Pictures: Mass Parachute Jump over Normandy
Opens Commemorations for 80th Anniversary
of D-Day

The photos are interesting but the article is a must read. The veterans still coming back. Still warning us that war is hell... We must not let addled egomaniacal Biden trip us into a new one.

FTA - "The youngest veteran in the group is 96 and the most senior 107, according to their carrier from Dallas, American Airlines." and "“We did our job and we came home and that’s it. We never talked about it I think. For 70 years I didn’t talk about it,” said another of the veterans, Ralph Goldsticker, a U.S. Air Force captain who served in the 452nd Bomb Group." Gentlemen, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts and thank you eternally for your heroic service. My father was there. By the Grace of God, he survived the Battle of the Bulge. So, here I am. And it feels good. Today, otherwise, we would be speaking either russian or german. This was the last time that America, as founded, really believed in itself. Back-to-back world war wins. Before the left showed up from Europe, that is.

I have the greatest respect for these men and my heart breaks for those who died. Thank you all for your service.

My dad was one of those who jumped that day. He was in the 82nd Airborne Division. Those Devils in Baggy Pants. That nickname was given to them by a German General. My dad was wounded in France about 3 weeks after the invasion. He was repatriated back to the U.S. where he married his sweetheart, my mom and they were married for almost 60 years before he died in 2002 at age 84. My mom died just 3 years ago age 94.

My uncle was in the 101. He parachuted into Normandy on the 6th, died of wounds on the 11th. The town was Ste Mere Eglise. If you ever seen the movie " The Longest Day " that town is where Red Buttons get hung up on the church.

Re #5, "What really happened to the famous American paratrooper who remained hanging from the steeple of the church of Sainte-Mère-Eglise on D-day? Normandy American Heroes retraces the path taken by this colorful character: from Normandy back to the United States, where he passed away in 1969. His name was Steele, John Steele, "John big ass", for his companions in arms! He came from Illinois, a jaw-dropping fellow who loved to drink fresh beer, practice fly fishing, and listen to New Orleans jazz. His letters to the Normans were full of warm words for this distant land he had first seen from the sky, one night in June 1944, and then trampled several times. In one of his letters, nicely signed "John of the Steeple”, he said how grateful he had been, and vowed to preserve his memory until his last breath." More here: https://www.normandyamericanheroes.com/blog/sainte-mére-eglise-paratrooper-john-steele I've visited there...

Thanks for the link to the Normandy American Heroes blog. Read it, enjoyed it, and bookmarked it!

My younger son and his wife just returned from Belgium. They stopped by Bastogne. They shed some tears at that memorial realizing what my father endured in the Bulge 80 years ago. It was truly hell on earth, but evil was beaten. Bigly.

God bless them, each and every one...

God bless those brave MEN who jumped at minimum altitude (500 feet above ground) without reserve parachutes. Those who survived said the sounds of "watermelons dropping on the ground" was perplexing, until he realized they were the sounds of men hitting the Drop Zone with failed parachutes. During our days at the "reactivated" 1st Ranger Battalion, our Camp Stewart (GA) Commander was, Col. Frank Dietrich, mentioned in the book, "Those Devils in Baggy Pants." Col. Dietrich was not only a veteran of WWII, but also Korea, and then Vietnam. He had the rare distinction of having made every "combat jump" (meaning the drop zone was "unsecured") in WWII and had the "pips" in his Jump Wing 'shroud lines' to prove it. He was a true "soldier's soldier" who'd come to the field (he damn sure didn't need to) just to check on what we were learning and really because he liked to get his boots muddy. Men like that soldiers gladly follow into battle, even to the gates of hell, because you know he will get you home alive. Here's a picture of that "square-jawed" G.I. from the United States of America: https://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/fdietric.htm Now for a criticism of the event:.. What the hell were the current brass thinking by including helicopters in this event? There were NO operational helicopters in theater at that time on either side, and it would be Germany who flew the first one!

Every anniversary of this great event brings two thoughts to my mind. First, gratitude to so many who were so selfless to combat the evil forces in the world. Second, why does American have to go back more and more years to find a major event that they are proud of?