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- for Cornelius Ryan 2 -
Your name Robinson, Robert M.

Did you by any chance keep a diary of what happened to you that day? No

Were any of your friends killed or wounded either during the landing or
during the day? Yes several

Do you remember any conversations you had with them before they became
casualties? No

Were you wounded? Yes, 3 July 1944; shot by a German officer with a pistol from
about four feet. I disarmed the officer and took the pistol.

Do you remember what it was like--that is, do you remember whether you
felt any pain or were you so surprised that you felt nothing?
The shot knocked me to my knees but it felt like a heavy blow and
it wasn't until several minutes later that I realized that there was a
hole in the front and back of the shoulder of my raincoat. It was then
that I realized that I had been shot clean through the shoulder.

Do you remember seeing or hearing anything that seems funny now, even
though it did not, of course, seem amusing at the time?
I landed by parachute alone in a small field bounded by hedgerows. My
M-1 rifle was stowed in the "griswald case” in two parts so I was quite unarmed
except for my trench knife strapped to my jump boot. The first thing I saw
were several creatures charging at me from the shadows. All I could see were
white faces and this unnerved me quite a bit but when I realized that these
creatures were cattle I was really worried. Being a city dweller I was afraid
of being kicked or bitten so I quickly cut myself free of my parachute and
beat a hasty retreat from the field with my adversaries in hot pursuit.

Do you recall any incident, sad or heroic, or simply memorable, which struck
you more than anything else?
While we were flying over a couple of off-shore
islands approaching the Cherbourg Peninsula one of the "troopers" looked out
the window and said, "Gee, look at the sparks coming from the engine". One
of the other men that had been with us on our two previous jumps looked out
and said, "Sparks hell, them's tracers; we are being shot at".