Mary Allen
Today they are in danger of being forgotten, but in the past carrier, pigeons were sometimes decisive in wars. Accordingly, some of them were celebrated. An overview of some carrier pigeons that came to fame and glory in the service of the fatherland.
Gustav, Paddy, and GI Joe
Gustav, Paddy, and GI Joe were all awarded the Dickin Medal. This medal was introduced by British animal rights pioneer Maria Dickin and awarded to animals who saved lives. Gustav was awarded for bringing the first report of the Allied landings in Normandy to England in 1944, Paddy managed to get the fastest report across the English Channel and GI Joe was responsible for a bombing raid that took at least 100 Allied soldiers would have killed was prevented at the last second.
Cher Ami
Cher Ami (dear friend) was a male carrier pigeon of the U.S. Army. During World War I, it became a hero after serving in France. An American battalion had lost contact with the rest of the US Army in 1918. It was trapped behind enemy lines, surrounded by German troops. When the artillery began to attack the Germans, their own comrades came under fire. The commander of the trapped battalion quickly wrote a message to this effect and sent Cher Ami flying with it. The carrier pigeon took off immediately but was injured by enemy bullets. Nevertheless, she flew the 25 kilometers to the dovecote in the American camp. The letter arrived, the artillery stopped their attack – Cher Ami had saved the lives of 194 soldiers. He was awarded the War Merit Cross by the French Army. Today Cher Ami stands on one leg – the other had to be amputated – at the National Museum of American History in Washington D.C.
Winnie
The Scottish pigeon lady Winkie had a remarkable effort. She took part in bomber missions over mainland Europe. In February 1942, the bomber was badly damaged by defensive fire over Scandinavia. The crew was able to keep the machine in the air up to 200 kilometers off the English coast before it had to make an emergency landing in rough seas in the North Sea. The crew was able to get to safety in inflatable boats but was no longer able to report their position to the base by radio. The pigeon was thrown into the water in its box when the plane hit the ground. The impact damaged the box and Winkie was able to free himself. She managed to take off and set a course for the mainland. At daybreak, she reached her dovecote at the Royal Air Force base. Her supervisor concluded from Winkie’s condition that the rescue teams were looking for the missing bomber in the wrong place. The missing crew was then discovered and rescued within half an hour.
General
Not as famous as its foreign counterparts were the Swiss military carrier pigeon General. He had it more peaceful in his missions and did not fly missions as a lifeguard. But he was at the forefront of the abolition of the army carrier pigeons and experienced some highlights: Cooing for the radio, photo subjects for domestic and foreign journalists and television appearances for various domestic and foreign stations are not exactly commonplace in a pigeon’s life. On his last “working day” as an army bird, he and his colleagues won a race against military cars. After the dissolution of the carrier pigeon service, the last army carrier pigeon was allowed to spend many years of life in a civilian loft.