My adoptive Dad and his twin were both involved in this action - both survived, though dad got a bit of grenade shrapnel that split his lip and his knee open. They told me their stories over the years, and I was replaying them in my head watching this. I am 63 now, and those brave brothers are both long gone.

My father was with No 3 Commando on this day and crossed the bridge with the unit. He went on to Amfreville, Bas de Breville etc and was the victim of a mortar bomb attack during the breakout in August. He ended up in hospital for a period and then was assigned duties at the POW camp outside Tilly Sur Seulles. He met a young woman who was visiting her grandmother who lived there and the rest is history. Dad died in 1985 and mum in 2004. Thanks for this, a brilliant depiction of events.

My Grandfather was part of the British Airborne division for this, he landed successfully but was shot not long after landing, he survived and passed away two years ago aged 97. He was presented with his Legion De honours medal a few years ago.

Landing those gliders at night was the finest piece of flying in ww2 in my humble opinion

My dad was badly wounded defending the Bridge he was a PARA he was blown up by a mortar and had a chunk out of his elbow which meant for the rest of his life he could not fully extend his arm he also had a large chunk blown out of his calf. He had nearly a full war pension because of his injuries but when trying to get work later he used to have friends attended the medicals for him. Dads picture is on the wall of the cafe he returned once and met the daughter he met as a child at the time.

It bothers me that I no longer know any veterans of either World War, I used to know so many growing up; I miss listening to the unimaginable first hand accounts of their war and survival.

Richard Todd, the actor who lead the assault in "The Longest Day" movie, actually participated in the real assault on that bridge.

Never ceases to amaze me how, not withstanding the professionalism and shear bravery, was so much left to luck. Truly wonderful analysis.

As a Norman, with a family who lived though WWII, this era is rooted deep inside of me. Thank you so much for this clear and lively description of the coup de main. Neil Barber is indeed a font of knowledge on the subject, and a humble man. Keep making such videos.

Those men are beyond brave. Salute to them. Thank you for honoring their memory with this video.

I visired Pegasus Bridge 30 years ago on a school trip and was very lucky to of met Major Howard he answered all our questions and told his story of the fay that was D day.

Thanks for sharing. my father in-law was part of the brave men who took Pegasus Bridge, an amazing man who's medals are proudly displayed in my home.

I was going to skip this one thinking that it is a story i’ve seen a lot and a place i have visited. But yet again you surprised me with your research, battlefield depiction and focus on the individuals as a means to tell the bigger story. Thank you for your hard work.

I with a bunch of bikers visited Pegasus Bridge a few years ago, when you realise how extremely close the gliders landed next to the bridge it really hits it home to you how brave the troops were.

🇺🇸 82nd Abn (Ret) A salute of Honor to my British 🇬🇧 Paratrooper Brothers. We Had HUGE boots to fill. Great documentary.

This mission never ceases to amaze me... The horsa pilots did such an amazing spectacular job and the actual assault troops did their jobs without thought and again achieved such a spectacular result.. It's stuff of legend's ..

Fascinating that in the famous film about D-Day, The Longest Day, actor Richard Todd played Maj. John Howard. Todd took part in the actual battle and was played in the film by a minor actor, Patrick Jordan.

I had the pleasure of knowing lt Dennis Fox later major Fox from #6 glider, he related his experience of this operation to me and in his home he showed me the books he was mentioned in. He was a great character a regular in the local pub and always carried two hip flasks one vodka one whisky which he was happy to share. He now rests in Harkstead church yard, even his dog was called whisky.

OUTSTANDING. 82nd Airborne vet here. Once a paratrooper always a paratrooper no matter what country.

It sad that they are gone, such brave men, who were mostly just boys, like my daddy and uncles. I miss them..

The original 1944 Pegasus bridge was replaced in 1994 by a brand new one resembling the original one . The old bridge had become to weak for modern traffic, but was preserved due to british veterans collecting money for over 6 y and today is to be seen at the nearbye Memorial Pegasus, the Pegasus war museum..

I was at Pegasus Bridge last summer. The assault and capture is an even more incredible story when you stand on the terrain and see what they achieved. Your video brings it alive brilliantly. Thank you and well done.

As a former airborne ingeneer officer I can only express my full respect to those guys who succeed to make this fantastic assault.

Like other comments, my wife and I had the privilege of meeting John Howard at Cafe Gondree, summer of either 1993 or 1995, as we toured Normandy following my father-in-law’s unofficial (& possibly illegal) personal diary and route plan of his Normandy campaign. He landed on D+6 with the 92nd Light Anti-Aircraft Regt. Major Howard was clearly a seasoned raconteur and we thoroughly enjoyed him sharing his stories for a good 20 minutes. He even graciously autographed a couple Pegasus Bridge postcards. We gave one to my father-in-law, which he was very pleased to receive from such a famous veteran.

