"Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!

You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.

Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely.

But this is the year 1944 ! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strengths in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned ! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory !

I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory !

Good Luck ! And let us all beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking" ----- Dwight Eisenhower

As we celebrate the 80th anniversary of the largest and likely the most important amphibious assault in history we can still marvel at the strategy, supplies and strength of will of the Allied forces to overcome an entrenched enemy.

We are fortunate to have artifacts in the collection from participants in this momentus operation named "Overlord".

Read on to see some artifacts and photos plus read some official accounts of their activities on this fateful day. We hope you enjoy this issue.



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Remember those that made the #ultimatesacrifice #mia #pow #kia #sonsofliberty. #patriots #army #navy #marines #aircorps #airforce #coastguard #spaceforce #merchantmarine; all those that have worn the cloth.

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In Their Memory,

Robert Coalter, Executive Director

Jason Weigler, Executive Director

Major Robert Weigler, Jr. US Army Ret. - Director

"Saving Military History One Soldier At A Time".^SM 

"Saving History One Soldier At A Time"^SM

A view of the Normandy beaches on D-Day.

The D-Day invasion in what was known as Operation Overlord was a complex battle plan unlike no other. The gathering of men and material was immense. The logistics would boggle the mind. The numbers of tanks, jeeps, half-tracks, duces, aircraft, gliders, guns, bullets, grenades, packs, shoes, mess kits, life preservers and more required not hundreds but in the thousands and tens of thousands. All these items had to be made and transported across the Atlantic to locations in England and Scotland. Then this material had to be hidden and protected from the German Luftwaffe. All the while keeping the time and place of the landings a secret. Operation Fortitude was the deception plan to keep the Germans guessing,

So much emphasis on the success of D-Day focuses on the infantry both airborne and seaborne launched divisions and rightfully so. However, their success relied on the large contributions of other branches and specialty units. The Navy and Coast Guard deserve an enormous amount of credit for their logistics and transportation delivering the assault troops, reinforcements and required supplies. The minesweepers and underwater demolition teams (UDTs) deserve credit for clearing a path through the minefields of the English Channel and in many of the beach defenses. The Army Air Forces for keeping the Luftwaffe at bay; then the heavy bombers hitting strategic targets behind the beachhead isolating the battlefield preventing reinforcements of German reserve units including important Panzer units. Then there were the medium bombers and fighters that hit targets closer to the beaches including trains and other vehicles.

It could be speculated that if the landing deception and battlefield isolation failed it would have increased the likelihood that the Panzers would have arrived and the invasion might have failed. If the minefield was not cleared many of the invasion forces would never had made it to shore. Few studies of D-Day even consider the role of code breaking and its role in Fortitude as well as operational decisions. There were so many critical components to this operation. Everyone did their job.

On this 80th anniversary of D-Day, let us remember and honor the commanders, planners, participants and factory workers who made it a success.

Want to create a permanent memorial for your veteran or family member? Instead of a brick that wears away from foot traffic, memorialize that special veteran on the side of the USH-Constitution.

Bronze

This is a 2 1/2" x 22" name placard. This is a 2 row display with the first line containing the name and the second a unit, conflict and branch. The top row is approx. 1" tall and the 2nd line 3/4".

2 1/2" x 22" - $750

Silver

This is a 2" x 36" name placard. This is a 1 row display with the line containing the name, unit, conflict and branch. The lettering is approximately 1 1/2" tall.

2" x 36" - $1375

Gold

This is a 5" x 36" name placard. This is a 2 row display with the first line containing the name and the second a unit, conflict and branch. The top row is approx. 2" tall and the 2nd line 1 1/2".

5" x 36" - $2000

In all of our research, we continue to find first person accounts of dates in history. The following are the transcribed copy of the official combat report of four fighter pilots who flew missions on D-Day.

HEADQUARTERS SIXTY FIRST FIGHTER SQUADRON

AAF STATION F-150, APO 637

U. S. ARMY

Encounter Report

VIII Fighter Command F.O. No. 372

Capt. B. M. Gladych                                   

Whippet Red Three

a. Combat (air)

b. 6 June, 1944

c. 61st Fighter Squadron, 56th Fighter Group

d. 2100

e. Croisy

f. 5/10 at 2,000 ft.

