slightlyhuman
Lifer
- Oct 9, 1999
- 19,632
- 38
- 91
"Where are the tanks?" wondered many of the troops as they drew so close to the beach that German gunners stopped firing at the large vessels farther offshore and turned their attention to the landing craft. The infantrymen had no way of knowing it, but the wave of amphibious tanks that had been scheduled to precede them had gone missing in action. In the confusion caused by the bad weather that marked the first hours of June 6, these tanks had been released too early and too far from shore by the ships that had borne them across the water, the tanks were no match for high seas and heavy weather. Of the 32 amphibious tanks that headed off toward shore, 27 sank before they got close to the beach. A handful made it ashore, but most of them were burning wrecks by the time the first troops stepped onto the sand.
Just read that from my 60th anniversary TIME magazine I got last year around this time.
Just read that from my 60th anniversary TIME magazine I got last year around this time.
BlueWeasel
Lifer
- Jun 2, 2000
- 15,944
- 475
- 126
Anyone remotely interested in this day should read "D-Day" by Stephen Ambrose. It's amazing to comprehend the amount of planning, training, and hard work that lead up to the landing.
One of the most amazing facts about D-Day is the amount of men and vehicles moved across the English Channel on just that one day. Ambrose said it would be equivalent to every man, woman, child, and vehicle in Green Bay (and the surrounding suburbs) picking up and shipping across the Great Lakes to Michigan. That's how many men and equipment moved from England to the beaches of Normandy in just 24 hours.
One of the most amazing facts about D-Day is the amount of men and vehicles moved across the English Channel on just that one day. Ambrose said it would be equivalent to every man, woman, child, and vehicle in Green Bay (and the surrounding suburbs) picking up and shipping across the Great Lakes to Michigan. That's how many men and equipment moved from England to the beaches of Normandy in just 24 hours.
How can you call the soldiers of WWII the "greatest generation" if you decry their lack of morals and the absence of "right or wrong?"
You don't support public education? What about the GI bill? Many of those soldiers came back from the trenches, got themselves college-educated, and went into goverment work, carrying out the same "no-morals" liberalism that you so heartily put down.
And the U.N.? Without everybody's favorite picked-on international agency, we'd probably ALL be nuked to hell by the Soviets during the Cold War. The Cold War may have been between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R., but the U.N. certainly acted to keep both sides cold, and avoided a Hot War, a.k.a. WWIII.
slightlyhuman
Lifer
- Oct 9, 1999
- 19,632
- 38
- 91
"The greatest armada ever assembled-more than five thousand ships-steams across the English Channel, carrying 150,000 troops to invade German-occupied France.
many argue that if the new deal wasn't in place, we'd all be speak german right now.
and the SS act was one of America's greatest legislative achievements.
and the SS act was one of America's greatest legislative achievements.
BlueWeasel
Lifer
- Jun 2, 2000
- 15,944
- 475
- 126
Generally, tank support was very little on D-Day. The pre-landing bombardment from the destroyers was generally ineffective as well, so many of the defenders were still alive and in position when the Higgins boats arrived.
In the D-Day book, there is an old photograph that shows a production warehouse where the Higgins (invented by Andrew Higgins of New Orleans) boats were being produced. These were the LCI (Landing Craft Infantry) boats that transported the men to the beaches shown in the OP photo.
Up on the wall of the warehouse was a huge banner that read....
"Those who relaxes are helping the Axis"
The war drive and general attitude of our country during WW2 was amazing. We will NEVER see that type of commitment and attitude again, IMHO.
skyking
Lifer
- Nov 21, 2001
- 22,766
- 5,929
- 146
my dad was in the 4th Marine Division, 23rd regiment. I don't know which company he was in, but this website about company "C" tells most of the tale.
Like many young men of the time, he lied about his age to get in. By the time he got to Iwo Jima, he was a seasoned "veteran" at 20.
http://www.c123rd.com
They went to Roi-Namur, Saipan, Tinian, and Iwo Jima.
He was a stretcher bearer on Iwo Jima, and had to decide who would live or die. They would dump somebody off the stretcher along side the trail, if it looked like he was not going to make it anyway. That way they could go back and maybe save somebody in better shape.
The toll it took on him was heavy. He carried the deaths of those comrades on his shoulders till his dying day, I believe.
Like many young men of the time, he lied about his age to get in. By the time he got to Iwo Jima, he was a seasoned "veteran" at 20.
http://www.c123rd.com
They went to Roi-Namur, Saipan, Tinian, and Iwo Jima.
