ATLANTA, United States (AP) — Americans marked a Memorial Day like no other yesterday as the coronavirus pandemic upended traditional commemorations and forced communities to honour the nation's military dead with smaller, more subdued ceremonies like car convoys and online tributes instead of parades.

American Legion Post 316 Commander Julian Windham recognised military members aiding in the global fight against the virus.

Fallen military members were honoured in New York City with car convoys and small ceremonies this year rather than parades to conform with lockdown restrictions.

On New York's Long Island, a small group of veterans saluted, wearing masks and spaced several feet apart, as a parade of cars passed beneath a large American flag.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo joined a private ceremony at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in Manhattan, with both the sacrifices of military members and the current challenge of coronavirus on his mind.