Samuel M. Gibbons

His Unit's Mission: To parachute into enemy-held territory inland of the invasion beaches, secure the routes of advance for the main invasion forces, and hamper the arrival of German reinforcements.

"We were flying with lights off, wingtip to wingtip, and we were at about 800 feet of altitude," Gibbons recalls. "The parachute opened fine, and I could see over to my left that there was a lot of fire coming up from the ground and I could tell I was in trouble."

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