81st Anniversary of Operation Halyard Commemorated

Brigadier General Joseph Locke stated that Operation Halyard is a testament to the bravery of the Serbian people and to Serbian-American friendship.

“Eighty-one years ago, an impressive story of courage, determination, and cooperation was born. A story that still inspires and resonates today. Operation Halyard is an example of strength forged through partnership in the face of great danger. The Office of Strategic Services, the predecessor of the Special Operations Command, joined forces with Serbian troops to carry out Operation Halyard—also known as the ‘Air Bridge’. Over several months, from August to December, this mission became the largest Allied airmen rescue operation in history,” Locke said.

He reminded everyone that over 500 airmen were evacuated to safety, and that the operation was carried out without a single loss of life or aircraft.

“The success of Operation Halyard was built on three fundamental pillars—courage, ingenuity, and cooperation—and these are qualities I want to emphasize even today. This operation was fundamentally rooted in the exceptional bravery of the Serbian people. Faced with unimaginable risks under Nazi occupation and threats from collaborators, they chose to hide and protect hundreds of Allied airmen, endangering their own lives and the safety of their families—despite the constant threat of terror, torture, and death,” Locke concluded.

Operation Halyard also stands as a testament to the friendship between the Serbian and American peoples, and to the character of the Serbian nation—risking their lives to save others in the darkest of times.

Printscreen: Newsmax Balkans

Dejan Kovacevic, mayor of Pranjani, said that thanks to the courage and hospitality of the Serbian people and the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland, in cooperation with American intelligence and military services, an airstrip was built at Galovic Field, from which hundreds of American and British airmen and other Allied personnel were safely evacuated.

“As the skies over the Balkans became a battlefield between the Allies and the Nazis in those months, Pranjani and nearby villages became a gathering center for downed Allied airmen in the spring of 1944. Despite wartime poverty and Nazi reprisals, the people of this region welcomed and cared for the airmen. These heroes, descendants of those who built and defended the Serbian state, risked their lives and shared what little they had. Their sacrifice will remain etched in the memory not only of this region but of the entire freedom-loving nation,” Kovacevic said.

He emphasized that it is our responsibility to remember their immortal deeds, to honor them, and to live in the way they taught us—with honor and freedom.

Thanks to the Serbian and American peoples, history has not been forgotten—nor has the bravery of Serbian villagers who, from August to December 1944, saved hundreds of young American soldiers shot down from the skies over Serbia.

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