'Let us remember those who fell, honour those who came home to build a better world & ensure their sacrifice was not in vain'

A LONE piper played a haunting tribute as dawn broke over the Normandy beaches yesterday before tens of thousands of people marked the 81st anniversary of the D-Day landings.

- BY ANDY LINES Chief Reporter

Veterans were applauded at a series of emotional ceremonies to pay their respects to the thousands of Allied troops killed on June 6, 1944. Only a handful of survivors, most in their late 90s and in wheelchairs, were able to attend.

Along the coastline and near the landing beaches, people watched parachute jumps, flyovers, remembrance ceremonies, parades and historical reenactments.

British commandos swapped gifts with French schoolchildren.

Defence Secretary John Healey paid tribute to those who died and chatted with the heroic veterans in Ver-sur-Mer, northern France. Lt Gen Jason Hinds, deputy commander of US Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa, said: "The heroism, honour and sacrifice of the Allied forces on D-Day will always resonate with the US Armed Forces and our Allies and partners across Europe.

"So let us remember those who flew and fell. Let us honour those who survived and came home to build a better world. And let us ensure that their sacrifice was not in vain by meeting today's challenges with the same resolve, clarity of purpose, and commitment to freedom."