Ramstein Airmen, people of France remember D-Day together

A U.S. spectator, dressed in a WWII-era uniform, looks on at the activity and people around him in the village square of Sainte-Mère-Église, France, June 6, 2019. This year marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day and the liberation of Normandy. The events held in Sainte-Mère-Église were just a few of 55 events held throughout 40 different French communities honoring those that paid the ultimate sacrifice on June 6, 1944. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kristof J. Rixmann)

U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Mark August, 86th Airlift Wing commander, and Col. Joseph Wenckus, 86th Airlift Wing vice commander, pose with a U.S. military veteran dressed in a WWII-era uniform in honor of the 75th anniversary of D-Day in Sainte-Mère-Église, France, June 6, 2019. Behind them is the church of which U.S. Army Private John Steele’s parachute snagged on the tower during the D-Day invasion. Steele would be captured by German forces but would escape captivity four days later and return with the 82nd Airborne Division. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kristof J. Rixmann)

The parachute of the U.S. Army Private John Steele monument billows in the breeze on the Sainte-Mère-Église Church spire in Sainte-Mère-Église, France, June 6, 2019. This year marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day when U.S. forces stormed the beaches of Normandy, France. During this invasion, Steele dropped from the skies with infrantrymen belonging to the 82nd Airborne Division with the objective of seizing Sainte-Mère-Église from Axis defenses. During the drop, Steele’s parachute snagged on the church tower where he pretended to be dead for two hours before Germans took him prisoner. Four days later he escaped captivity and rejoined his division. Steele was awarded the Bronze Star for valor and the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in combat. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kristof J. Rixmann)

U.S. Army Col. Jon Beale, 82nd Airborne Division Sustainment Brigade commander, stands at attention with fellow airborne infantrymen before filing into the Sainte-Mère-Église Church to honor those that paid the ultimate sacrifice on D-Day, 75 years ago, in Sainte-Mère-Église, France, June 6, 2019. In total, approximately 1,000 U.S. service members participated in the 75th anniversary of D-Day commemorations, which consisted of 55 ceremonies and events across 40 French communities in the region of Normandy, France. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kristof J. Rixmann)

People gather in the village square of Sainte-Mère-Église, France, June 6, 2019, to celebrate freedom and honor all service members who fought for it on D-Day, 75 years ago. To commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day, the village square was filled with events ranging from an 82nd Airborne ceremony to several C-130J Super Hercules flyovers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kristof J. Rixmann)

Two French locals, from their second story apartment, compare photos of the crowds gathered in the village square in Sainte-Mère-Église, France, June 6, 2019. To commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day, the village square was filled with events ranging from an 82nd Airborne ceremony to several C-130J Super Hercules flyovers. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Kristof J. Rixmann)