Trump's military parade: No tanks but period uniforms and aircraft

ByELIZABETH MCLAUGHLIN ABCNews logo
Monday, March 12, 2018

A military parade ordered by President Donald Trump will take place on Veterans Day, according to a memo for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford.

The memo directs the use of period uniforms and a lot of aircraft, but says there will be no tanks so as to "minimize damage to local infrastructure."

"This parade will focus on the contributions of our veterans throughout our history of the U.S. military, starting from the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, to today, with an emphasis on the price of freedom," the memo said.

It was sent to the Joint Chiefs chairman from Navy Capt. Hallock Mohler, executive secretary in the office of the Secretary of Defense.

President Trump first mentioned the idea of a grand parade after attending France's Bastille Day parade last summer. Then, in February, he asked the Pentagon to begin planning for such a parade to take place in the U.S.

The memo states that there will be no tanks used in the parade, only wheeled vehicles in order to "minimize damage to local infrastructure." There is also a request to "include a heavy air component at the end of the parade, to include older aircraft as available."

The parade, which will go from the White House to the Capitol, will also be integrated with the annual Washington, D.C. Veterans Day parade on Nov. 11 and will include the Medal of Honor Association and other veterans service organizations.

Last month, White House budget director Mick Mulvaney gave a preliminary estimate of the parade's cost to the House Budget Committee of between $10 to $30 million.

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