Remembering D-Day: Part 3 - The Allied Invasion

The attack on Normandy began with the Royal Air Force attacking coastal targets. More than 1,000 bombers tried to knock out the fixed positions of Hitler's Atlantic Wall and also tried to make craters in the beach areas for troops to take cover when they landed.

This was followed by 18,000 paratroopers being dropped farther inland. Their target was to capture key bridges and roads to cut the Germans supply lines and cut communications. These troops, the British Sixth Airborne Division, succeeded in capturing bridges at the Orne River and the Caen Canal.

American paratroopers, the 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions, missed their drop zone and became scattered. Many landed in the water and drowned. However, this dispersion confused the Germans. It also meant that troops were isolated and easier to kill or capture.

Another help to the paratroopers was the use of dummies. These were life sized mannequins dressed as soldiers and dropped away from Normandy to confuse the Germans. It helped keep the actual landing area a surprise.

German U-boats had laid mines throughout the English Channel, so minesweepers cleared lanes for the transports to reach to French beaches. The beaches ranged anywhere from 60 to 100 miles away from the British ports. Nearly 7,000 ships departed from ports in Portsmouth, Southampton, Chichester, and Falmouth. Fifty-nine convoys that included 4,000 landing craft, 7 battleships, 23 cruisers, and 104 destroyers headed for France.

German torpedo boats near Le Havre were the first to encounter the Allies. Soon, coastal batteries began firing at them. The Allied warships began firing heavily. They fired at the beaches, destroyed bunkers, set off land mines, and destroyed beach obstacles.

It was early when the first troops hit the beaches. At around 6:30 a.m., 23,000 men stormed onto Utah Beach. There was little opposition and they were able to secure it within a few hours. This allowed for additional troops and supplies to come ashore without being under heavy fire.