<P> On the evening of D - Day two additional glider operations, mission "Keokuk" and mission "Elmira", brought in additional support on 208 gliders . Operating on British Double Summer Time, both arrived and landed before dark . Both missions were heavily escorted by P - 38, P - 47, and P - 51 fighters . </P> <P> Keokuck was a reinforcement mission for the 101st Airborne consisting of a single serial of 32 tugs and gliders that took off beginning at 18: 30 . It arrived at 20: 53, seven minutes early, coming in over Utah Beach to limit exposure to ground fire, into a landing zone clearly marked with yellow panels and green smoke . German forces around Turqueville and Saint Côme - du - Mont, 2 miles (3.2 km) on either side of Landing Zone E, held their fire until the gliders were coming down, and while they inflicted some casualties, were too distant to cause much harm . Although only five landed on the LZ itself and most were released early, the Horsa gliders landed without serious damage . Two landed within German lines . The mission is significant as the first Allied daylight glider operation, but was not significant to the success of the 101st Airborne . </P> <P> Elmira was essential to the 82nd Airborne, however, delivering two battalions of glider artillery and 24 howitzers to support the 507th and 508th PIRs west of the Merderet . It consisted of four serials, the first pair to arrive ten minutes after Keokuck, the second pair two hours later at sunset . The first gliders, unaware that the LZ had been moved to Drop Zone O, came under heavy ground fire from German troops who occupied part of Landing Zone W . The C - 47s released their gliders for the original LZ, where most delivered their loads intact despite heavy damage . </P> <P> The second wave of mission Elmira arrived at 22: 55, and because no other pathfinder aids were operating, they headed for the Eureka beacon on LZ O. That wave too came under severe ground fire as it passed directly over German positions . One serial released early and came down near the German lines, but the second came down on Landing Zone O. Nearly all of both battalions joined the 82nd Airborne by morning, and 15 guns were in operation on June 8 . </P>

How many planes were shot down on d day