Carentan, Normandy: flying past, marching past

An eventful (if partially uneventful) day in Carentan.

(This is a back-blip.)


The uneventful part of the day was the parachute drop. A very large crowd had assembled to witness the reenactment of the landing of soldiers of 101st Airborne in the night preceding D-Day. The wind was too strong, and the exercise had to be abandoned.


Next was the unveiling of a memorial stele to the soldiers of 101st Airborne who had fixed bayonets and led the final, victorious charge into the town from the North-West.


This photo shows the beginning of the march-past, led by the Carentan town band, accompanied by an unexpected fly-past of four Hercules (I think) aircraft which may have been intended for use in the parachute drop.

The parade included contingents of French, German and American soldiers. A great treat for the locals and other onlookers.



On Sunday 8 June a spectacular drop (lasting two hours) of 900-plus parachutists close to Sainte Mere Eglise would attract 200,000 spectators. The result was utter traffic chaos.