On May 13, 1948, a C-54G transport plane took off from Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts on a training mission in preparation for the Berlin Airlift. The crew of three were World War II veterans continuing their service in the Air Force.

Barely an hour into the flight, the plane nosed over and crashed almost vertically into a farm field in Northampton, Massachusetts killing all aboard.

In October of 1998, a committee was formed to build a permanent memorial to the victims of this crash and to all those men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their country.

These pictures show the result of their efforts. The stainless steel obelisk is capped with a model of the C-54 and flanked by wing-shaped extensions. The fourteen-foot monument stands before a five-pointed star in a tinted concrete base. Marble benches and plantings complete the roadside setting. The monument cost was $20,000.

The monument overlooks the crash site and, just 150 feet away, a flagpole marks the point of impact. It is a point of pride that the metal elements of the monument were all fabricated by Northampton's Smith Vocational High School students.

The monument was dedicated on June 19, 1999 before a large crowd with representatives of all three crew members' families in attendance.