Sgt Richard E. Owen, NCO of “E” Company, 506th PIR 101st Airborne Division, took off from Uppottery, UK on a combat drop as part of Operation Albany. While over Sainte-Mere-Eglise the plane was hit by AA fire, causing one of the engines to burst into flames. The pilot tried to land the plane in a field by the RN13 but it clipped a hedgerow and exploded, killing everyone aboard. The wreck burned for three days. No bodies were ever found and vegetation hasn’t grown on the crash site to this day. Owen’s unit was represented in the TV series Band of Brothers. His Purple Heart certificate and picture turned up in a Salvation Army store, causing a long, extensive, and ultimately successful search for his family to be conducted.