Remembering Our Nation's Heroes – Arlington National Cemetery, Iwo Jima & The Air Force Memorial

This tour begins with a stop at Arlington National Cemetery, where the sight of some two hundred thousand identical headstones uniformly placed on a hillside of 612 acres overlooks the Potomac River. Tour these hallowed grounds on the Tourmobile tram where your guide will share with you the many stories of the fallen heroes who were our American casualties of war.

Next, view the powerful Eternal Flame that illuminates the inspiring and somber gravesites of President John F. Kennedy, his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Robert Kennedy. The tour continues on to The Tomb of the Unknowns, a moving site guarded 24 hours a day and a monument to those fallen American soldiers that remain unknown. Witness the impressive "Changing of the Guard" ceremony performed with perfect precision by a team of Marines, which takes place hourly at the tomb.

Then it will be on to the Iwo Jima Memorial (United States Marine Corp Memorial.) This memorial is dedicated to all marines that have given their lives in battle. The memorial was brought to Washington, DC in 1954 and dedicated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on the 179th Anniversary of the US Marine Corp. On the base of the memorial are inscribed all of the major Marine Corps engagements since its founding in 1775.

The final stop on the tour will be the newly erected Air Force Memorial. Dedicated in October of 2006, it honors the millions of men and women who have served in the United States Air Force. The design of the Air Force Memorial symbolizes flight and the flying spirit with three stainless steel spires that soar 270 feet high and represent contrails of the Air Force Thunderbirds as they disperse in a "bomb burst" maneuver. The United States Air Force "star" is embedded in granite beneath the spires. The Memorial also has a paved Runway to Glory at the entrance, an 8 foot tall bronze Honor Guard statue, two granite inscription walls, and a Glass Contemplation Wall for visitors to pay tribute to fallen airmen.