NORMANDY, France –
U.S. Naval Forces Europe (NAVEUR) concluded its week-long commemoration of the 81st anniversary of Operation Overlord, also known as D-Day, June 6, 2025. NAVEUR’s D-Day 81 commemoration aligned with the Navy's 250th birthday year, a milestone celebrating the U.S. Navy’s enduring commitment to service and community.
During this remembrance week, NAVEUR hosted various events across the Normandy region in France aimed at emphasizing the maritime contribution to D-Day and honoring the sacrifices of U.S. and Allied service members.
Key themes highlighted throughout the week include the U.S. Navy’s contributions to D-Day, the sacrifices of all Allied service members, and the enduring and critical relationship between the United States and France, and all Allied partners.
“It is our responsibility, the responsibility of every citizen in the Alliance to stand vigilant, to protect the peace that has been so dearly bought,” said Adm. Stuart B. Munsch, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa.
NAVEUR’s D-Day 81 commemoration kicked off with the arrival of Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116) in Cherbourg, France, June 1, 2025. Thomas Hudner’s transit from Portsmouth, U.K. across the English Channel paid tribute to the Allied Sailors who crossed those very waters during Operation Overlord, launching the largest amphibious invasion in history 81 years ago.
Cmdr. Cameron Ingram, commanding officer of USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116), said, “USS Thomas Hudner and its crew are honored to represent the U.S. Navy for the 81st commemoration of D-Day. Over the last several months we’ve had the opportunity to conduct bilateral and multinational operations, which are a testament to the enduring relationship between our nations and the partnership forged out of Operation Overlord and Operation Neptune.”
On June 3, NAVEUR hosted its inaugural Naval History Symposium, focusing on Operation Neptune—the maritime component of Operation Overlord—and spotlighting the pivotal roles played by the U.S. Navy and Allied forces in the largest amphibious assault in history. Discussions explored strategic innovation, joint force integration, and the complex planning critical to D-Day’s success. By re-examining Operation Neptune through a modern lens, the symposium fostered dialogue on current maritime security challenges including the vital importance of shipbuilding to maritime power and reaffirmed the enduring relevance of historical insights.
Munsch reflected on four areas of Operation Overlord and relayed them to today’s warfighting strategy. The four areas Munsch touched on were planning, adaptive decision making in operations highlighted by the second bombardment by naval forces during D-Day, leaders’ decisions and their impact on the success of D-Day, and populations’ decisions on how to interpret and value D-Day over the course of time.
Munsch said, “On the importance of studying D-Day in terms of decision making, it’s not just the facts and figures and the events themselves, but to wrap them up in the decisions that were made; to help build your own intuition over time, based on the circumstances others faced and how you now would decide things.”
Following the Naval History Symposium, the NAVEUR/NAVAF Band performed a ‘United in our Victory’ concert in the historic town square of Sainte-Mère-Église.
The highlight of the concert was the premiere of Sailor Mettle and Ship Metal: Courage, Crossing, and Bombardment on D-Day—a musical work composed for the 81st anniversary of D-Day by Musician First Class Brian Sadler. Commissioned by Munsch and conducted by Lt. Cmdr. Luslaida Barbosa, the piece was created to honor the courage, unity, and sacrifice of the Allied forces who launched the historic invasion of Normandy. Its worldwide debut performance served as a moving tribute to those who made Operation Overlord possible.
During the commemoration, NAVEUR also hosted a commander’s conference aboard the USS Thomas Hudner with naval leaders from France, Germany, Poland, and the United Kingdom, paying tribute to the Southwick House Talks of June 1944 where the invasion decisions were made. The discussions by current naval commanders assembled involved the changing character of war and developments in robotic autonomous systems at sea. Later that evening, the ship held a reception, bringing together senior military leaders from the U.S. and its Allies to address current and future security challenges and reaffirm their shared commitment to collective defense and cooperation.
Munsch said the D-Day landings revealed how one ship’s bold action could change the outcome, recalling how USS Frankford, without prompting, closed to within 800 yards of Omaha Beach to begin a second bombardment to break enemy resistance, prompting other destroyers to follow and helping to get Allied soldiers advancing again.
“Just as one person can make a difference, one ship can make a difference,” said Munsch as he addressed the crew of Thomas Hudner, recalling the ship’s namesake, a Medal of Honor recipient, and USS Frankford. “And today, I know I’ll be able to count on Thomas Hudner as being that ship.”
On the morning of June 5, Munsch spoke during a tribute to Gen. Eisenhower in the town of Bayeux. After the Mayor of Sainte-Mère-Église shared a moving letter from Susan Eisenhower, granddaughter of Gen. Eisenhower, Adm. Munsch delivered his remarks. He cited the many acts of courage on D-Day as being inspiration for us to be, “courageous in trust in one another and the Alliance, courageous in deterring aggression, and courageous in defending every inch of NATO territory.”
That afternoon, NAVEUR hosted the Lone Sailor Memorial Ceremony on Utah Beach, in Sainte-Marie-du-Mont to honor the extraordinary bravery of those who came ashore on June 6, 1944 and pay tribute to the legacy of the sea services.
The NAVEUR/NAVAF Band opened the ceremony with 'Trust, Deter, Defend,' an original composition commissioned by Munsch and designated as the command’s official march. Munsch delivered remarks and laid a wreath at the base of the Lone Sailor statue in celebration of the largest seaborne invasion in history—a monumental feat that broke the chains of tyranny and helped secure the peace that is cherished today.
Munsch shared the story of Seaman First Class Eugene E. Oxley of the U.S. Coast Guard, who demonstrated extraordinary bravery as a landing craft crewmember. He noted there were many undocumented acts of bravery by Sailors that day, and as Adm. Chester W. Nimitz said, “a time when uncommon valor was a common virtue, [and so] their actions seemed commonplace.”
The Lone Sailor Memorial concluded with a walk-out to the beach where the local community, Normandy visitors, Sailors from Thomas Hudner, and ceremony participants joined Munsch in a moment of silence to honor the Sailors and Allied forces who gave their lives on that very beach and across the battlefields of Normandy in the fight for freedom.
Additionally on June 6, Munsch laid a wreath during a ceremony at the Normandy American Cemetery, the final resting place for approximately 10,000 U.S. service members.
The weeks’ events highlighted the importance of the naval contribution to the success of D-Day and, looking forward, further advanced close relations between the U.S. and France, the host nation, and all other Allies in attendance.
Concluding NAVEUR’s week of remembrance and focus on seapower, Munsch stated that the 81st anniversary of D-Day serves as a reminder of the shared sacrifices made on these seas and shores and as an inspiration for courageous decisions in deterring and defending against aggression.