Thread: Horsa glider

A Horsa glider being loaded with a six pounder anti-tank gun shortly before the invasion of Normandy.

The Horsa glider became available after protracted trials during 1942. The aircraft was a monoplane with a tricycle undercarriage and a central skid. It was 20.4 m long with a 26.8 m wing span. The Horsa could carry a load of 3.I5 tonnes and was made with a plywood skin over a wooden framework. The fuselage was circular in section, with wooden seats down each side, with each place having a safety harness. The glider carried two pilots and 29 passengers. There were two entrances, one on the left near the nose and the other on the right at the rear. The nose was hinged for loading and unloading and the entire tail was detachable to enable the rapid unloading of jeeps, anti-tank guns and other heavy materials. 12 Horsa’s were fitted with a pair of arrester parachutes for the coup de main attacks on the bridges and the Merville battery to help them to stop quickly.