speaking of gliders, i was at a WWII museum in the Netherlands a while ago, they had some gliders on display
some time after D day, the allied forces launched an invasion where they would "tow" these gliders from England to the Netherlands, then cut the ropes when they came close to the landing site and let them just sail on down
now, that takes some testicular fortitude right there
A very close friend of our family was a pilot for those gliders. Understandably he didn't talk much about it. He did drink a fair bit so that tells it all.