Memorial Day Tradition Returns to Full Capacity at Intrepid Museum

A time-honored tradition designed to honor service members who made the ultimate sacrifice returned in full force at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.

Veterans and active members of the armed forces joined Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams at the annual Memorial Day commemoration ceremony on Pier 86.

Soldier and sailors who served in the past and present paid a quiet tribute to those who never made it home.

Elected officials in attendance spoke alongside military officials to underscore the turbulence and unrest that seem to dominate headlines, from a war in Europe, to the smoldering pandemic to mass shootings at home.

“We’ll protect our rights at home and abroad and stand firm against terror abroad and as we’ve seen in my hometown domestic terrorism,” Hochul said.

“As our national anthem states: ‘bombs burst in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.’ We’re not only taking about physical bombs. Talking about bombs of crisis uncertainty and turmoil,” Adams said.

The ceremony honored fallen soldiers with the unfurling of a 100-foot American flag and the laying of ceremonial wreaths.

Then came the rifle salute and military flyover.