HRH Crown Prince Alexander attended today the commemoration of the Halyard Operation and laid a wreath at the monument on Galovica Field Airport near Pranjani. His Royal Highness was accompanied by Mr. Predrag Marković, member of the Crown Council.
The ceremony was also attended by HE Maja Gojkovic, Vice President and the Minister of Culture in the Serbian Government, HE Christopher R. Hill, the Ambassador of the United States of America to Serbia, HE Edward Ferguson, Ambassador of United Kingdom to Serbia, Mr. Nemanja Starovic, State Secretary in the Ministry of Defense of Serbia, representatives of armed forces of Serbia and USA, Mr. John Cappello, President of the Halyard Mission Foundation, members of the Kingdom of Serbia Association and numerous citizens. After the commemoration at the old airport, a church service for the heroes of this mission was performed, and afterward, all guests visited the school in Pranjani.
“On the wreath which I laid today, it was written: “To heroes of Halyard Mission, brave soldiers of Yugoslav Army in Homeland”. The heroism of our soldiers, members of the Royal Army, who risked their lives to save allied pilots is something that we must never forget. The airmen who were rescued in Serbia during the Halyard Mission were often referred to as “Forgotten 500”. It is because the truth about this magnificent operation was kept in darkness and forbidden to be revealed for so long. But the truth can never be hidden, and the fighting for its unveiling can be hard, but that struggle is always righteous.
That is why the pilots who were rescued are not actually forgotten. And neither are all those brave women and men, who, under the command of their fearless leader, General Dragoljub Mihailovic, and my father, HM King Peter II as Supreme Commander of the Army, started and successfully conducted the operation of saving their allies. Their bravery and determination to live in a free world are a milestone that shows us the path for the future”, said Crown Prince Alexander on this occasion.
During Operation Halyard in 1944, over 500 United States and British pilots, together with aircrews from Russia, France, and other Allied countries, were taken to freedom from an improvised airstrip in the Village of Pranjani near Gornji Milanovac. This was one of the largest rescue missions conducted behind enemy lines. It was an operation led by the Royal Yugoslav Army in the Homeland and the American Office of Strategic Services (OSS). United States President Harry S. Truman decorated posthumously General Dragoljub Mihailovic with the Legion of Merit, one of the highest decorations of the United States, for his support to Allied forces and contribution to victory in World War II.
