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Yahoo
18 minutes ago
- Yahoo
D-Day veteran and TikTok star ‘Papa Jake' Larson dies aged 102
D-Day veteran 'Papa Jake' Larson, who survived German gunfire in the June 1944 Normandy landings and went on to garner 1.2 million followers on TikTok late in life by sharing stories to commemorate the Second World War and his fallen comrades, has died at 102. An animated speaker who charmed strangers young and old with his quick smile and generous hugs, the self-described country boy from Minnesota was 'cracking jokes till the end', his granddaughter wrote while announcing his death. Tributes to the veteran quickly filled his Story Time With Papa Jake TikTok account from across the US, where he had been living in Lafayette, California. Towns around Normandy, still grateful to Allied forces who helped defeat the occupying Nazis in the Second World War, paid homage to him too. 'Our beloved Papa Jake has passed away on July 17 at 102 years young,' granddaughter McKaela Larson posted on his social media accounts. 'He went peacefully.' 'As Papa would say, love you all the mostest,' she wrote. Born on December 20 1922 in Owatonna, Minnesota, Mr Larson enlisted in the National Guard in 1938, lying about his age as he was only 15 at the time. In 1942, he was sent overseas and was stationed in Northern Ireland. He became operations sergeant and assembled the planning books for the invasion of Normandy. Mr Larson was among the nearly 160,000 Allied troops who stormed the Normandy shore on D-Day, June 6 1944, surviving machine-gun fire when he landed on Omaha Beach. He made it unhurt to the cliffs that overlook the beach, then studded with German gun emplacements that mowed down American soldiers. 'We are the lucky ones,' Mr Larson told The Associated Press (AP) at the 81st anniversary of D-Day in June. 'We are their family. We have the responsibility to honour these guys who gave us a chance to be alive.' Mr Larson went on to fight through the Battle of the Bulge, a gruelling month-long fight in Belgium and Luxembourg that was one of the defining moments of the war and of Hitler's defeat. His service earned him a Bronze Star and a French Legion of Honour award. In recent years, Mr Larson made repeated trips to Normandy for D-Day commemorations — and at every stop, 'Papa Jake' was greeted by people asking for a selfie. In return, he offered up big hugs. One memorable encounter came in 2023, when he came across Bill Gladden, a then-99-year-old British veteran who survived a glider landing on D-Day and a bullet that tore through his ankle. 'I want to give you a hug, thank you. I got tears in my eyes. We were meant to meet,' Mr Larson told Mr Gladden, their hands clasped tightly. Mr Gladden died the following year. In his TikTok posts and interviews, Mr Larson combined humorous anecdotes with sombre reminders about the horrors of war. Reflecting to AP on the three years he was in Europe, Mr Larson said he was 'no hero'. Speaking in 2024, he also had a message to world leaders: 'Make peace not war.' He often called himself 'the luckiest man in the world', and expressed awe at all the attention he was getting. 'I'm just a country boy. Now I'm a star on TikTok,' he told AP in 2023. 'I'm a legend! I didn't plan this, it came about.' Small-town museums and groups around Normandy that work to honour D-Day's veterans and fallen shared tributes online to Mr Larson, one of their most loyal visitors. 'He was an exceptional witness and bearer of memory,' the Overlord Museum posted on Facebook. 'He came every year to the museum, with his smile, his humility and his tales that touched all generations. His stories will continue to live. Rest in peace Papa Jake,' it read. 'Thanks for everything.'
Yahoo
18 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Pilot Reassures Terrified Passengers After He Makes 'Aggressive Maneuver' to Avoid a Mid-Air Collision with Another Plane
"This is not normal at all," the pilot said of the incident that took place on July 18NEED TO KNOW A pilot made an 'aggressive maneuver' to avoid a mid-air collision with another aircraft during a July 18 trip from Minneapolis to North Dakota He reassured the plane passengers after he made the unexpected move that all was well "It caught me by surprise. This is not normal at all," the pilot said in a viral TikTokA pilot reassured his terrified plane passengers that all was well after he made an 'aggressive maneuver' to avoid a mid-air collision with another aircraft. In a viral TikTok uploaded on Saturday, July 19, the pilot told travelers that he made the unexpected move during the flight from Minneapolis to Minot, N.D., due to unclear air traffic control instructions as a military airplane flew nearby. "For those of you on the right-hand side, you probably saw the airplane kind of coming at us. Nobody told us about it, and so we continued. There's no radar here, so the tower does everything visually," the pilot explained in the video. He then claimed that he was directed to "report about six miles from the airport" and was instructed to make a specific turn. But when he saw the other aircraft, and told the comptroller, "There's an airplane over there," the pilot said he was told to instead turn in the opposite direction. "By the time we went back to clearance with nowhere, I saw the airplane that was kind of coming on a converging course with us," he continued. The pilot then apologized for the sudden movement of the aircraft, telling plane passengers, "So sorry about the aggressive maneuver." "It caught me by surprise. This is not normal at all," he continued. "I don't know why they didn't give us a heads-up, because the airport base does have radar. And nobody said, 'Hey, there's also a B52 in the pattern.' " "Long story short, it was not fun," added the pilot. "I apologize for it." The TikTok user explained in the caption of her post that the video was captured by her sister on a flight that took place on July 18. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Skywest Airlines confirmed the incident in a statement shared with PEOPLE on Sunday, July 20. 'SkyWest flight 3788, operating as Delta Connection from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Minot, North Dakota on July 18, landed safely in Minot after being cleared for approach by the tower but performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path,' a spokesperson for the airline said. The incident is currently being investigated. Read the original article on People Solve the daily Crossword
Wall Street Journal
an hour ago
- Wall Street Journal
Notable & Quotable: Bull Run
From the last letter of Maj. Sullivan Ballou, 2nd Rhode Island, killed at the First Battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861: If it is necessary that I should fall on the battle-field for any country, I am ready. I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in, the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American civilization now leans upon the triumph of government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution, and I am willing, perfectly willing to lay down all my joys in this life to help maintain this government, and to pay that debt. . . .
