793

AIR NAVIGATOR'S MAP FOR MARKET GARDEN PARACHUTISTS

Currency:USD Category:Firearms & Military Start Price:340.00 USD Estimated At:700.00 - 900.00 USD
AIR NAVIGATOR'S MAP FOR MARKET GARDEN PARACHUTISTS
AIR NAVIGATOR'S MAP FOR MARKET GARDEN PARACHUTISTS
Rare annotated map used during OPERATION MARKET GARDEN, Montgomery's abortive attempt to quickly seize a crossing of the Rhine near Arnhem. The "R.A.F. (WAR)" navigator's map measures 38" x 24 1/2" and has been heavily marked-up in flight. The northern and southern routes from England to Holland are laid down in various colors of pencil, code-named waypoints are plotted, and the areas around Nijmegen and Arnhem have been colored in red ink. The owner of the map also pasted a smaller schematic map of the Nijmegen-Arnhem region to the back of the map. Notes on both sides further indicate that the navigator's aircraft transported the 181st (Airlanding) Field Ambulance on the first day of the attack. The 181st arrived on the ground even thirty minutes before the paratroopers, and was crucial in saving lives during the desperate conflict. Of the men of the 181st who had landed in the Netherlands, only ten were evacuated south of the Rhine, the balance killed in action or captured. Carried with men of the the 181st were members of the 1st Border Regiment. That battalion went into Arnhem with 788 officers and men. Some 121 died, 235 were evacuated across the Rhine and 432 went missing. Both the 181st and 1st Border were emplaced at Oosterbeek. Provenance: Private Collection of the Former Assistant Secretary of the Battle of Britain Association; The War Museum.