Silent Wings: The American Glider Pilots of World War II

(humming of planes - somber music - explosions)

Hal Holbrook: World War II was the most violent

and destructive armed conflict in the history of mankind.

It is believed that approximately 62 million people,

or 2.5% of the world's population perished in the war.

Its aftermath ushered in a new era of doomsday weapons,

and shifted the balance of global power

for generations to come.

The Second World War is considered the most

chronicle event in the annals of human history.

Thousands of books, films, and memorials have

been dedicated to the conflict, yet one unwritten

and unheralded chapter remains.

The story of Americas World War II glider pilots,

spearheading nearly every allied assaulter in the war.

They were a fearless band of 6,000 volunteer aviators

whose exploits and accomplishments endure as

a testament to their distinguished service.

These brave American pilots flew infantry and

vital supplies on silent, one-way transport missions

deep into enemy held territory with each hostile

fire choked landing potentially being their last.

What survives is a remarkable story vivid

in the memory of American glider veterans and

unforgettable to men who flew alongside them.

Walter Cronkite: At least when assigned to it I thought

well it will be a nice quiet way to die,

at least there's no big engine running right

outside the window and it will be quiet and

a nice peaceful way to go. Actually it

turned out to be anything but that.

Andy Rooney: The glider, I don't know whether everybody

understands it was a totally expandable piece of equipment.

It was never salvaged. I mean they came in and just,

it was an accident, a planned accident, and

you hoped to survive the accident.

Leo Cordier: We knew that we had a tough

road to hoe with the flying gliders and

initial invasion missions, D-Day missions

I was very fortunate to survive five of them.

If you survive one you were pretty lucky.

Hal Holbrook: At the start of World War II

Belgian Fort Eben-Emael defending the

Belgian-German border was widely regarded

as the strongest fort in the world,

impregnable to ground attack and manned by

nearly 1,000 Belgian artillery men.

By May, 1940, however it resided in the

crosshairs of one of the most deadly and

daring attacks in military history.

Rudy Opitz: It was actually a decision from

Hitler himself that the gliders were used

because everybody else thought that it's not possible.

Hal Holbrook: Operation Granite painstakingly

planned by Adolph Hitler was about to exploit

the forts single weakness, it's roof.

With a flat metal-like surface, the forts roof

created the perfect natural glider landing strip.

Just before dawn 40 German DFS 230 assault gliders

lifted off from airfields near Cologne.

Part of Germany's top secret glider program 11 of these

motorless aircraft were bound for Fort Eben-Emael.

Rudy Opitz: My people they told they were

you bring me there, you bring us here, you know,

and you don't have to do anything, you know,

we'll take care of, once we're on the ground

we'll take care of it, but you bring us here.

Hal Holbrook: The special forces paratroopers

on board were heavily armed with flamethrowers

and a top secret 110 pound hollow charge bomb.

The unsuspecting Belgians would soon experience

more destructive force than had ever been witnessed in warfare.

Releasing from their tow-ropes at 7,000 feet

still within Germany the first glider

strike force in history slowly descended towards its target.

Touching down silently on the forts grassy roof the

paratroopers quickly overpowered and neutralized the Belgian defenders.

Hal Holbrook: Before the smoke cleared from

the massive invasive explosions Eben-Emael was in Nazi hands.

Rudy Opitz: We did it with confidence and,

of course, because we did it with confidence it was a success.

Hal Holbrook: Hitler's gold gamble of using

gliders to spearhead and attack had paid off decisively,

and ushered in a new era in aviation warfare.

From the rubble of Fortress Eben-Emael German

forces would reach the French coast in just 10 days.

Rudy Opitz: The fort which was considered

impregnable that couldn't be taken it was gone in 20 minutes.

Adolph Hitler: "Heil Hitler!"

Hal Holbrook: The Nazis secret glider program

had evolved as an unintended result of

The Treaty of Versailles.

The agreement had restricted Germany's production

and use of powered aircraft.