g. Me-109

h. Me-109 destroyed

i. I was flying Red 3 to Capt. Rutkowski. We were circling the convoy on the road when I saw 4 a/c which I thought were Me-109’s. I called my flight leader and dove on them. After about 2 minutes chase I was close enough to recognize them as P-51’s. I started to turn, as I intended to rejoin the squadron, when I saw 4/5 Me-109’s coming from the East at about 100 ft. I reversed my turn to meet them. The nearest one of the e/a apparently spotted me against the ground and peeled toward me in a shallow dive. The rest of them proceeded to climb in a wide slight turn. I turned with the attacking e/a and had not difficulties in closing on it. I had switched the water on and after a couple of seconds began to overtake the e/a. I slid on the outside and then kicked the bottom rudder getting on the enemy’s tail. I fired, didn’t see the strikes, but e/a reacted by tightening the turn. I pulled some more deflection and gave him another burst. The e/a spun and hit the ground. In the meantime the remaining e/a were scared by 8 P-51’s which came from the South. I tried to get another of the Me-109’s of the bunch. I pulled up, closed from underneath and astern and fired a short burst at the last one. The Hun emitted some black smoke but kept flying. I abandoned the pursuit because my gas was running low. I headed for home flying on the deck.

I claim one Me-109 destroyed.

 j. 307 rds .50 cal A.P. & I.

                                        B. M. GLADYCH

                                        Captain, P.A.F.

HEADQUARTERS SIXTY SECOND FIGHTER SQUADRON

AAF STATION F-150, APO 637    

U. S. ARMY

Personal Combat Report

VIII Fighter Command F.O. No.371

a. Combat

b. 6 June, 1944

c. 62nd Fighter Squadron

d. Approx. 1230 hours

e. Vicinity Rambouillet

f. 8/10 cloud, base 6,000’

g. Fw 190

h. One Fw 190 claimed Destroyed.

i. “I was flying White Two and had made one pass on a troop train in the vicinity of Rambouillet. Pulling up for a second pass, I saw an Fw 190 at 500’, coming down the tracks from the East, at 8 or 9 O’Clock to me. He evidently saw me at about the same time and started to turn so I poured the coal to it and we swung into a Lufberry.

As we climbed, circling, I used water, managing to keep above the Hun. Continuing to tighten the circle, I was gradually catching up on him and forcing him lower and lower. Just as I was about to draw deflection and fire he reversed his turn, snapped violently to the left and dove in to the deck from about 300’. The e/a exploded in a huge mass of flame and smoke while I took pictures of it with my gun camera.



I claim one Fw 190 Destroyed.”

WILLIAM W. McELHARE,

1st Lt., Air Corps.

ARMAMENT REPORT

Lt. William W. McElhare                42-76093             

OFFICE OF THE INTELLIGENCE OFFICER

83RD FIGHTER SQUADRON

INTELLIGENCE COMBAT REPORT

PLAN “STUD”

1. Combat
2. 6 June 1944.
3. 83rd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group.
4. 1630 hours.
5. Mayenne, France.
6. 5-7/10 cumulus from 6-10,000 feet. Visibility good.
7. FW 190 destroyed shared, 3 trains damaged.
8. 1 FW 190 destroyed shared, 3 trains damaged.
9. Narrative:

           I was flying White two on a strafing and dive bombing mission. We strafed three trains and then ran into 8-12 FW 190s. Col. Gray fired on one and then overshot it. I chopped throttle and closed to about fifty or sixty yards and fired a burst. I pulled up beside him with my excess speed and flew formation with him. He had jettisoned the canopy and was trying to bail out, but he seemed to be wounded. He pushed over steeply and the centrifugal force pushed him out and he opened his chute.

           I claim three trains damaged and 1 FW 190 destroyed, shared with Col. Gray.

VINCENT J. MASSA,

1st Lt., A.C.,

83rd Fighter Squadron.

OFFICE OF THE INTELLIGENCE OFFICER 83RD FIGHTER SQUADRON

INTELLIGENCE COMBAT REPORT REFERENCE PLAN STUDY

a. Combat

b.6 June 1944

83rd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group.

d. 1630 hours.

e. Mayenne, France

f. 5-7/10 cumulus at 4-8,000 feet. Excellent visibility

g. FW 190

h. 1 FW 190 destroyed

i. Cargo white flight bounced a section of five or eight FW 190’s flying south on the deck, jest west of Mayenne. The e/a were being pursued by two planes of Cargo red flight. As Cargo white flight closed, the e/a made a 90 degree right turn into us. I fired several short bursts at the e/a already being engaged by other P-47’s. I then singled one out and began firing at him in a turning circle, using 60-90 degrees deflection. After hitting him heavily the e/a “dished” out of the Lufberry, rolled, spun and then crashed.