He was a stretcher bearer on Iwo Jima, and had to decide who would live or die. They would dump somebody off the stretcher along side the trail, if it looked like he was not going to make it anyway. That way they could go back and maybe save somebody in better shape.
The toll it took on him was heavy. He carried the deaths of those comrades on his shoulders till his dying day, I believe.
geecee
Platinum Member
- Jan 14, 2003
- 2,383
- 43
- 91
:thumbsup:Originally posted by: winr
I salute all of them.
My Father was and Army Engineer in the South Pacific.
He went in at 18 years of age I think in 1942.
He is also alive and still kicking at 82.
http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/winr/1-3.JPG
slightlyhuman
Lifer
- Oct 9, 1999
- 19,632
- 38
- 91
"That s.o.b. Higgins. He ain't got nothin' to be proud of, inventing this boat." -Unknown soldier
Imagine that a pair of pants coming out his anus... that would be interesting.
Maybe you would be sh!tting IN your pants?
BlueWeasel
Lifer
- Jun 2, 2000
- 15,944
- 475
- 126
Another interesting tidbit about D-Day.
Hitler typically slept until noon each Day. Because of his distrust of several of his higher-ranking officers, he demanded total control of the Panzer (tank) divisions. The German tank divisions could be devastating to the beach advance if they were able to position themselves along the Atlantic seawall.
However, the main Panzer divisions were positioned several kilometers inland. The commanding officer couldn't order them to the beaches because Hitler demanded total control of the Panzers. Back in Germany, Hitler was asleep and no one bothered to wake him up for fear of his wrath.
A counter-attack from the German tank divisions never occurred at the beaches on D-Day. By the time the orders came down from Hitler and the tanks started moving, Allied forces had already started pushing inland.
Hitler typically slept until noon each Day. Because of his distrust of several of his higher-ranking officers, he demanded total control of the Panzer (tank) divisions. The German tank divisions could be devastating to the beach advance if they were able to position themselves along the Atlantic seawall.
However, the main Panzer divisions were positioned several kilometers inland. The commanding officer couldn't order them to the beaches because Hitler demanded total control of the Panzers. Back in Germany, Hitler was asleep and no one bothered to wake him up for fear of his wrath.
A counter-attack from the German tank divisions never occurred at the beaches on D-Day. By the time the orders came down from Hitler and the tanks started moving, Allied forces had already started pushing inland.
Yep - excellent book.
The logistics of that operation were amazing.
One bit I remember from that book - one of the reasons Omaha beach was so much tougher then the others was because the aerial bombardment of the Omaha beach was dropped to far inland because the bombadier on the lead flight was afraid of hitting our own troops. The bombardment would have cleared some mines/obstacles/barbed wire, dug craters for the troops to cover in, and possibly destroyed some gun emplacements - or at least shocked/disoriented the crews for a bit.
And leave the P&N crap in P&N :|
slightlyhuman
Lifer
- Oct 9, 1999
- 19,632
- 38
- 91
"In war-time, truth is so precious that it must be protected by a bodyguard of lies." -Winston Churchill
BlueWeasel
Lifer
- Jun 2, 2000
- 15,944
- 475
- 126
Yup, I recall that part now. The book is so chock full of tidbits like that and it's length makes it hard to remember them all.
:disgust:
Tell the parents to stop relying on public schools to do everything for them. They do nothing because they are f*ckin lazy! L-A-Z-Y!
Warcrow you are lucky that every liberal mofo in this forum didn't jump on this thread and take a giant shiat on it.... It is shocking to see the lack of loyalty and disrespect for vets that permeates from this BBS.
Ausm
Ausm
My dad is a vet and has a liberal viewpoint (well sometimes). You just disrespected him. Good job buddy.
:disgust:
I sent him a PM about this. If you don't want to sully this good thread with more poltics, I suggest you do the same.
TRENDING THREADS
-
Discussion Zen 5 Speculation (EPYC Turin and Strix Point/Granite Ridge - Ryzen 9000)- Started by DisEnchantment
- Replies: 25K
-
Discussion Intel Meteor, Arrow, Lunar & Panther Lakes + WCL Discussion Threads
- Started by Tigerick
- Replies: 22K
-
Discussion Intel current and future Lakes & Rapids thread- Started by TheF34RChannel
- Replies: 23K
-
News NVIDIA and Intel to Develop AI Infrastructure and Personal Computing Products- Started by poke01
- Replies: 400
Facebook
Twitter