Rudy Opitz: You wanted to fly, but you couldn't.

If you prevent people to do something, you know,

and you say they can't do it, you know,

they will find a way to do it, okay, and that

was the way in Germany we started to approach flying.

For us in 1927 when Lindbergh flew to Europe

and landed in France he was probably for us

a bigger hero than he was in the United States.

We flew gliders and that was permitted and

we did what we could do with gliders.

Hal Holbrook: In 1922 Hermann G█ring, a

World War I veteran who would later become

chief of the Luftwaffe called glider instruction

for the youth the first of three steps in

the redevelopment of German air power.

This 18 year head start in combat glider

development presented allied and American

military planners with a daunting challenge.

In less than a years' time design and construct

new motorless aircraft to match Germany's

highly effective new weapon and recruit and train

pilots to fly the motorless craft into battle.

In 1940 America was consumed by defensive

powered aircraft manufacture and was ill-prepared

to shift resources to glider development and training.

It would take until February 1941 when

Major General Henry "Hap" Arnold acquired a

keen interest in the successes of the German glider

core that the American Glider Program finally took off.

Known as the father of the United States Airforce

and a strong advocate or airborne envelopment

through technology innovation General Arnold

would make an American Glider Program a

central component of his strategy of technological advancement.

On February 25, 1941, he announced "In view

of certain information received from abroad

a study should be initiated on developing a

glider that could be towed by an aircraft."

Jerry Devlin: Hap Arnold was a visionary.

He foresaw the need that World War II was

coming and he tried to do his very best and

he did do his very best to see that the

United States was well prepared in the way

of having aircraft production boosted up and

he was also a big fan of the gliders, the

World War II gliders that the Americans

became so famous for. Quite an amazing guy.

Hal Holbrook: Arnold, in a classified

memo in March 1941 directed engineers at the

Army Air Corps Experimental Aircraft Test Center

at Wright Field to create designs and

solicit prototypes from manufacturers.

His memo, however, contained a clause that

glider production orders could only be

solicited from civilian manufacturers not

already producing powered aircraft.

Of the four companies that responded with

a glider prototype it was only the design

by Waco Aircraft of Troy, Ohio, which passed final testing.

Jerry Devlin: Waco was a pioneer in the manufacture

of small lightweight powered aircraft and about

that same time when the US Air Force mainly

at General Arnold's urging was pushing out

feelers to various civilian manufacturers

of aircraft said look how would you like to

get in the glider business? We're looking for

an eight seater glider and we're also looking

for a 15-place glider meaning two pilots,

12 troops, and how would you guys

like to get into the glider business?

The Air Force sent letters out to 16 different manufacturers.

When the prototypes were built it turned out

that Waco produced the very best that the

Air Force was looking for at that time and

so they wound up getting the contract to

build the very first eight seat gliders and

they also won the contract to produce the

larger CG-4A which held 15 people, two pilots, and 12 troops.

They produced the best contract, the best designs,

and when tested by Wright Field in Ohio

it was found that they were the very best, the very best ones.

Hal Holbrook: In all, 16 firms won bids to

build Waco's CG-4A design. Among them was

Cessna and automobile giant Ford motor company.

Ford's assembly line efficiency had reduced

the cost of each glider to about $15,400 each

while nearly all the remaining 15 approved

CG-4A manufacturers charged the government

a minimum of $25,000 a piece.

Outwardly silent in flight riding in the glider crew

compartment it was an entirely different story.

Walter Cronkite: The American Waco glider

was a glider with a canvas cover. Well, it

was like being inside of a drum.

And it made such a terrible, terrible racket

it was kind of like being inside the drum

at a Grateful Dead concert.

The roar, the noise was absolutely deafening.

You couldn't talk over it. It was just terrible

and that was the first major disappointment.

Then when the tow-rope was dropped the second

major disappointment the nose dropped and

we almost went straight down and I was saying

to myself well I knew these things wouldn't

fly by themselves they had to be towed and it

turned out that this was the technique for