7 June 1944. PETER A CAULFIELD,

1ST Lt., Air Corps,

83rd Fighter Squadron

Supporting statement of claim: I was flying in Cargo White flight when we bounced eight to ten FW-190’s. we got in a Lufberry with one and Lt. Caulfield started firing at him. He hit him a couple of times and then the FW-190 snapped out of the Lufberry and headed for the deck. He pulled out and went into a steep turn but snagged a wing and burst into flame.

Vincent J. Massa,

1st Lt., Air Corps,

83rd Fighter Squadron.

COMBAT REPORT

JUNE 6, 1944

PLAN "STUD"

A. Type of Action: Combat

B. Date: June 6, 1944

C. Unit: HQ 78th Fighter Gp (Flying with 83rd F Sq)

D. Time: 1540

E. Place: Le Hutte and Alencon

F. Weather: 8-9/10 cloud, base 3000 Ft.

G. Type of Target: Locos and FW 190

H. Enemy Casualties: 3 Locos damaged  1 FW 190 Destroyed shared with LT Massa, 83rd Fighter Sq.

ACCOUNT OF COMBAT:

I led 78th Group to Alencon area with the mission of destruction of lines of communication. Arrived over area 12,000' and stooged around a couple of holes in the overcast. My wing-man sighted a train and I sent him down for it, following on his wing since I had not seen it. We broke out at about 3, 000' and dropped our bombs at the train with poor results, getting only near misses and a few on the track. We then strafed it and allowed it to blow off steam. While the rest of the section were working it over, iI moved in on it and got a considerable number of strikes all over it. It practically blew up. While my wing-man Lt Massa was strafing it, I found another in the other end of the yard and got it also. I got dozens of strikes, as did Lt Massa, but it was cold.



I then took my flight up the line to Alencon and out each rail line from the city for perhaps twenty miles without sighting any rail traffic other than two locos in the M/Y at Alencon which I passed up due to the presence of many civilians in the immediate area who were waving at us.

At this time my Red Leader sounded off on a gaggle of FW 190's on the desk moving south near the city. I finally saw them and tagged on, passing him and coming up on tail end Charlie. I was catching him without water until he threw his souped up charge in when I had to hit mine. I caught him easily and he started turning. All those boys I taught back at Matagorda would have got a kick out of my sorry deflection shooting. I finally got him going straight and got four pretty good bursts into him. He jettisoned his canopy as his engine cut our and started out. I was about to overshoot him and skidded out to the side when Lt. Massa gave him a burst. He overshot him and eased up along side and watched him laboriously crawl out, his jacket and helmet on fire. He got out about 600' and his chute worked beautifully.

I then broke for another but just as I was about to try my deflection shooting again my 2nd element leader Lt. Caulfield beat him up. He turned into me and snapped into the ground making one hell of a beautiful explosion which I caught in my camera --- only now they tell me the damned thing jammed.

CLAIMS AS FOLLOWS:  3 locos damaged shared 1 FW 190 destroyed shared with Lt Massa

I confirm the destruction of one FW 190 by Lt Peter A Caulfield.

I think these were the ones Spicer referred to when he said "They fly like Basic students".

F.C. GRAY

Lieut. Colonel

Air Corps

Bruce Silcott

HQ, Company

506th PIR

101st Airborne

LT Jackson Byers

316th Troop Carrier Group

From their base in Cottesmore, England the 44th Troop Carrier Squadron would deliver paratroops of the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the the 82nd Airborne Division on D-Day.

Enjoy a number of photos surrounding D-Day and within days of the initial landings.

Members of the Filthy 13, Special Demolition Platoon, 101st Airborne on 5 June as they prepare for early morning jump into Normandy on D-Day.

C-47 of the 95th Troop Carrier Squadron, 440th Troop Carrier Group based in Exeter, England. The 440th delivered paratroops of the 3rd Battalion 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division.

Men of the 82nd Airborne load a motorcycle into a Waco glider ahead of their early morning D-Day mission.

A WACO glider awaits its crew for a D-Day mission.

Naval bombardment off Omaha Beach on D-Day.

Assault troops on the Normandy beachhead on D-Day.

Omaha Beach on D-Day

Young soldiers flounder in the water at Omaha Beach on D-Day.

Scenes of Omaha Beach from landing craft on D-Day.

Men of the 1st Infantry Division on Omaha Beach on D-Day.

Utah Beach

D-Day

6 June 1944

Armada of ships crossing the English Channel

Troop ships cross the English Channel and offload the young infantrymen onto landing craft for their beach assault.

Coast Guard and Navy ships in the English Channel.

A Coast Guard patrol craft in the English Channel.

Engineers and a 9th Air Force radioman in a Landing Craft.

