The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The Airborne Assault Behind Utah Beach (6/5-6/1944) - Nov. 18th, 2003

www.army.mil ^

[Colonel_Flagg]

Glad to hear you're feeling chipper! The sun is out here, it's more or less warm, and life is pretty darn good.

Off to see your other post to me now. :)

[manna]

Hi, SAM. You and your buddies can do all the white water rafting you like. I'll sit right here on the porch with a book. See you when you get back!

[colorado tanker]

This is a great story. I can't read about it without thinking of The Longest Day. Sure it was Hollywood, but still fun. John Wayne as LTC Vandergroot: "Lace it up - tight!"

The public thinks everything military should go according to "plan." In this battle the troops succeeded even though almost nothing went according to plan!

I agree battle stories are understood much better if read with a map. The West Point Atlas of American Wars is commercially available and is a good basic reference. My wife got it for me years ago.

USS Delaware was scrapped per the Washington Naval Treaty. Ah yes, the disarmament treaty that prevented a WWII.

[SAMWolf]

LOL! As long as I can stand and reach the bottom, I'm ok.

[SAMWolf]

I still like "The Longest Day". It was better than a lot of Hollywood movies.

"He's dead, you're wounded and I'm lost. I wonder if all war is like that?"

[colorado tanker]

LOL!

I like this one from BG Norm Cota on Omaha Beach: "I don't have to tell you the story. You all know it. Only two kinds of people are gonna stay on this beach: those that are already dead and those that are gonna die! Now get off your butts! You guys are the Fighting 29th!"

From what I've read, the movie version is pretty close to the truth, with Cota personally organizing and pushing those guys off the beach.

[Light Speed]

34th Photo Recon

The squadron's history states: "Our flying tactics were fairly consistent with those handed down by our sister photo pilots from the 8th Air Force and the early Spitfire photo expertise adapted by the RAF. They were premised upon three principles: first, get the pix home; secondly, in order to accomplish this, fly above the 'ack-ack' (anti-aircraft fire), normally about 30,000 feet; and thirdly, whenever possible, stay above or below the contrail level to help avoid being spotted by the enemy ... the photo 'recce' mission was not a success until the 'product' was returned home and properly processed. Coldly and statistically speaking, the bomber pilot was successful as long as he laid his 'eggs' on his target, even if he didn't return. And as long as the fighter boys safely escorted the 'big babies' to their destination they were at least partially successful. But not so with the photo pilot.

"The first major job facing the 34th was to provide beach photography in the Normandy area to give planners a first-hand picture of what would be facing the invasion armada on D-Day. But the extent of the photography was expanded to include the southern Belgian coast and the entire French coast south to Cherbourg to help lessen the chances of the Germans possibly pinpointing an exact invasion location.

"To enhance the element of surprise," the history continues, "all missions would be flown just above water level from the British coast to target area, hence aircraft would be safely below all enemy radar surveillance and subject to minimum detection. The tradeoff achieved from cloudless conditions would more than make up for the amount of distortion which would be experienced from the oblique photography taken at such extreme low altitudes and speeds of 300-plus mph. Each plane was retrofitted with the installation of right and left side-looking oblique cameras equipped to run continuously with the nose camera, also installed in the oblique position. All missions were flown during time of low tide in order to photograph all underwater obstacles and consequently maximize overall beach photo coverage. Most of these missions were flown between May 6 and 20, 1944. D-Day was June 6."

The history continues: "Lt. Keith (1st Lt. A.R.) drew the very heavily defended coastline of LeHarve and vicinity. Small arms and coastal defenses caused him little or no trouble, but a seagull smashed into his canopy. Keeping his aircraft under control while covered with blood and feathers proved no easy task and left little margin of error at this (low) altitude. Nevertheless, he managed to bring both 'birds' as well as excellent photography home."

To 2nd Lt. G.A.York, the youngest of the original pilots in the squadron, went the plaudits of all. As the D-Day invasion unfolded, it became common knowledge that he had photographed the exact location of the Normandy beaches that the American forces landed on. He had photographed all of Omaha and most of Utah beaches. Like similar low-level missions flown up and down the coast, Garland had pinpointed the beach barriers, teller mines attached to imbedded posts under water during high-water conditions and other coastal defenses in minute detail as well as scattering his share of German soldiers working along the beaches.

In the Presidential Unit Citation and other commendations received by the squadron, it was stressed that the information provided by these aerial photographers saved countless allied ground and naval invasion personnel.

