Thanks to Morris McDowell for a detailed account of Ed Athey's, Fred Harmon's and those H Co. trooper's delayed trip to S. France.  Ed's plane was not far ahead of mine.  Our pilot swerved to the right and then back to the left in the takeoff to avoid Ed's plane on fire we could see out the windows.  In those days they did not shut down the airport for three days when something like this happened and fortunately all the other planes just kept going full throttle. 

It is not likely that the Japanese American officer Ed conned into giving him a glider ride was from the 82nd Airborne Division.  It is more likely that he was from the 442nd Japanese-American outfit that had earned the respect of all from the incredible combat record they established in Italy.  From my own knowledge, they supported our attacks near the la Mott-le Muy-les Arcs drop zone area with 4.2 mortars (large chemical mortars with rifled tubes and base plates that weighed a ton).  I came across a German mortar position on which the 442 had made a direct hit.  There was not much left and what was left was hanging from the branches of an orchard. 

We were glad to see Ed when he came in with those H Co. troopers.  We all had some war stories to tell each other. 

Again thanks, Morris.  Howard Hensleigh