Today in L-5 History – APRIL 9, 1944

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April 9, 1944: The 14th and 47th Liaison Squadron’s arrived in England with their L-5’s this day in 1944. It was Easter Sunday. The 14th came ashore at Bristol and set up operations at Cheltenham. The 47th came through Liverpool and was based at Alderly Edge. Eventually, the 14th would be assigned to Third Army (Patton) and the 47th would serve the Twelfth Army Group (Bradley).

Also on this date, the 19th Liaison Squadron arrived in Bombay, India after 30 days at sea, save for 12 hours in Freemantle, Australia. They then endured a hot, 5-day, 1,300 mile train ride across India to Kanchrapara, north of Calcutta.  A thirty-day training period ensued at Ondal, 100 miles northwest of Calcutta as their planes were assembled, followed by deployment to Chabua in the far northeastern corner of India in Assam Province. Half the squadron, including their aircraft,  were airlifted to Kunming, China in May aboard Curtiss C-46 Commando transports and assigned to support the Chinese Y-Force attacking Burma from the east. The other half of the squadron was assigned to General Stilwell’s Northern Combat Area Command pushing into Burma from the north. .

While all this was ongoing, Operation Thursday, the aerial invasion of Burma by the 5318th Provisional Group (nicknamed the Air Commando Force and later officially renamed 1st Air Commando Group), was continuing its mission behind Japanese lines in Central Burma which had begun in March. Exactly 101 Stinson L-1’s and L-5’s took part in various phases of that operation, including supporting the British Chindits (Gen. Orde Wingates LRP Brigades), the Mars Task Force (Merrill’s Marauders), Detachment 101 (OSS special troops), and the British 14th Army.  The light plane force was later reorganized into the 164th, 165th, and 166th liaison squadrons of the 1st Air Commando group.

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