Daks over Normandy - DC-3, Dakotas and C-47s

Dozens of DC-3, Dakotas and C-47s gathered from around the world to take part in Daks over Normandy, marking the 75th anniversary of D-Day. After three days at Duxford, they crossed the English Channel en masse to repeat their commemorations in Normandy.

The weather was unkind but took nothing away from this unique experience. I took most of these photos at Duxford and also watched the flypast at Beachy Head the following day.

Daks over Normandy – my photos

Duxford western side static park — Western side static park

Duxford eastern side static — Eastern side static

C-53D N45366 "D-Day Doll" — C-53D N45366 “D-Day Doll”

C-47 "That's All Brother" — C-47 “That’s All Brother”

DC-3 OY-BPB "Gamle Dame" from Denmark — DC-3 OY-BPB “Gamle Dame” from Denmark

Daks over Normandy - DC-3 N24320 "Miss Montana" — DC-3 N24320 “Miss Montana”

DC-3 OY-BPB "Gamle Dame" — DC-3 OY-BPB “Gamle Dame”

C-53D LD-WND after an emergency landing on one engine

Radio frequencies

The following frequencies were in use:

Display	132.9
Display secondary (air to air)	121.4
Duxford Information	122.075

Orientation

Runway 06 was in use at Duxford, with the crowd facing south-east. The sun crossed behind the crowd line on the right at 15:30.

The Daks over Normandy flypast on 5th June 2019 approached Beachy Head from the north, having routed via Colchester, Southend and Maidstone.

The aircraft were delayed two and a half hours at Duxford due to the weather conditions in France. They coasted out over Beachy Head at about 17:30 towards their parachute drop and a landing at Caen.