U.S. Army Air Forces C-47aircraft , number 42-93098, of the 9th Troop Carrier Command Pathfinder Group, and its crew. This is the first aircraft and crew to drop American paratroopers (pathfinders) over France during the Allied invasion, in World War 2. The aircraft taxis on a British airfield. Crew of the aircraft are seen in front of it, including pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Joel Crouch, Copilot, Captain Vito Pedone, Navigator, Captain William Culp, Radio Operator, Harold Coonrod, along with two crew chiefs. Crew members shake hands and board the aircraft. Colonel Crouch waves from the cockpit of the C-47 (but has not started engines). Major J.L. Sweetman boards another aircraft. Colonel Crouche's C-47 taxis to where the Pathfinders will load up. View of Control Tower at RAF North Witham, with ambulance parked outside it. Three hours before takeoff.Colonel Crouch, is seen on a path near the airfield, with a Pathfinder Captain and Lieutenant, who will be aboard his aircraft and be the first to jump into France. They kid around. The Pathfinder officers note that Colonel Crouch wears paratroop wings. Later, two Pathfinders, of the 101st Airborne Division , with camouflaged faces and American flag insignia on their right shoulders, step from woods and pose momentarily. Pathfinder Paratroopers line up to board C-47 aircraft as Lt. Col. Crouch rides a scooter at the airfield. Aircrews and Pathfinders pose for photographs before taking off. The lead aircraft, number 42-93098, with Lieutenant Colonel Crouch at the controls, takes off from RAF Station North Witham at 9:54 PM, on June 5, 1944. to begin the invasion of France. (Note: This C-47 was shot down on September 18, 1944, during Operation Market Garden, and crash landed on Haamstede Airbase, Netherlands. Although shot at by German troops on the ground, pilot, Maj Joseph A. Beck, and Navigator Lt. Vincent J. Paterno, survived as prisoners of war. Copilot Capt Fred O. Lorimer and another crew member were fatally shot.)
Scenes of Rome and American Army officers on leave there during World War 2. Views including St Angelo Bridge and castle (Castel Sant'Angelo) at the Tiber River. People riding bicycles over the bridge. Statue of an angel, by sculptor Pieter Verschaffelt. St Peters Basilica and Square. Sign proclaiming neutral territory of the Vatican (in Italian and English). The sign reads ' Neutral state of Vatican. Admission of military vehicles not allowed.' A sign reads '322 service group'. U.S. Army officers, in uniform, pose as they smoke cigarettes, wearing overseas caps and smiling. An officer pretends to count money, posing in front of a sign in the background reading ' Finance office 322nd service group.' Unidentified U.S. Army officers smoking cigarettes and posing for photographs in front of flowering shrubs in Rome.
U.S. Army personnel placing clothing and equipment out in the sun to dry, following a drenching storm at their tent camp in Maragliana, Italy, during World War 2. Troops in a "chow line" receiving a meal at a mess tent in the camp.Soldiers eating inside a tent, and relaxing in the sun. Improvised outdoor shower facility with canvas sides and drums of water on top. Soldiers relaxing in their tents. One soldier dries himself after washing.
Ancient ruins of the Forum, in Rome, Italy, photographed during World War 2. The temple of Saturn and the Temple of Castor and Pollux at the Roman Forum (Via della Salara Vecchia, 5/6, 00186 Roma RM, Italy). The Temple of Vesta, the Basilica of Maxentius and various other structures in the Forum.
Scenes of Rome, during World War 2. View of the Pantheon. An American Army Air Forces officer throws a coin into the Trevi Fountain (Piazza di Trevi, 00187 Roma RM, Italy). Hypogeum of the Colosseum (Piazza del Colosseo, 1, 00184 Roma RM, Italy). American Army Air Forces officer stands in Colosseum and pretends to give a speech. The Pyramid of Caius Cestius (Via Raffaele Persichetti, 00153 Roma RM, Italy) and the Porta San Paolo (P.za Ostiense, 00154 Roma RM, Italy).
Landmarks in Rome Italy as seen during World War 2. Palazzo Venezia at the Piazza Venezia, with flag marking the famous balcony where Mussolini spoke. The Victor Emmanuel Monument or Vittoriano (Altar of the Fatherland, Piazza Venezia, 00186 Roma RM, Italy). The Palazzo Senatorio (Piazza del Campidoglio, 00186 Roma RM, Italy) on Capitoline Hill. The grave of John Keats (the English poet) in the Protestant Cemetery (Via Marmorata, 00153 Roma RM, Italy).
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