My dad spent nearly 4 years in England during the war. He flew C-47s. Shot down twice...first time was on D-Day..after he had dropped his paratroops..Bailed out, spent 3 days in the woods, until our troops caught up to him. He always said he would have been really pissed to have gotten killed by his own side..Second time was during Market Garden..he was able to crash land the plane in British held territory..
My Father in Law passed away yesterday. He was a WWII radio man and gunner on B17 - crew called it “Pride of the Yankees”... shot down over Switzerland and interned. He and buddies escaped across the Alps and ended up with the French underground. He was a true hero... he saved a fellow crew members life who had been severely injured by flak. An amazing man. He gave us a recording of an interview that the daughter of the Pilot of his plane made with him in May of 2001... four tapes. My husband and I listened to this today and it brought back the enormity of what this man who was just barely in his twenties did to protect this country. He was shot down April 13, 1944 and he passed away on April 13, 2013. I guess this was one battle he couldn’t best.