80th anniversary of D Day....6th june 1944

[spike.t]

A little bit early ,...but time to remember in the lead up to it the brave men and women from many countries who made it possible . In the planning , rehearsals, subterfuge and all the million other details that went in to it....and the ones who actually took part in the landings from sea and air...article about some of the first ones in...

'I thought, my God, they're ready for us. They know we've arrived' – How WW2's D-Day began with a death-defying mission

Eighty years ago on 6 June, the largest land, air and naval operation in history was unleashed. In 1984, the man who led the mission gave an extraordinary account to the BBC.

www.bbc.com

 

[spike.t]

Heroes' sendoff at O'Hare for 3 World War II veterans headed to France for D-Day anniversary

The entire United Airlines flight crew headed to Paris are also veterans. For the World War II vets onboard the flight, returning to Normandy came with a mix of emotions.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[HankBuck]

A little bit early ,...but time to remember in the lead up to it the brave men and women from many countries who made it possible . In the planning , rehearsals, subterfuge and all the million other details that went in to it....and the ones who actually took part in the landings from sea and air...article about some of the first ones in...

'I thought, my God, they're ready for us. They know we've arrived' – How WW2's D-Day began with a death-defying mission

Eighty years ago on 6 June, the largest land, air and naval operation in history was unleashed. In 1984, the man who led the mission gave an extraordinary account to the BBC.

www.bbc.com

@spike.t - I would have to think that those Men that stormed the Beach ALL displayed some of the greatest Courage ever seen…my heart “pounds” just thinking about what they did !

 

[Troubleshooter]

They were indeed men who defined “courage” by performing their duties despite unfavorable circumstances and being scared to death.

Just walked back from the ceremony for the 29th Infantry Division. Normally held at dawn on the 6th but today at noon on the 4th because the entire beach will be cordoned off on the 6th for the “official” ceremony (which has always taken place at the cemetery in past years). No one, not even the few remaining veterans will be allowed on the beach that day unless they agree to attend the official ceremony. As you might imagine the locals are absolutely livid about this as it is being directed from above, the locals were never consulted about it.

Beware politicians who desire to co-opt the bravery and honor of those who died here in order to advance their own agendas.

 

[deewayne2003]

Thank you for posting this, as a child of the 80’s I very much miss the WWII generation and learned most of my understanding of the word by listening to them.

How they raised the generation of Boomers is still a mystery to me.

 

[spike.t]

80 years on, D-Day veterans sail to Normandy, pay tribute to the fallen

OMAHA BEACH, France/PORTSMOUTH, England (Reuters) -Dozens of elderly U.S. veterans paid tribute to their fallen World War Two comrades in the U.S. cemetery of Colleville-sur-Mer in Normandy on Tuesday, as British veterans sailed from UK shores to join the D-Day ceremonies. The celebrations mark...

uk.news.yahoo.com

 

[spike.t]

Shame he couldn't see one last ceremony....

Friends remember local WWII veteran who died en route to D-Day commemoration

World War II veteran Robert Persichitti from Fairport died while traveling to Normandy, France on Friday for a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of "D-Day."

13wham.com

 

[Troubleshooter]

Good day in St Mere Eglise, parades with vintage vehicles and vintage veterans. Probably 15k people present. Airborne Museum completely renovated and looks great.

Here at least, they still remember!

 

[spike.t]

Good day in St Mere Eglise, parades with vintage vehicles and vintage veterans. Probably 15k people present. Airborne Museum completely renovated and looks great.

Here at least, they still remember!

They still got the paratrooper mannequin hanging from the tower of the church by his parachute?

 

[Brent in Az]

My great Uncle fought in WW2. I had originally thought he was killed in action on D-day, but I was mistaken. He was killed in the1944 invasion of northern France.
I still have a single barreled .410 shotgun that belonged to him. Passed down to me thru my Grandparents.

 

[spike.t]

They were indeed men who defined “courage” by performing their duties despite unfavorable circumstances and being scared to death.

Just walked back from the ceremony for the 29th Infantry Division. Normally held at dawn on the 6th but today at noon on the 4th because the entire beach will be cordoned off on the 6th for the “official” ceremony (which has always taken place at the cemetery in past years). No one, not even the few remaining veterans will be allowed on the beach that day unless they agree to attend the official ceremony. As you might imagine the locals are absolutely livid about this as it is being directed from above, the locals were never consulted about it.

Beware politicians who desire to co-opt the bravery and honor of those who died here in order to advance their own agendas.

I don't know if you have had a chance to walk down the road that leads to omaha beach....quite a few years ago my ex wanted to take her father to the beaches for his bday present, as his father had been in the landings in the Royal engineers....so I googled for tour guides and came across an English guy who did them....was a very lucky break finding him as he was incredibly clued up, but also knew a lot of places off the normal tourist route that he took us to...hardly any if any other people were in those places....at omaha he took us down and as we went showed the machine gun pits dug in allover.....he said keep the view from here in your minds for when we get down onto the beach....looking around it was bit like an amphitheatre with uninterrupted views of the beach.....when we got down onto the beach he took us to the waters edge, and said this is actually the level where it was when they started landing. I am going to leave you so you can look towards the land and think about those men/boys trying to move forwards...I looked and all I could think was how did any make it at all, as it was a perfect killing ground...totally overlooked by the upwards sloping ground leading from the beach.....only cover was a slight ridge in the sand bit up from the sea.....it was a pretty sobering emotional moment when you took it all in....we had the guide for 3 days and it was money well spent...I had been couple times before, as not far from where used to live around the corner, but the information and stories he had about small places that most wouldn't even bother going to or even know about was amazing . He had met the infamous German machine gunner from omaha a few times, as he used to visit the beech every year....the guide said I think he was trying to look for peace in his mind....said he would talk to people and was like he was cleaning his head as much as he could....as said was very interesting 3 days....

 

[SFRanger7GP]

I have been following all the celebrations live on Instagram. It appears as if France has more love and pride for our veterans and their sacrifices than the US does.

About this time in the UK 80 years ago, final briefings, pre combat inspections and pre jump were being conducted. My Uncle was in 2/75 Rangers when he went in on D Day. He was a huge inspiration for me and my military career.

God Bless Them All!

 

[cajunchefray]

God Bless the Souls of those men and women, the Allied Forces, the occupied French, and those poor bastards in the German Army, Luftwaffe, and Panzers.

The definition when SHTF.

 

[SFRanger7GP]

At this time 80 years ago, OSS Jedburgh Teams and US and British Paratroopers were flying towards their targets in France and boats loaded with ground forces were crossing the English Channel.

Let us never forget their sacrifices and heroism.

 

[SFRanger7GP]

Jedburghs and US Paratroopers

 

[SFRanger7GP]

At about this time, paratroopers began to fill the skies….

 

[Brent in Az]

The youth of today could definitely learn from the courage and fortitude of those that landed on the beaches of the D-day invasion.
The hell being rained down on them from those German pill boxes would test the courage of the best of men

 

[Wyatt Smith]

I’ve probably mentioned it before, but I had an old family friend who jumped with the 82nd on D-Day. At the time he had only been in the army six months.
I believe the Marines landed on Saipan the following week, maybe June 14-15.

 

[AimSmall]

 

[Troubleshooter]

They still got the paratrooper mannequin hanging from the tower of the church by his parachute?

Yes he was still hanging there yesterday (5June) and is a popular subject for photographers.