From the hedgerows of Normandy across the rivers of northern France and into the dense forests of the Hürtgen and the Ardennes, Royal Air Force (RAF) and US Army Air Forces (USAAF) aircraft cleared the way for the advance of the Allied ground armies. 

Concessions in diplomatic negotiations were nothing new, but after Munich, appeasement took on a new meaning. 

The Douglas C-47 became the mainstay for airborne drops and were used in this role extensively for Operations Overlord, Dragoon, Market Garden, and Varsity.

World War II was a global conflict involving nearly every country in the world. But who was on each side—and why?

Originally designated Operation Anvil and intended to support the hammer blow of the Normandy landings two months earlier, the renamed Operation Dragoon fulfilled an American desire for a lodgment in southern France that shifted forces from the strategic cul-de-sac of Italy.

A young New Zealander airman receives a Victoria Cross for his daring feats. 

Frank Kameny saw combat in Europe during the war, only to return home to face discrimination from the very country he served.

Though they resisted in many ways, Amsterdam’s Jewish population suffered immensely in World War II. 

Technical Sergeant Garland Kerlec used the bomb fuse tags to make a sort of diary of his combat flights, recording the date, target, as well as some commentary on the nature of the mission.

At this free daylong public symposium, guests heard from leading historians on the challenges, battles, and victories that followed the June 6 Allied landings and made the liberation of Europe from Nazi oppression possible.

On June 5, 13,400 American paratroopers boarded C-47 aircraft for the largest airborne operation in history. Problems began as they crossed into France. 

In May 1944, the Western Allies were finally prepared to deliver their greatest blow of the war, the long-delayed, cross-channel invasion of northern France, code-named Overlord.