Discuss the Units and Serices Involved in the Normandy Landings What units forged their names in blood on the beaches and later in the hard fought roads to Germany?
Nice idea for a thread, Spidge. And I hope people remember to include the Navy(s) and Air Force(s) units too. To kick off here are the names of the Royal Navy personnel killed on D-Day and the week after: http://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1944-06JUN1.htm I had never realised how many Royal Navy Commandoes had been killed on the day itself.
The naval component of the operation, "NEPTUNE", comprised large numbers of warships, auxiliaries and landing craft. In all, 1,213 warships were provided for the invasion. Their main task was to provide shore bombardment firepower for the troops going ashore, to guard the transports, and to conduct minesweeping and antisubmarine patrols on the flanks of the invasion corridor. The navies also provided 4,126 amphibious craft, including a variety specialized landing craft, such as LSTs (Landing Ship, Tank), LCIs (Landing Craft, Infantry), and LCTs (Landing Craft, Tank [Rocket]). More than 3,500 of these landing craft were actually used during the Normandy Invasion. These amphibious craft would provide the crucial troop-carrying capacity to land the thousands of men, vehicles, and artillery along the 50-mile wide target area in the Bay of the Seine. Hundreds of antisubmarine escorts and patrol planes protected the flanks of the assault convoys. Allied gunfire support task groups began bombarding prearranged targets along the beaches in support of the landings.
The RAF & RAN deaths on D-Day. Australians killed in France on D-Day (from the Roll of Honour) Sub-Lieutenant Bruce Valentine Ashton RAN Attached to the Royal Navy Flight Sergeant Malcolm Robert Burgess RAAF 50 SquadronRAF Pilot Officer Albert Lance Coates RAAF 299 Squadron RAF Flight Lieutenant Ronald John Conley DFC RAAF 97 Squadron RAF Flight Sergeant Barry Alan Croft RAAF 299 Squadron RAF Flight Sergeant Leslie John Gilbert DFM RAAF 299 Squadron RAF Flight Sergeant George John Howard RAAF 181 Squadron RAF Flying Officer Graydon Raymond Howe RAAF 42 Operational Training Unit RAF Pilot Officer Harvey Francis Munday RAAF 149 Squadron RAF Squadron Leader Arthur Geoffrey Oxlade RAAF 464 Squadron RAAF Sub-Lieutenant Richard Pirrie RAN Attached to the Royal Navy Flying Officer Alfred Ernest Roberts RAAF 164 Squadron RAF Pilot Officer Roland Gilbert Ward RAAF 50 Squadron RAF Flight Sergeant Gordon Washbourne RAAF 115 Squadron RAF
