75th anniversary of D Day Invasion of Normandy

Sometime late at night on June 5 into June 6, 1944, 800 planes took off from Duxford in England to fly across the English Channel as a part of the Allied invasion of Normandy, France (D-Day). This year, 2019, marks the 75the anniversary of the D-Day. To mark this 75th anniversary of D-Day, 2 1historic aircraft -- including 15 DC-3s and C-47s from the United States -- took off from Duxford, England.

I will never forget what D-Day stands for, remembering all those young men who landed and then died at Normandy, especially those in the first wave. Other young men lived to land at and fight at Normandy, slowly working their way inland. I share this 12-minute video of these 21 aircraft that took off from Duxford, England to honor all those who fought and died at Normandy. According to this fine article from the AOPA (including a must see slideshow) at least four of the aircraft participating in the 75th anniversary commemoration of D-Day flew in the 1944 invasion: That's All Brother who led the way in 1944 and again this year, D-Day Doll, Placid Lassie, and Virginia Ann. I saw the first three within the first couple of minutes of the video. I saw Virginia Ann later on. I don't know about you, but I found this video very moving.


Direct link to Daks over Normandy on Youtube

There is a lot written about the 75th anniversary of D-Day. I am sharing three articles that I liked, note that there is a paywall for the New York Times and the Washington Post but you are allowed a few free visits each month.

New York Times, brief history of D-Day and Putlizer Prize winning Ernie Pyle (June 5, 2019)
New York Times, photo essay of 1944 invasion (June 6, 2019)
Washington Post (May 30, 2019) Barry Svriuga writes about the secret journal his Grandfather kept on his experiences on D-Day in 1944