The National World War II Museum will celebrate Armed Forces Day on Saturday, May 15, 2007, with free admission for all veterans. The Museum, in partnership with the Mayor’s Military Advisory Committee, will also host a full day of performances and programs that are open to the public, plus displays and presentations from all service branches.
As fighting came to an end in 1945, people the world over faced for the first time the unprecedented extent of destruction and loss of life caused by World War II. As the costs of victory came into devastating focus, the diplomatic responses, rising global tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union, and social disruption that followed in the aftermath of this conflict showed that World War II was truly "the war that changed the world."
More than 14,000 African American men served in the US Army Air Forces in segregated units during World War II. Only about 1,000 of them were pilots. Many others, like Louisiana native Albert Porche, filled vital support roles which kept the famed Red Tails flying in Italy.
This Veterans Day, The National WWII Museum debuts its latest immersive exhibit that unfolds on a stationary train modeled after the iconic Pullman sleeper cars of the 1940s, allowing guests to experience the sights, sounds and emotions of going off to war. The Train Car Experience is housed in the Museum’s Louisiana Memorial Pavilion and re-creates the wartime departures of America’s service men and women, who embarked on journeys that would change their lives.