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"LIFE" MAGAZINE  - SEPTEMBER 7, 1942 

"WAR GLIDER" ARTICLE

Click on Thumbnails for a larger picture - Please note:  To preserve the quality of the photos, these files are large and may require additional time to download.

"Life" Cover

The pilot of the XCG-3 pictured on the cover of "Life" is Sgt. Robert Bange of Glen Rock, New Jersey.  He was stationed at Clinton County Army Air Field when the photo was made for the cover. The glider riders were other enlisted men at the air field.  (Charles L. Day, Author of Silent Ones.)

Glider Infantry loading into an earlier model Waco

Article

Sequential photos of a glider retrieval or "snatch" in Glider Pilot vernacular.  This retrieval shows a single engine light plane retrieving a training glider.  Wacos were retrieved by heavy aircraft such as C-46's and C-47's.

"Snatch" complete with glider trainer airborne.

Waco in flight

Information on the photo above from Charles Day, author of Silent Ones - This book may be found at the following link on this site:  Silent Ones

"RE: the photo on your site of the CG-4A in flight from the  9/7/42 Life magazine. Light wings on dark fuselage.

This was the first XCG-4 painted in the AAC colors of the time: Dark blue fuselage, yellow wings and tail with the vertical black stripe between the yellow tail and the horizontal red and white stripes on the rudder. Same basic scheme as the TG-2, 3 and 4.

The photo was taken over Wright Field.

The single roadway at the bottom is Springfield St. The railroad track which is to the left of and along Springfield St. has been "touched-up" out of the image until the curve where the road goes under the railroad overpass. Beginning at the curve, the rails move to the right of the roadway. This configuration still exists. Below and above the tail would be Patterson Field. Below the tail wheel is the Huffman Prairie area where the Wright Brothers flew.

All of the area below the glider wings/wheels to the right of the single road is Wright Field  which has been touched up to look like a wooded area.

This was probably the greatest deception photo I have seen created by the AAF concerning the CG-4A. The other is the XCG-4 photo in my book where the joint between the nose and fuselage were scratched over to hide the joint, making it look as though the nose and fuselage were one unit."

Artist's rendering of preparations for take-off.  The gliders in these drawings are the artist's versions and do not appear to resemble, in detail, any Allied gliders, possibly because detailed drawings might be of value to the enemy.

Taxiing at full throttle with gliders in tow.  Interestingly, the gliders became airborne before the tow ships.  Depending on glider loaded weight and availability of tow aircraft, as many as three gliders were towed at a time by a single powered aircraft.  This required considerable airmanship by the Glider Pilots and the tow aircraft pilots to avoid collision.  This hazardous multiple towing practice became substantially more dangerous as the aircraft entered enemy-controlled airspace and were attacked by enemy fighters and fired upon by anti-aircraft batteries on the ground.  They were easy targets since their maximum speeds were usually no more than 120 MPH.

Gliders in formation enroute to their objectives.

Panorama of gliders releasing above their objective.  Large file so download may take longer.

Captions to accompany the panorama.

A little nostalgia - Advertisements from this issue of "Life."

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