This was another museum that we visited on our 2005 trip. In general, the museum hasn't changed a great deal over the last 18 years, although smaller displays have changed or been added to. It was still nice to revisit this part of the story, as on this trip, we had more time to spend at each location. When viewed from the other side of the hedge, the Horsa glider probably looks very similar to glider 1 after landing, in the early hours of D-Day. 

The first men on the ground on June 6th were the 5th Parachutist Brigade in charge of capturing the bridges over the Orne river and canal. Landing their gliders within yards of the bridges, they captured them and held them until Lord Lovat's Cammandos Brigade arrived to reinforce the positions. After the canal was widened, a new bridge was built and the original bridge became part of the museum located close by.
 

This was another museum we'd been to before, but this one had changed quite a bit. Back in 2005, there were the concrete gun emplacements with the museum displays inside and a circular car park. Now there's a larger car park, a shop and visitors centre, a hangar and Douglas C-47 Skytrain. This C-47 was a first for me, as it had the fairings and mountings for the under-belly cargo canisters, something I've never seen before. This museum was another with an audio tour to guide visitors around the site, telling the story.

The 9th Parachutists Battalion landed under cover of darkness to capture the battery in the early hours of June 6th. Many para's drowned in the nearby marshes but the battery is under Allied control by 5:00am.
 

From Merville, we headed a little West and took a sea front walk along Sword Beach, taking in the memorials along the way.
 

After an ice cream, we drove a little further West along Sword Beach to visit the Centaur Tank, another small memorial we visited back in 2005. Back then, the paintwork looked quite fresh, but looking at the markings, it doesn't appear that it has been repainted in the last 18 years. Around 400 feet away, on the edge of the beach, was another memorial, this one to the Royal and Merchant Navy.
 

About another mile further West was the Churchill Tank and sun dial memorial. Three metal plaques on the side of the tank show dates of restoration. Back in 2005 when we visited, the Churchill appeared in a realistic dark khaki green. This time, it was in a rather unconvincing pale green. It hasn't faded to that colour, as I've found pictures on the internet of it freshly painted. A Youtube video shows the body restoration has been done with wood and plastic, pop-riveted together. It really deserves a proper rebuild. We headed back to the cottage after this.