D-Day at Duxford

In June 1944, Duxford was home to the US Eight Air Force's 78 th Fighter Group

Comprising the 82 nd , 83 rd and 84 th Fighter Squadrons. The Group, resident at Duxford officially from May 1943, were equipped with the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, the largest and Heaviest single-seat piston fighter ever produced. The P-47 was produced in greater numbers than any other American fighter and was one of the outstanding US fighters of the Second World war.

As D-Day approached, there was real concern that the Germans might have attempted a pre-emptive or spoiling attack to disrupt the Allied invasion. Duxford's P47s began night flying training and, like other groups, the 78 th formed a defence flight of four aircraft to protect its home base. The aim was to be airborne within 15 minuts of an alert but Duxfods's Fighters, reminiscent of their Battle of Britain predecessors managed to get their scramble time down to just four minuts. The alert flight were on duty an an hour before sunset until a hour after sunrise. To avoid any misunderstandings that could lead to what are now called ‘friendly fire'incidents, A P-51 Mustang was dispatches to Duxford so the defenders could easily indentify the North American fighter. Ground defences were also tightened considerably and a commando platoon was formed with every man given firing practice.

In the run up to D-Day the Allies pounded German defences around the clock. On the morning of May 24 1944, less than a fortnight before D-Day, Duxford's P-47 escorted 8 AF bombers over enemy territory and then in the afternoon became bombers themselves. Led by a two-seat P-38 Lightning carrying a bomb aimer the P-47s dropped 500lb bombs on the railway bridge at Creil in France .

Pre-invasion tension mounted considerably in the first days of June, emphasized by the high degree of security and alertness. Machine guns, gas mask and steel helmets were carried everywhere.

Duxford, known as the Country Club of ETO ( European Theatre of Operations), became very business like. On June 5 the 78 th , together with the P-51s of the 339 th from nearby Fowlmere, carried out bomber support and ground attack missions in the Cherbourg and Pas de Calais area. At 1545hrs the operational order for Operation Neptune was received. Duxford and Fowlmere were sealed off from the outside world and Newmarket Road , now the A505 which separates Duxford's airfield from the domestic site and Officers' mess to the north, was closed to the public traffic. Duxford was only linked to the outside world by closely watched teletypes. No telephone calls went or came into the base. Incoming and outgoing mail was frozen. British civilians and American Red Cross workers on or near the airfiels were kept were they were - those on the base at the time were not allowed to leave and those outside were not permitted to enter. Only those military personnel with specific permission were allowed near the aircraft, After the invasion had begun, only pilots scheduled to fly at the time were allowes inside the briefing room before or after briefing, Blackout restrictions were tighter than ever and special wardens patrolled the station to see that they were strictly adhered to.

Personnel who normally never went near the aircraft were given paint brushes to help paint the 78 th 's fighters with the distinctive black and white ‘invasion' stripes around wings and fuselages. Others were pressed into service driving trucks or preparing ammunition belts. Every one of Duxford's 89 Thunderbolts were on line and ready for action. By this period Duxford's operations room function was carried out at Sawston Hall, some two miles to the east of the airfield. As June 6 dawned, the staff knew something big was on as they watched the plotting table filling up. The sky overhead was filled with a continual throbbing drone of aircraft which lasted too long to be a typical RAF bomber stream.

At 0329hrs , Duxford 83 rd and 84 th FS took off for their first mission of the day, giving cover to the invasion fleet as it crossed the English Channel towards the landing beaches. When the first of Duxford's five missions of the dar returned to refeul and re-arm, the Thunderbolds of the 82 nd roared off to take their place. At 1000hrs, the 83 rd Fighter Squadron took of for their second mission of the day , only six hours after they had left on their first. For this mission they were tasked with dropping bombs on rail targets ahead of the landing forces and reported German vehicle convoys moving forward. Before the 83 rd landed the 84 th were back in the air looking for targets of opportunity in the Alencon area, striking at marshalling yards and ammunition dumps. On landing they claimed two locomotives damaged, 30-45 box cars damaged, eight to ten coal cars damaged, ten flat cars loaded with motor vehicles damaged, one troop truck left burning and three more damaged.

Meanwhile the 82 nd were attacking rail traffic and found two Luftwaffe airfields empty of aircraft. On their third mission of the day the 83 rd became tho only squadron of the 78tn to encounter the Luftwaffe, bouncing eight Focke-Wulf 190s near Mayenne and shooting down without loss. At 1822hrs the 82th and 84 th were airborne again for the group's final mission of the day. The fighters did not return until after dusk, four and a half hours later. All the pilots reported heavy artillery bombardment.

The Operation ended at 2300hrs. Considering the intensity of the day's actions for th 78 th FG , losses from enemy action were incredibly low – one Duxford pilot had to be rescued from the English Channel . The record noted that despite the momentous events of the day the pilots needed sleep and where probably “too damned tired to Celebrate ‘ – they would have to fly again in the Morning

Text by the Imperial War Museum Duxford, Photos Robert Dahler RDAVP Aviation.