airborne army, americans british, and canadians make of this armida crossing the rhine in the north near basle1500 planes and gliders, men and heavy equipment in his leapfrog over german positions east of the rhine. this trip is really necessary for victory, as the first planes get away. carefully guided to avoid snarls. it's a gigantic task to get the two planes and gliders away from their bases in england safely. a job without precedent. take off instructions. winston churchill and general eisenhower observe progress from the ground, near the rhine. then, the prime minister takes a vantage point as the plane nears the objective. air force and british cameramen made these pictures as the men ready for the jump. this is it. the plane and enables them to jump from both sides, 18 at a time, speeding up the operation. in a matter of seconds, the sky is filled with parachutes. next, the glider troops. the plane zooms to a landing with the position that comes from -- the invasion goes forward on schedule. the first wayve of troops are out fast as they wait for their buddies to land. some are hit by