Army Rangers in a Landing Craft on D-Day.

Navy Coxswains work overtime; driving the landing craft. Here they take soldiers from the docks in southern England to the troop transport ships to cross the English Channel.

A view of Omaha Beach from an LCI.

Landing Ship Tank (LST) disgorges their vehicle cargo. Many would get unloaded onto large barges that would get closer to shore and then vehicles would drive though shallow water to shore.

Transported vehicles offload to barges.

Utah Beach activity.

Men of the 359th Infantry Regiment, 90th Infantry Division land on Utah Beach.

Carentan. The primary objective location to link-up the Omaha and Utah beaches.

A Landing Zone (LZ) for Gliders behind Utah Beach.

A-20 Havoc of the 9th Air Force with painted invasion stripes over the Normandy beaches.

Captain H.A. Ogden of the 361st Fighter Squadron, 356th Fighter Group destroys a vehicle on D-Day.

Field hospitals gather the wounded. Many would return to England by boat, then C-47s began air transport.

Reinforcements prepare to leave England in the days following D-Day.

Overlord's D-Day a DVD of archival combat film with the identification of units and places. this is a must-have for the historian, enthusiast or family member. There are over 5 hours of authentic movie film Watch scenes of the Navy, Coast Guard, Army and Army Air Forces.

1st Infantry Division

2nd Infantry Division

4th Infantry Division

29th Infantry Division

90th Infantry Division

Army Ranger Battalions

82nd Airborne Division

101st Airborne Division

IX Troop Carrier Command

8th Air Force

9th Air Force

Navy

Coast Guard

More Info & Order

MM-1776 Launches

Our grand opening last weekend (Oct 21, 2023) of our new mobile museum, MM-1776.. Thank you to American Legion Post 453 for hosting this event and dinner.

Veteran Memorials

With the launch of our new mobile-museum trailer we have a place for a visual honorarium and memorial for your veteran. Honor your veteran family member with a permanent marker on our new mobile-museum.

Like bricks or pavers, this permanent memorial will be seen by many at schools, veteran and civic events. Get your Veteran Memorial Today!

Read more about Sons of Liberty Memorials

Read More About Army Air Corps Memorials

If you are looking to volunteer with a non-profit we would welcome your assistance. We have a need to transcribe over 150,000 of these index cards. Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, Soldiers Medal, Bronze Stars and Purple Heart. Getting this information into our database will allow us to make this data searchable. Contact us to get started!

We are also looking for General Orders of World War II, digital copies are welcome; volunteers to transcribe this data.

Transcription of monthly unit histories and other documents are projects to help us recover and preserve history and are fantastic accounts written close to the actual events rather than decades later as memories may fade.

There are still thousands classified as Missing in Action or as Buried Unknowns. In our partnership with the MIA Recovery Network we have established data on our websites regarding MIAs.

The quest to account for those of our nation's Missing in Action is one of the most noble of endeavors. There are also a large number of recovered remains that are buried in ABMC cemeteries where the identity is unknown. These are known as X-Files.

The recovery of MIAs pose a number of challenges. For example, Navy or Merchant Marine ships that were sunk are unrecoverable and thus ship manifests are the primary and often only source of names for those that have perished but are still accounted.

Each conflict has had its own challenges. At the end of World War II the military had established more than 360 temporary cemeteries, but the dead were being found continually in farm fields, forests, small church cemeteries, isolated graves and the shores of combat zones. These dead were collected and the remains consolidated into the fourteen permanent European, Mediterranean, and North African Cemeteries maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission along with two permanent cemeteries in the Philippines and Hawaii.

Monetary donations are needed and very welcomed to support these efforts to create case files.

Please consider a DONATION today. Thank You.

#neverforget #bringthemallhome

Sons of Liberty Museum

The Sons of Liberty has hundreds of uniforms and thousands of other artifacts in our collection from the U.S. Revolutionary War to Present day. Our web presence now numbers in excess of 500,000 pages. We continue to accept new material for education and research programs.

Our collection includes memorabilia from the front line soldier to the rear echelon clerk. Drivers, infantrymen, pilots, tankers, seaman, medical, artillery, armorers, engineers, quartermasters and much more. Those that were drafted or volunteered; those that did a single tour or made it a career. Those that returned with all types of injuries and those that gave their full measure; killed in action (KIA). All MOS are welcome from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Marines.

Monetary donations help us preserve and display these pieces of American History. Thank you for your support.

We are Saving Military History One Soldier At A Time. We are honoring the service of the Citizen Soldier.

