I have received a copy of a ” Special Order”(9 May 1944) from HQ 440TCW Station 463″ (that would be Exeter)…..
This orders 4 named men to travel to the ” Horsa Glider School” at Christchurch for temporary duty. On completion of TDY return to unit. One man from each squadron (95/96/97/98 TCS).
So , I have no record of there being any official military “Horsa Glider School ” at Christchurch …..was this something organised by Airspeed perhaps informally – or something more official but possibly classified?
Here is a image of the relevant part of the order.
By: Arabella-Cox - 11th February 2017 at 21:45
Could also be related to a delivery flight. Christchurch made all their gliders complete and they had to be picked up by crews and ferried back.
By: Arabella-Cox - 8th February 2017 at 16:55
Airspeed had a factory at Christchurch. I’d hazard a guess that the personnel involved would be ground crew to be trained on the Horsa which would be a type ‘new’ to the US forces.
Its often stated that the US pilots who flew the Horsa on D-Day were unfamiliar with the type.
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February 8, 2017 at 11:15 am