 |
April 14, 2012, the American flag flying on the south end of the Isle of Man, above the Irish Sea, signaling a memorial ceremony honoring eleven Americans killed there in a B-17 crash on April 14, 1945. |
The Memorial to Combined Operations
On another Saturday 67 years earlier, a group of American combat veterans and a Red Cross administrator, were on their way to Northern Ireland for a well-deserved holiday when the B-17 named "Combined Operations," off course, hit this mist-shrouded hillside, slammed into this stone wall and exploded, killing all eleven on board. More Here
Over the past fifteen years, a group of descendants of those on board the B-17, Army Air Corps historians, Manx historians and supporters has worked to reassemble the story of the unique aircraft as well as the lives of those on board. We have named our group "Combined Operations" in honor of the aircraft and the process which saw cooperation and collaboration spanning generations and the Atlantic.
The Plaque – Conceived and designed by the hard-working members of the Manx Aviation and Military Preservation Society, and shepherded through the necessary permits and permissions by the Commissioners of County Rushen led by Adrian Tinkler, the plaque is now attached to a stone stile alongside one of the busiest hiking paths on the Isle of Man. View Here
The Ceremony – With prayers led by Reverend Shirley Bench, a local Methodist minister (and unrepentant LA Dodgers fan), and the reading of the names and laying of a wreath by Lt. Colonel Najeeb Ahmed, United States Air Force Attache from the U.S. Embassy in London, the telling of the story by the History Dude, the unveiling of the plaque by Josephine Felts and Ann Lydon (sister and niece of the pilot), the playing of taps and the support of a large assembled (and bundled) crowd of supportive Manx, the ceremony was tinged with both celebration and sadness.
Gratitude – At the ceremony's conclusion, Josephine Felts, the younger sister of the pilot who died on the field adjacent to the plaque, expressed her thanks to all those who by their attendance, were honoring her brother and the ten other Americans who died on that lonely hillside so far from home.
Lest We Forget – From now on, every minute of every day, the names of the eleven Americans will be there, silently reminding all who read them of not only this tragedy, but also of the sadness and futility of war.
Detailed illustrated account of Memorial Click Here
