The Norwich Area Veterans Council organized a 75th anniversary memorial ceremony on Saturday for the fallen aviators, Ensigns George Kraus and Merle Longnecker.
The ceremony included a flyover of four Navy F-18 fighter jets from Virginia, which conducted "a missing-man formation" above the Preston Library to salute the two men. Organizer Tom Callinan told FOX61 "I've been trying to get the Navy, since May, to do the flyover. I just found out two days ago it was going to happen. It's just outstanding."
Both men were 22 years old and taking part in a combat training flight in October 1944 above Norwich State Hospital when they crashed into each other.
The council has helped protect the crash sites for more than a decade and put wreaths at the site ever year.