Stil on my bucket list is a pelgrimage to the Normandy beaches. This video stirred up the smeldering ashes to a bum fire to finaly take action and go and plan for it. I salute you for your fine work with this report on this heroic action on a the finest day of WWII. From a Dutch man who is now free because of these brave man.

Excellent video, my Dad was in the 6 th airborne division and was one of the brave men who flew into France in a glider, He never talked much about the assault and. I do wish I talked to him more about it when he was alive. He came home and met my Mum and as they say the rest is history and. I was born March 1962. Thank you Dad for what you did.

My grandfather was in the Ox and bucks light infantry during ww2 this is the first documentry on Pegasus bridge that I have found that is very detailed. Thank you

Those Paras holding that bridge were just tremendous. Top boys. Amazing stuff.

A fantastic video of one of my favourite stories of World War 2. I highly recommend Stephe E Ambrose's book 'Pegasus Bridge' - not mentioned in this video, but covered in the book, is the fantastic story that even though there was still a firefight going on, the glider party first knew that Lord Lovett and the 1st Special Service Brigade had arrived was when they heard the sound of bagpipes playing and saw Lovett and his piper Bill Millin, in berets, simply marching across the bridge with the rest of the SSB behind them. Different breed entirely.

My parents visited Normandy & Pegasus bridge right around the annual anniversary in June several years ago. My father was an Air Force officer & huge military history buff which was part of the influence that made me join the US Army & become a huge history & military history buff. The Roman Empire & WW2 are my two favorite eras. Anyway during their trip they ran into Major John Howard who led the assault on Pegasus bridge & got his autograph. I also read Colonel Hans Von Luck’s memoir “Panzer Commander” which describes his experiences as a commander under Rommel in the 7th Panzer Division & other commands which led to him earning a Knight’s Cross. Anyway, Von Luck & Howard became close friends after the war & often hung out at the Pegasus Bridge cafe yearly to reminisce & catch up on things until Von Luck passed at the ripe old age of 86 in 1997. Von Luck was fluent in German obviously but also French & English. We often over simplify things like the war by framing it as “Allies good” & “Axis Bad” but life is far more nuanced & gray as we all know. I think it’s amazing when former adversaries become close friends as we learn so much from the differing perspectives. Von Luck was respected as capable & just man. Another great story is the Stigler-Brown incident in which Luftwaffe fighter pilot Franz Stigler escorted Brown’s ravaged B-17 to safety at great personal peril to Stigler. Stories like this are amazing. It’s a shame how quickly we forget history. Now we have so many spewing toxic rhetoric & divisive nonsense as they take so much for granted in modern times. We have people picking fights & claiming victimhood over the pettiest things. 60million perished in WW2 often brutally & painfully yet they way many speak of modern times, it’s the most hateful, genocidal, & violence period in history. 🫤🤔 Anyway, be kind everyone & stay safe. My single best advice that I give it to keep learning & experiencing in order to reduce your hypocrisy & limit your ignorance. We’re all hypocrites & ignorant on some things but it’s a matter of degrees. Sadly, it seems like the most ignorant & toxically hypocritical among us are the ones who are propped up & praised the most. We live in backwards & upside times but that doesn’t mean you have to follow this nonsense. Avoid complacence & stat vigilant. 🙂👍

All the effort to show the aerial visualization is epic! Amazing vid!

My great uncle Arthur Lawrence flew Glider 4. The video says he flew off course but this is untrue. The Halifax towing his glider accidentally released the glider early. The landed about 8 kilometres away from the true target but fought numerous fights with landing paras to get the bridges within 24 hours.

When I was about 14 or so my mother would take me to Tarrant Rushton to watch the glider flying by the Dorset gliding club, and whilst on the perimeter tracks would let me drive to learn control of the car, not knowing at the time of the historic importance of the airfield during WW2. loved watching this video and have so much respect for those brave allied soldiers who fought for our freedom.

My grandad was part af the parachute regiment who took this bridge, my dad used to go to the original one every year ❤

Outstanding production and very entertaining. I had read Pegasus Bridge: June 6, 1944 by Stephen Ambrose so I had a general idea of what happened and where. Your use of Google maps and drone with places marked completed the story. Inspired that you got the recordings of so many principal players to augment your narration. Keep up the good work. Two thumbs up and I subscribed

Superb, and very well researched, account of this small, but important event. I was there some 30+ years ago and was astounded by the fact that three gliders landed safely, in a very small field, at night, and with obstacles on their approach. All due to many hours of meticulous training. Excellent video!