#sonsofliberty

Volunteers

We need volunteers to transcribe award and roster documents. You will place the material into a spreadsheet where it will be added to our database and website. We welcome new dedicated volunteers to work from home and help us with this project!

Interesting Links & Resources

Researching History: https://www.sonsoflibertymuseum.org/military-history-records.cfm

Honor Roll: https://www.sonsoflibertymuseum.org/honor.cfm

Donations

We welcome donations of monies for operational costs. Artifact donations are sought in the form of papers, books, photos, gear, uniforms, jackets, medals, ribbons, weapons, equipment, scrapbooks, biographies, diaries and more. Please Contact Us

Revolutionary War, War if 1812, Civil War, Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Cold War, Gulf War and current conflict donations accepted. From small to large multi-item donations, they all tell a story.

We need you ! We need your help to further our mission of preserving and bringing this history to the public. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit your qualifying donations are tax deductible.

Army Air Corps Museum

The Air Corps Museum online presence encompasses over 500,000 web pages with thousands of photos and other materials. Our artifact collection contains hundreds of uniforms, albums, logs, medals and more from the Army Air Service, Army Air Forces and U.S. Air Force.

World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Cold War, Gulf War and current conflict donations welcome!

Volunteers

We need volunteers to transcribe documents, placing the material into a spreadsheet. We welcome new dedicated volunteers to help us with this project! Work from home.

Interesting Links & Resources

Trace a Family Members Military Service: https://www.armyaircorpsmuseum.org/veteran-research.cfm

Honor Roll: https://www.armyaircorpsmuseum.org/honor_roll.cfm

Donations

We welcome donations of papers, books, photos, gear, uniforms, jackets, medals, ribbons, weapons, equipment, scrapbooks, biographies, diaries, letters and more. Please Contact Us

Monetary donations help us preserve and display these pieces of American History. Thank you for your support. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit your qualifying donations are tax deductible.

As a non-profit it's important to let our patrons know where some of their money is going.

This riker-mount display box is one of the most important pieces that we use. They contain ribbons, medals, patches, pictures and other small memorabilia items. They are great to help reserve items as well.

Each year we purchased 500 of these items. We will fill them all with great artifacts in less than 12 months.

$5000.

Constant Contact charges us $1200 annually to create, store and send this newsletter.

Our web servers, domains and hosting cost $8200 / year. Our hosting requirement of storage will only increase over the coming years as we continue to add to our online material.

The annual total for just these three components is $14,400. Naturally, we have other expenditures, but 100% of monetary donations go to operations. All staff and directors are volunteers.

Monetary donations are needed and very welcomed to support these efforts.

Please consider a DONATION today. Thank You.



We rescue a lot of military artifacts; items destined for the trash heap. From torn papers and faded ribbons to moth damaged uniforms decades pass and the condition of items deteriorate. These artifacts still have a story to tell.

Many museums only want items in pristine condition, we say differently. Some so called museums only want materials from a well known commander written up in history books or the fighter ace or a man who would fly to the moon or a Medal of Honor recipient.

While we have artifacts such as these we also have the items of the draftee who answered their nation's call and served their tour and then went home. Some were not so fortunate, special place in our hearts for the KIAs. In our mission of "Saving Military History One Soldier at a Time" it is about all who have worn the cloth of our nation's military. Artifacts help us bring stories to life no matter their condition.

We accept donations of artifacts in ALL CONDITIONS.

---- What is Liberty ? ----

"definition. the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views." 

Merriam-Webster defines it as " the power to do as one pleases, the freedom from physical restraint and freedom from arbitrary or despotic control.

---- So what is a Son of Liberty? ----

In our context and beginning these were the men and women in America who wanted their liberty and freedom from the King of England. They desired a right of self-determination for their lives.  They fought for this liberty and codified it in the Constitution of a new country.  To keep this liberty they created a military to ward off the any would-be belligerent. Since the War of Independence until and including the present day the men and women who have worn the cloth of our nation's military are its Sons of Liberty.  They have fought enemies in other nations, they have fought each other and they have stood as sentinels of the watch.

We celebrate the service of these individuals, we tell the historical story of these selfless patriots.

---- The Sons of Liberty Museum ----

Over 15 years ago we chose a name for this organization and our sister the Army Air Corps Library and Museum. We believe these names accurately describe these men and women who serve. We will not change any name to satisfy a radical viewpoint or computer algorithm. We don't allow for any revisionist history, we tell the factual stories.

We are Saving Military History One Soldier at a Time.

Need a Good Book, DVD?

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We would like to send a shout out to our website design partner, InterNet Partners, who has helped us with a variety of database programming and web design over the years.