D-Day Stirlings and gliders Kids T-Shirt

The picture depicts Operation Mallard on the evening of 6 June 1944 which delivered the British 6th Airborne Division into German-occupied Normandy aboard Airspeed Horsa gliders towed by a variety of heavy aircraft, including these Short Stirlings of Nos 196 and 299 Squadrons. They were escorted by (among others) Mk VA Supermarine Spitfires from No 345 Squadron.

The AS.51 Horsa was the main glider used by the British Army in WWII. It could carry up to 30 paratroops and their equipment. The Short Stirling was the RAF's first four-engined heavy bomber. By 1944 it had been superseded by newer Lancaster and Halifax bombers but these Mk IV versions were equipped specifically for paratroop dropping and, as here, for glider towing, with a yoke under the tail and the mid-upper and front gun turrets removed.

Photographer and digital artist based in the UK. Landscapes, cityscapes and seascapes - and photographically crafted aviation scenes under the Flight Artworks banner: catch up on Facebook or on Instagram. Please contact me or visit my website, flightartworks.com if you would like to license my photos, although a growing range is available via Alamy. Discussions about how my pictures are made are in my blog, Aerial Combat. On Instagram also at @gary.eason. On Twitter @flightartworks and @garyeason. CHANGES: As part of a constant quality improvement process please note that I review and sometimes replace or remove earlier works. COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Please respect the considerable time, effort and investment in equipment that goes...