CAF Ready 4 Duty, Navy to Normandy Update

Dallas, Tx (May 30, 2024) -
Dear Ready 4 Duty Friends, Supporters, and Partners,

As you may know, the invasion of France was postponed on the eve of D-Day due to forecasted poor weather. In the end, the delay was just one day, from June 5 to June 6. But it was a gut-wrenching 24 hours for General Eisenhower because a longer delay would start to unravel months of careful planning and preparation, jeopardizing the viability of the whole operation. Fortunately, that didn’t happen.

Our own aspirations, regrettably, have followed a less fortunate path. After two weeks of delays in Connecticut, our well thought out planning and preparations for the D-Day and Navy to Normandy Tours have unraveled to the point that there is no other choice than to abort the mission and return to home base in Texas to regroup.

Words cannot express our heartbreak and disappointment. Words cannot also express how deeply grateful we are for the enthusiasm, time and support that so many of you have given. Your encouragement and contributions have sustained our crew members as they battled through adversity and fatigue these last few weeks. This is not the ending we had hoped for, but this is also not the end. We cheer on the D-Day Squadron and our sister CAF aircraft, That’s All, Brother, as they commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

We also remain committed to telling the story of the U.S. Navy in World War II in new and exciting ways with the unique platform that is Ready 4 Duty. Will there be another effort to bring the U.S. Navy back to Normandy in the near future? Stay tuned.

With gratitude and admiration,
Christopher Volpe
Wing Leader
DFW Wing, Commemorative Air Force