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In August of 1946, the war was supposed to be over. Yet in the skies over Yugoslavia, five Americans lost their lives when their unarmed C-47 transport was shot down by Yugoslav fighters. These were not combatants in a declared war. They were airmen flying a routine supply run from Vienna to Italy, caught in the crossfire of a new world order taking shape. The United States demanded answers, Yugoslavia offered sympathy but no guilt, and the families were left with folded flags. On August 28, their bodies were returned to American custody, a solemn reminder that peace after World War II was not as settled as many believed. This was one of the first tragedies of the Cold War, where alliances frayed and hostility simmered before the world even had a name for it. Today, we remember the men and what their story tells us about the uneasy dawn of that new era.
In August of 1946, the war was supposed to be over. Yet in the skies over Yugoslavia, five Americans lost their lives when their unarmed C-47 transport was shot down by Yugoslav fighters. These were not combatants in a declared war. They were airmen flying a routine supply run from Vienna to Italy, caught in the crossfire of a new world order taking shape. The United States demanded answers, Yugoslavia offered sympathy but no guilt, and the families were left with folded flags. On August 28, their bodies were returned to American custody, a solemn reminder that peace after World War II was not as settled as many believed. This was one of the first tragedies of the Cold War, where alliances frayed and hostility simmered before the world even had a name for it. Today, we remember the men and what their story tells us about the uneasy dawn of that new era.