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⚔️ D-Day: US Airborne Operations, Sainte-Mere-Eglise,
6 June 1944

As a former 82nd Airborne Division paratrooper, the town of Sainte-Mere Eglise in the Cotentin Peninsula of Normandy holds a special place for me. In the early hours of 6 June 1944, ahead of the Normandy Beach landings, the US 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions parachuted into this area. The 82nd was to seize the crossings over the Merderet River and the major road junction at Sainte-Mere Eglise, while the 101st was to seize key towns and the four beach exits in support of the landings at Utah Beach.

Against All Odds - 82nd Airborne Division at La Fière, by James Dietz

⚔️ D-Day: Battle for La Fière Causeway,
6-9 June 1944

The final act of Steven Spielberg’s 1998 movie ‘Saving Private Ryan’ is set in the fictional French town of Ramelles, as a mixed group of paratroopers defends a bridge over the Merderet River against German armoured counter-attacks. That scene is based on real events that happened right here at La Fiere Bridge. I was a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division 1996-99, so this place is somewhat of a pilgrimage for me.