Great video, I met John Howard a few years ago, before he died. He was so happy that I knew who he was. So proud to of had Pegasus Bridge as my battle honour

My dad was in the 12th Para (Yorkshire). He had just turned 18 when he jumped into Normandy in the early hours of 6 June. He passed away in 2018 just before his 92nd birthday❤ He often mentioned Breville and how important that was.

I don't know why the Pegasus Bridge story hasn't been made into a short TV mini series. It's a fantastic story

I am from Uruguay, 84. In the 50s and 60s I had a neighbor of British descent here who had served in WW1. Fine person he was, never talked about war but I learned from others that he was a pilot. Name Teddy Davenport. His British-born father, name Arthur D., was co-founder of the famous Uruguayan football club Peñarol. I also knew another Anglo-Uruguayan who had trained in Canada to become a RAF Spitfire pilot in WW2, name Mr John Hyland. Both men made it back to Uruguay.

Marvellous. Thank you. And of course, to those exceptional men who protected us from Nazi tyranny.

One of my favourite stories is about the filming of this episode in The Longest Day. Major John Howard was played by Richard Todd, who, as a junior officer had been part of the 7th Parachute Regiment force that relieved the the Ox and Bucks at Pegasus Bridge. He was offered the part of playing himself, but opted for the part of John Howard, who was a consultant on the film.

The first seaborne landing troops to reach the paras at the bridge was the 17 Field Company RE from Sword beach. There are numerous sources that record this including Richard Todd's autobiography. Lovats commandos arrived about an hour later. Great video great story well told.

A really more than excellent reconstruction of the event! Showing the viewer both a good overview and the necessary details so anyone has a realistic picture of what happened and of the heroes involved. Excellent job! And for the British heroes, I salute you and know i am eternally indebted. Something I won’t be able to repay.

This is the Best condensed documentary of Pegasus Bridge I ever seen. Great narrator voice, ariel views, and voices of veterans was excellent.

My mate went in on a glider and fought with the commandos . What a brave man he was ,he took out a pillbox on his own and I am so proud of him and his memory

The ages of these brave guys are staggering. Great docu, thanks for a great watch.

Amazingly well produced. A great tribute to the incredibly brave people involved.

Best documentary I have ever seen on this particular operation. Well done. You have honored these heroes with your superb work.

I've walked across the original pegasus bridge..... riddled with bullet holes.... visited point du hoc, omaha gold sword and juno it is a memory that will live with me forever

I’ve been there, met the daughter in question Speaking as an ex military pilot, the flying on that day was incredible, they put semi airworthy, overloaded, unpowered, crates within meters of the bridge in pitch black night No margin at all for anything Bloody incredible and hats of to them all. Hell of a job

I know this channel isn't really new anymore, but its new to me. The content is outstanding. Thanks for all ghe work you're putting into it - really fantastic

That was great, learned alot. My dad was there on D-day. Wish I could remember all his stories 😢 Thank you 😊

I am feeling shame to watch this documentary for free... Nicely made

As a towed glider pilot I am totally impressed that these guys could set their gliders down where they did. I kept saying to myself..."no frigging way" as I watched the simulation on the video!!! It's true you only get one shot at the landing. But that's exactly what thrilled me about this type of flying. More incredibly, these were nighttime landings with people shooting at them!!! True heroes!

An excellent video and account of this Operation, thank you. And thank you to the brave men that undertook this incredible feat of bravery, skill, and determination. Never to be forgotten.

An excellent production illustrating the absurdity of the plan that somehow was pulled off. I have visited the bridge and museum on three occasions and each time I am in awe of what was achieved - most definitely a must for any D-Day enthusiast!

I took part in a charity walk in 2004 for the British Legion and The NVA and on the 6th of June had the honour to meet Wally Parr and his son Barry in the middle of Pegasus Bridge,a moment I treasure, thanks for this excellent and detailed account of the action.

I have read a couple of books on the taking of the bridges and found your video giving me a better view of the terrain and the actions of the soldiers on the ground. Thank you.

Great little video. I was lucky enough to work with Billy Grey, a Bren gunner and the first man out of glider 1 on the night. He was best friends with Wally and they got up to some crazy stuff that Billy told me about. Such brave men and each year I still raise a glass of something at 00:12 on June 6th.

I feel privileged to have known someone who was at Pegasus Bridge. 🙏

Excellent video, thank you. Having been to the bridge and stood where the first glider landed you appreciate what a stunning piece of flying it was by the pilots . Very brave men all of them.

Great video. Would love to see you do a documentary on the 1st Canadian parachute battalion. My dad was in the 1st and jumped on d day.

Had the great pleasure of meeting with Mj Howard and Gen von Luck at Pegasus bridge 1995 as part of my education at the Swedish military naval academy. To hear the stories first hand from those two former enemies was very interesting. Forgot to ask them to sign my copy of the book however and that I regret to this day.

