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BATTLEFIELD, THEY
DIDN'T GET MUCH
FANFARE...BUT NOW,
OVER 65 YEARS LATER,
THEIR STORIES OF
COURAGE AND VALOR
ARE FINALLY BEING
TOLD.
I HAD THE HONOR OF
SITTING DOWN WITH
ONE OF THE TRUE
HEROES OF WORLD
WAR TWO, A HUMBLE
MAN WHO QUIETLY
ACCOMPLISHED ONE OF
THE GREATEST FEATS
IN MILITARY HISTORY.
THESE ARE THE HANDS
THAT WON WORLD WAR
TWO. THEY BELONG TO
GEORGE KERCHNER...
NOW 92 YEARS OLD....
67 YEARS AGO, HE WAS
AN ARMY LIEUTENANT
IN THE TOUGH-AS-NAILS
SECOND RANGER
BATTALION...
GEORGE: I HEARD
ABOUT RANGERS, I SAW
THE RANGERS, AND I
SAID "THAT'S FOR ME!
NATS OF WAVES
CRASHING
ON JUNE 6TH, 1944... D-
DAY... KERCHNER
HEADED ACROSS THE
CHOPPY ENGLISH
CHANNEL--, UNDER THE
COMMAND OF LT.
COLONEL JAMES
RUDDER. THEIR
DESTINATION WAS
POINTE DU HOC... A
DAUNTING CLIFF ON
THE RUGGED COAST OF
NORMANDY FRANCE. AT
THE TOP, BIG GERMAN
GUNS THAT RANGED 15
MILES, CAPABLE OF
HITTING UTAH BEACH
TO THE WEST AND
OMAHA BEACH TO THE
EAST. BY THE TIME HIS
BOOTS HIT THE SAND,
HIS TWO SUPERIOR
OFFICERS WERE DEAD..
. LT. KERCHNER WAS
SUDDENLY IN
COMMAND.
I IMMEDIATELY TOLD
COLONEL RUDDER I
WAS TAKING COMMAND
OF THE COMPANY, AND
HE TOLD ME GET THE
HELL BACK WITH YOUR
MEN AND CLIMB THAT
CLIFF!
BUT áTHAT CLIFF WAS
125 FEET HIGH... AND
HEAVILY DEFENDED.
WELL, I WENT BACK TO
WHERE THE MEN WERE
AND I STARTED GOING
UP THAT CLIFF... AND
WE CAME UNDER FIRE
FROM A MACHINE GUN
OFF TO THE LEFT... AND
I REMEMBER TWO MEN
THAT WERE HIT AND I
LEFT THEM DOWN AT
THE BOTTOM OF THE
CLIFF AND I STARTED
TO GO UP THE CLIFFS....
DESPITE ROPES THAT
WERE SLIPPERY FROM
OILY SEAWATER,
THOSE POWERFUL
HANDS PULLED
KERCHNER TO THE
TOP. HE HEADED FOR
WHERE THE GERMAN'S
BIG GUNS WERE
áSUPPOSED TO BE----
BUT THEY'D BEEN
MOVED!!
SO I FELT PRETTY
DISAPPOINTED WHEN
WE GOT THERE AND
THERE WEREN'T ANY
GUNS
BUT THE RANGERS
FOUND THE GUNS
FURTHER INLAND AND
TOOK THEM OUT WITH
THERMITE GRENADES.
AND MILITARY
HISTORIANS SAY áTHAT
WAS THE KEY TO THE
ENTIRE INVASION.
ANDY: THIS WAS
CRITICAL.. BECAUSE IF
WE LOOK BACK TO OUR
RIGHT WE CAN SEE
UTAH BEACH.. THE
GERMAN GUNS COULD
VERY EASILY RANGE
UTAH BEACH FROM
HERE AND IN THE
OTHER DIRECTION IS
OMAHA BEACH, SO
THESE GERMAN GUNS,
LOCATED RIGHT HERE
AT POINT DU HOC,
WOULD HAVE BEEN
ABLE TO RANGE EITHER
ONE OF THOSE
BEACHES AND THAT'S
WHY THE ALLIED
PLANNERS FELT IT WAS
ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL
THAT THESE GUNS BE
KNOCKED OUT
BUT SUCCESS HAD
COME AT A HEAVY
PRICE... 225 RANGERS
STARTED UP THE
CLIFFS... ONLY 90 MADE
IT.
I CAME UPON ONE OF
MY MEN WHO WAS
VERY SERIOUSLY
WOUNDED... IN FACT,
WHILE WE WERE
THERE, HE STARTED
TO RISE UP, AND HE
COLLAPSED AND HE
DIED
FOR HIS HEROICS,
GEORGE KERCHNER
WON THE
DISTINGUISHED
SERVICE CROSS.
I WAS SURPRISED,
BECAUSE I DIDN'T THINK
I DID ANYTHING THAT
HEROIC
WHEN THE NEWS HIT
HOME, KERCHNER WAS
THE PRIDE OF HIS
NATIVE BALTIMORE.
DESPITE ALL OF THE
ACCOLADES, TO THIS
DAY GEORGE
KERCHNER REMAINS
HUMBLE ABOUT THE
CRUCIAL ROLE HE
PLAYED IN D-DAY... BUT
REALIZES JUST HOW
IMPORTANT IT WAS
THAT THE RANGERS
COMPLETED THEIR
MISSION.
OH, I THINK IT WAS
AWFULLY IMPORTANT...
VERY IMPORTANT....
I KNEW THAT NOBODY
BUT THE RANGERS
COULD HAVE DONE
WHAT WE DID ...
GEORGE KERCHNER
TOLD ME THAT EXCEPT
FOR REUNIONS, HE
DOESN'T THINK ABOUT
THAT TIME OF HIS LIFE
VERY OFTEN .. MANY
OF THE MEMORIES ARE
DIFFICULT,,, AND HE
SAYS THAT WAS THE
LAST INTERVIEW HE'LL
DO.
AMAZING MAN.
WE'RE WORKING TO
HONOR NORTH
CAROLINA WORLD WAR
TWO VETERANS ON THE
TRIAD FLIGHT OF
HONOR.
OUR NEXT FLIGHT OF
100 VETERANS TAKES
OFF THIS COMING
SATURDAY MORNING
FROM P-T-I AIRPORT.
THE PUBLIC IS
ENCOURAGED TO COME
OUT TO THE AIRPORT
AROUND EIGHT PM TO
WELCOME HOME THE
VETS WHEN THEIR
PLANE RETURNS.
TOMORROW WILL
MARK ONE WEEK SINCE
A TORNADO CAUSED
SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE
IN SURRY COUNTY.
AND THE CLEAN UP OF
DAMAGE FROM THE
HIGH WINDS
CONTINUES.
TODAY WE SPOTTED
TREE CREWS AND
POWER CREWS
WORKING TO PICK UP
THE PIECES.
AN E-F-ONE TORNADO
TORE A PATH OF
DESTRUCTION FIVE-
MILES LONG IN THE
PILOT MOUNTAIN AND
ARARAT COMMUNITIES.
HIGH WINDS TOPPLED
A CHIMNEY INTO A
HOME AND KNOCKED
DOWN NUMEROUS
TREES.
LUCKILY...NO ONE WAS
HURT.