And due credit is also given the marvelous twin-engine, twin-boom P-38. The history states: "For our purpose, in its day, it met our every requirement. Even at the extreme altitudes when cracked magnetos and associated engine failure sometimes seemed more than common, we always had that second engine to bring us home. Our F-5s (a P-38 model) under all conditions really 'brought home the bacon.'"

Jack explained that as soon as an aircraft returned from a mission, it would park for refueling. The film was removed from the cameras and new film installed. (It took less than an hour to develop the film and process prints.) At the same time, Jack and the other flight-line men would check with the pilot for anything needing immediate attention and then give the plane a thorough checkover. "We'd first wash off all the oil" covering much of the aircraft, Jack explained, because the P-38 was notorious for "throwing oil." But that did not affect its performance.

There was a darker side, too. Although no pilots were lost to enemy action, the 34th lost four of its original 18 pilots, while based in England, to anoxia (oxygen deprivation) while flying high altitudes; another pilot was declared missing and three others died in accidents in Europe.

Joltin Joe...not a Photo Recon F-5

[SAMWolf]

The only lame part to that is the scene where they blow up the roadblock and the entire Division runs through the hole. Omaha was taken by guys in one and twos working their way up ravines and draws and taking out pillboxes and MG nests. SPR was closer to how the guys got off Omaha Beach.

"Your mission is strategic. Don't give the enemy a break. Send em to hell"

[snippy_about_it]

In this battle the troops succeeded even though almost nothing went according to plan!

In fact, it helped them some of the time by confusing the enemy!

[SAMWolf]

Keeping his aircraft under control while covered with blood and feathers proved no easy task and left little margin of error at this (low) altitude. Nevertheless, he managed to bring both 'birds' as well as excellent photography home."

Thanks Light Speed. The importance of Photo Reconnaissance is another overlooked field. Maybe an idea for a thread Snippy.

[Samwise]

Afternoon, SAM! I'm going to have to read this in installments. You've been a busy boy. Thanks for the hard work.

[colorado tanker]

As I recall, there was a small streambed/ravine system that cut through to the beach that the troops were able to use to get up to the heights. I would sure rather go ashore on Utah.

[snippy_about_it]

Photo Reconnaissance

Yep, this would make a great thread, thanks guys!

[SAMWolf]

Afternoon Samwise. I've been holding on to this one for a while.

[SAMWolf]

I would sure rather go ashore on Utah.

From what I've read, if the Utah landings hadn't been off target, resistance would have been heavier, not as much as Omaha, but they lucked out and landed on an area that wasn't heavily defended.

[Light Speed]

German Strategy

Although von Rundstedt and Rommel respected each other, the two men could not agree on how to defend the inevitable invasion. Rommel felt that the only way to fend off the Allies was to fight the invasion on the beaches, and deny the Allies a foothold anywhere. (Duffy 119) Rundstedt opted for permitting the Allies to gain beachhead from which they could not escape easily. He proposed to mass the panzers behind the invasion front so they could launch a counterattack against the invaders once the Germans knew the disposition of all the enemy forces. (Duffy 119) the panzers would push the Allies back into the sea, as Rundstedt saw it. Gerd von Rundstedt sought to re-create the conditions in Dunkirk four ears prior, when the British army had faced total destruction. Because he controlled all troop movements and made all decisions, it was left to Hitler to decide between the defenses. As in his typical style, Hitler refused to fully support either plan. He gave each man a little of what he wanted. (Duffy 119)

The end result was that neither defense could function properly because the defenses were spread out too thin. (Duffy 119) “Hitler arbitrated and arranged a compromise, telling Rommel to defeat the landings on the beaches with the help of some armored forces held nearby and let von Rundstedt retain a diluted central reserve for the main punch if the enemy was not checked on the shoreline.” (Duffy 119)

[colorado tanker]

Nice piks. Glad I'm not looking at those German guns through a Sherman hatch!

Some people say Eisenhower compromised too much to hold his coalition together, but look at the German squabbling - and they only had to deal with one nationality.

[snippy_about_it]

I was born in Mark Twain hospital in San Andreas, Calvaras County, about 100 years after the fact.

So is today your birthday?

[snippy_about_it]

How did I miss that one?

LOL. Don't worry, I save the links and read all the threads and sometimes I have to ask SAM if we've covered such and such, he remembers, I don't. My mind is like a sieve.

[Prof Engineer]

No, that was back in August. 1865 was 100 years before my birthdate.