Cornelius Ryan WWII papers, box 020, folder 02: Denys S. C. Brierly

BRIERLY, Denys. S. C. British 38 Squadron RAF Box 20,#2

THE ASSAULT LANDINGS IN NORMANDY D DAY: MIDNIGHT JUNE 5 — MIDNIGHT JUNE 6 Telephone see page Ack 18/6/58 171 Reb Benet Brit Exc What is your full name? Denys Sidney Clifford Brierly What is your present address? 18 Dingle Rd. Gledholt Huddersfield Telephone number: Huddersfield 385

What was your unit, division, corps? s/o Squadron RAF

Where did you land and at what time? 1) Pilot 1/c Albemarle Aircraft dropping paratroops north of River Osne nigh 5/6th 2) also Airborne glider operation as tng pilot day of 6th June

What was your rank and age on June 6, 1944? Flight Lieutenant Aged 27

Were you married at that time? No What is your wife's name? Joyce Did you nave any children at that time? not applicable!!

When did you know that you were going to be part of the invasion? As a specialized squadron in 38 group RAF we had been trained and were always aware that we would take part in this operation and any other that required airborne troops

What was the trip like during the crossing of the Channel? Do you remember , for example, any conversations you had or how you passed the time? Weather fine until French coast was neared when low cloud obscured the men making visual observation very difficult RT discipline was very strict and there was no casual conversation beyond that strictly necessary for the efficient operation of the aircraft

Were there any rumours aboard ship? (Some people remember hearing that the Germans had poured gasoline on the water and planned to set it afire when the troops came in .) No Did you by any chance keep a diary of what happened to you that day? No

2.

Were any of your friends killed or wounded either during the landing or during the day? yes but the aircraft of s/o squadron returned intact from both the night operation and the airlift the following day

Do you remember any conversations you had with them before they became casualties? No Were you wounded? No How were you wounded? l.

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? [????] Do you remember seeing or hearing anything that seems funny now, even though it may not have seemed amusing at the time? Or anything unexpected or out- of-place?. yes by bomb-air who was navigating by map reading failed to pick up the pin-point on the French coast We therefore turned a to our new cause from an estimated position and timed our run in We failed to spot the DZ so repeated the manouvre four times still unable to locate our exast position The flak became very heavy and by the time Babn Comand were bombing the coastal forts making our stay rather unhealthy at 500 ft During a period when the

Do you recall any incident, sad or heroic, or simply memorable, that struck you more than anything else? aircraft was being manouvred to avoud light flak No 1 on the -- paratroop stick Major W.A.C. Collingwood who was waiting for the signal to jump pitched through the hole in the base of the aircraft jamming the exit positionfrom which he could not be extricated I thereupon decided to return to base climbed to 7000 feet passed ------------------------------------ fro mthe incoming Navy Major Collingwood was

3. In times of great crisis, people generally show either great ingenuity or self-reliance 5 others do incredibly strange or stupid things. Do you remember any examples of either ? It is difficult to answer this questin On D night we were one independent unit of 5 airmen and 10 paratroops Apart from the heavy bombing of the coastal forts and the occasional sighitng of other paratroop aircraft it was impossible to have any idea as to how the remainder of the attack was faring The daylight too was uneventful and successful the weather was fine and from the air at least it was difficult to appreciate that fighting was actually taking place

'i Do you know of anybody else who landed within the 24 hours ( midnight 5 June to midnight 6 June ) either as infantry, glider or airborne troops, whom we should write to? Yes I will give their names but would prefer to approach them personally myself in the first place

What do you do now? Textile Manufacturer , Muddesfield Yorkshire

Please let us have this questionnaire as soon as possible, so that we can include your experiences in the book. We hope that you will continue your story on separate sheets if we have not left sufficient room. Full acknowledgement will be given in a chapter called "Where They Are Now." Cornelius Ryan J oan 0. Isaacs The Reader' s Digest

Personal publicity not required by would be prepared to give any help with this qualification

Dingle House, 18, Dingle Road, Gledholt, Huddersfield.

Tel 385.

3/6/58. 4JUN1958 Q.S. 5/6/58

Dear Sir,

I have seen your request for information in respect to the landing in France on the night of the 5th/6th June 1944 by the 6th Airborne Division.

As a pilot who took part both in the paratroop landing, and the airborne landing on the following day I shall be pleased to give you any information at my disposal should you require it.

Yours faithfully,

D.S.C. Brierly. Late Flight Lieutenant 570 Sqdn. RAF.