Charles N. DeGlopper

2014 The Fort Bragg Air Assault School formally renamed The DeGlopper Air Assault School after Charles N. DeGlopper

Charles DeGlopper's sacrifice is also mentioned in the D-Day episode of the TV documentary, "Road to Victory" (2011), narrated by historian Ellwood von Seibold.

On June 9, 2002, on the island community of Grand Island, New York, the Charles DeGlopper VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) Post #9249 dedicated a new headstone on the grave of the island's native son, Charles N. DeGlopper, C Company, 325th Glider Infantry. The new marker recognizes the fact that Charles DeGlopper was awarded the Medal of Honor after his death during the Normandy invasion.

For his self-sacrificial actions, Private First Class Charles DeGlopper posthumously received the Medal of Honor on February 28, 1946, the only member of the 82nd Airborne Division so honored in Normandy.

Charles N. DeGlopper entered the United States Army in November 1942. He trained at Camp Croft, South Carolina. He was deployed overseas in April 1943, where he served in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and France. He was ultimately killed in action on June 9, 1944 in La Fière, Manche, Normandy, France.

In the late evening of June 6, 1944, the 82nd Airborne's glider troops began to arrive in France staged from Aldermaston airfield, each involving hundreds of CG-4 Waco and Airspeed Horsa gliders and managed in code-named phases denoted: Mission Keokuk, Mission Elmira, and the final two glider landings were scheduled for June 7, 1944 during the morning hours in Missions Galveston and Hackensack which brought in the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment (325th GIR). Mission Galveston arrived in two serials of fifty gliders each and while the first had something of a disastrous landing, the second fared slightly better, but less than 50% of their equipment was recoverable. Mission Hackensack, the last to arrive, brought in the remaining 1,300 glidermen of the 325th GIR and their equipment. Also arriving in two serials, the gliders began landing on the 7th at 0900 in broad daylight. Despite the apparent destruction on the ground, the operation was a great success with most of the troops and nearly all of their equipment getting delivered to the battlefield. Nearly 90% of the 325th GIR's men were assembled within a few hours of landing and moved towards Chef-du-Pont.

Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Co. C, 325th Glider Infantry, 82d Airborne Division. Place and date: Merderet River at la Fiere, France, June 9, 1944. Entered service at: Grand Island, N.Y. Birth: Grand Island, N.Y. G.O. No.: 22, February 28, 1946.

A Grand Island, New York native, DeGlopper was the only soldier from the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment to receive the Medal of Honor. He was also the only World War II soldier from the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army to receive the award for action during the Normandy Campaign.

The physical training field between the barracks of 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment (the modern-day descendant of the Glider Infantry Regiment) is named DeGlopper Field

Charles Neilans DeGlopper (November 30, 1921–June 9, 1944) was a soldier of the United States Army who posthumously received the Medal of Honor, the highest award of the U.S. military, for his heroic actions and sacrifice of life during the early stages of the Battle of Normandy in World War II.