| Yes the number 40 does refer to the tonnage . The canvas assaults boats used for the crossings, were the same boats that were used to to create a lightweight assault bridge. The "Bailey Bridge was the greatest creation of WW2. many WW2 Baileys are still in place around the world today.
They came in several types and tonnages, They also came in various road widths ...Like "SS" Single Single ...."SD" Single double..... DD etc They also had a great variety of approaches.
In the face of very heavy fire at the bridging site, sometimes the bridge would be built on the road. twice as long to get balance and then have a tank or bulldozer to drag it, and push it into position.
IT is very "exciting" and "character forming" to build a Bailey under fire. The enemy was always clever enough to know where the bridge crossing would have to be built. So they "Pre" artillery ranged that area.
The Bailey has never been improved on. If you look closely at any modern military bridge you are still looking at a a bailey, though perhaps modified.
The "Tidal bridge" (Has to move up and down with the tide) we crossed near Pegasus came under such severe artillery, mortar, and air attack that we were forced to move to another site.
What amazes me is the number of Veterans that return to Normandy, claim to have been at Pegasus, being we were there, more or less on our own I sometimes wonder where and what these people were doing at Pegasus Bridge. We never saw anyone. In fact we had to break off to defend against direct enemy attacks ourselves.
Its rather like the Cafe Gondree near Pegasus. I read ofetn about how the service men went there. We were at Pegasus from the start, and never even saw the blasted place. If anyone did they were in a different war somewhere else from us......
Sapper |