Thank you for this video, particularly the integration of the veterans' interviews and the helpful bird's eye views. I drove across "Pegasus Bridge" recently while on holiday and this has been most informative.

What an exceptionally well made video. The script, graphics, editing and narration are of the very best quality; more than equal to anything produced by the major TV channels.

Brilliant video - thanks for posting. So much bravery on that day, it really does bring tears to the eyes.

A great rendition of the start of something very special in History. It was a great adventure not to forget those very brave souls who didn't make it through. Brave brave men, I only hope that Britain has the same courage as these men had.

This was an outstanding video. The attention to detail is wonderful, with a great voice to narrate. These men were incredible, true hero's and I hope through the ages they are remembered for their courage and bravery.

A very good pal of mine was on the bridge . What a man and a soldier to die for

Excellent storytelling. Having been there in person, you explained the situation incredibly. Great work.

Daaamn, I have seen maybe all the ww2 documentaries that there are out there! But this made me actually understand exactly what and how happened. Please keep on!

Wow .. I’m blown away at the detail and actual pictures. Thank you

Many veterans of this op and the other British drops used to come to Airborne Forces Day in Aldershot in the 70s . Many times we've sat with them on the grass opposite depot para talking to them . They'd park up their mobile vans ,get out the chairs and a couple of ice boxes full of beer . All set now for us in battalion to stagger from the beer tents over to them ,we'd get all the tales and stories, it was fantastic to meet them .Sadly all gone now I fear .

My Great Uncle Ralph was in a mortar section of the Ox & Bucks, he landed in a Horsa at Pegasus Bridge.

I had the greatest honour of meeting Major John Howard outside cafe Gondree during the Normandy 50th anniversary in 1994. Respect.

Exceptional work, I thought I knew this engagement inside and out, yet your attention to detail and veteran commentary provided an insight rarely seen in military documentary's. Well done and thankyou

Love how this is put together. Also love hearing those old guys tell their accounts.

Brilliant presentation! A fitting tribute to a breed of extraordinary men. Thanks for posting and be safe 🙏

I'm a 2nd Oxf. & Bucks. Reenactor. I wanted to get an Oxf. & Bucks. uniform because my step-great grandfather was at Pegasus Bridge, and fought with the Oxf. & Bucks. throughout the war. He died before I got to meet him, unfortunately, and my grandparents only found out that he was there when my step-great grandma told them that his old captain had died. He apparently didn't talk about the war much, so we don't have very much information specifically about him aside from what the M.O.D can provide, and they were notoriously bad at keeping records during the war. When my step-grandad asked him if he ever killed anyone, he said "You had to shoot at people so you weren't killed yourself".

This is probably the best account of the action I have ever seen, no wait it is the best. Cheers mate, very well done.

Absolutely loved your video!

You have the best battle break downs on yt! keep up the good work, dude!

Great video! Really love the way you use Google Maps (or whatever) with additional graphics (arrows etc) to describe the action. The aerial pics with the super imposed photos from the period are put together seamlessly & give you a good insight into how the battles evolved. Thanks for sharing!

So impressed with that initial single mortor round on the machine gun...amazing. My grandfather who served in the British Army in WW1 and then an RSM in the Canadian in WW2 said that those Piat guns had a brutal kick and often didn't do much to a tank.

Fascinating and detailed. Thank you 👍🏼

My family & I visited this site in 2019 on our way back to Calais after a camping trip to the Loire valley. We had drinks in Cafe Gondree. Whilst there a large ship sailed along the canal, so we got to Pegasus Bridge lift up - it was pretty impressive. 😎

Awesome job ! Thankyou gentleman for all you did for us 🍻

A brilliant video of a fantastic achievement.

Great commentary. Thank you.

Excellent presentation, combining period photography and film, modern footage , digital mapping and compelling personal accounts. Subscribed 👍👍

Absolutely love this! So fantastic and detailed!! The bravest men ever possibly!! Such incredible work. Heartwarming through and through.

Incredible story. Such brave men!!

Excellent analysis, well enjoyed. Thank you.

Thankyou. Most informative. Appreciated.

Brilliant. These soldiers sacrificed much to win these battles and eventually the war. God bless these fighting men.

What a fantastic video, thank you my friend

Great commentary. Many thank you.

Well done video again! I really hope you're finding these worthwhile to make, because they are most certainly entertaining and very well presented. Keep up the great work!

My Father In law was on HMS Orion the First ship to open Fire on DDAY morning to soften up the Beaches. I have never been able to find where the ship was sitting at this time . He had served in most European Oceans 1939-45 . He passed away in 2000 at the age of 79