Operation Varsity
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Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery (left), Air Marshal Sir Arthur Coningham (centre) and Lieutenant General Sir Miles Dempsey in preparation of Operation Varsity (22nd March 1945)
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Bursts of German anti-aircraft fire fill the sky above Wesel, Germany, as 80 Avro Lancasters of No. 3 Group attack the town in preparation for the 21st Army Group's assault across the River Rhine, (Operation VARSITY) on 24 March 1945. Photograph was taken from the British positions on the west bank of the River. The photographer kept the camera shutter open for the duration of the attack, which lasted from 10.30 to 10.45 pm on 23 March.
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U.S. Army Air Force Douglas C-47 Skytrain transports and Waco CG-4A gliders lined up for "Operation Varsity" on 24 March 1945
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General Aircraft Hamilcars and Airspeed Horsas, flanked by Handley Page Halifax A Mark VII glider tugs of Nos. 298 and 644 Squadrons RAF, lined up and ready for take-off at Woodbridge, Suffolk. The Woodbridge Emergency Landing Ground was closed on 19 March 1945 for five days as 68 aircraft/glider combinations flew in, 60 of which took part in the operation.
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Still from film shot by the RAF Film Production Unit: Short Stirlings tow Airspeed Horsas carrying the 6th Airborne Division toward the Rhine landing zones. The Horsa on the left is carrying the Airborne Division's commander, Major-General E L Bols. The film was shot from the cockpit of one of the Horsas during the lift.
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Douglas Dakotas of No. 46 Group fly in formation over Wavre, Belgium, heading for the dropping zones east of the River Rhine. Above them, Dakotas towing Airspeed Horsas fly a divergent course towards their objectives.
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C-47 transport planes release hundreds of paratroops (24th March 1945)
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Glider troops after landing near Wesel (24th March 1945)
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American paratrooper caught in a tree (24th March 1945)
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An Achilles tank destroyer on the east bank of the Rhine moves up to link with airborne forces whose abandoned gliders can be seen in the background