rare, even in Italian. This one in English is extremely welcome, but may slightly disappoint students of Operation Ladbroke and the fall of the Piazzaforte Augusta-Siracusa (PA-S). Book Review: ‘Italian Artillery of the … Continue reading
Seizing Bridges, Building Bridges – Battlefield Tour Guide Roberto Piccione, Syracuse, Sicily
In 1943 British glider troops seized the Ponte Grande, a bridge near Syracuse, Sicily, launching the Allied invasion of Italy. Now Roberto Piccione builds bridges between former enemies. Beside a perfect tourist cove, where no tourist goes, opposite the golden walls of … Continue reading
