Remembering History by day WW2

[Peter Clare]

3 Jun 1940 - The last day of Operation Dynamo sees the RAF carry out 171 reconnaissance, 651 bombing and 2,739 fighter sorties. During the previous nine days, the RAF has lost 177 aircraft, including 106 fighters and the attrition is such that the first-line strength of Fighter Command stands at 331 Hurricanes and Spitfires with only 36 fighters in reserve. German aircraft also carry out the first attacks against Paris.

[Peter Clare]

June 4, 1942
The Battle of Midway begins

On this day in 1942, Japanese Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, commander of the fleet that attacked Pearl Harbor, launches a raid on Midway Island with almost the entirety of the Japanese navy.
As part of a strategy to widen its sphere of influence and conquest, the Japanese set their sights on an island group in the central Pacific, Midway, as well as the Aleutians, off the coast of Alaska. They were also hoping to draw the badly wounded U.S. navy into a battle, determined to finish it off.
The American naval forces were depleted: The damaged carrier Yorktown had to be repaired in a mere three days, to be used along with the Enterprise and Hornet, all that was left in the way of aircraft carriers after the bombing at Pearl Harbor.
On the morning of June 4, Admiral Nagumo launched his first strike with 108 aircraft, and did significant damage to U.S. installations at Midway. The Americans struck back time and again at Japanese ships, but accomplished little real damage, losing 65 of their own aircraft in their initial attempts. But Nagumo underestimated the tenacity of both Admiral Chester Nimitz and Admiral Raymond Spruance, commanders of the American forces. He also miscalculated tactically by ordering a second wave of bombers to finish off what he thought was only a remnant of American resistance (the U.S. forces had been able to conceal their position because of reconnaissance that anticipated the Midway strike) before his first wave had sufficient opportunity to rearm.
A fifth major engagement by 55 U.S. dive-bombers took full advantage of Nagumo's confused strategy, and sunk three of the four Japanese carriers, all cluttered with aircraft and fuel trying to launch another attack against what they now realized-too late--was a much larger American naval force than expected. A fourth Japanese carrier, the Hiryu was crippled, but not before its aircraft finished off the noble American Yorktown.
The attack on Midway was an unmitigated disaster for the Japanese, resulting in the loss of 322 aircraft and 3,500 men. They were forced to withdraw from the area before attempting even a landing on the island they sought to conquer

[Peter Clare]

June 5, 1944
Allies prepare for D-Day

On this day in 1944, more than 1,000 British bombers drop 5,000 tons of bombs on German gun batteries placed at the Normandy assault area, while 3,000 Allied ships cross the English Channel in preparation for the invasion of Normandy-D-Day.
The day of the invasion of occupied France had been postponed repeatedly since May, mostly because of bad weather and the enormous tactical obstacles involved. Finally, despite less than ideal weather conditions-or perhaps because of them-General Eisenhower decided on June 5 to set the next day as D-Day, the launch of the largest amphibious operation in history. Ike knew that the Germans would be expecting postponements beyond the sixth, precisely because weather conditions were still poor.
Among those Germans confident that an Allied invasion could not be pulled off on the sixth was Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, who was still debating tactics with Field Marshal Karl Rundstedt. Runstedt was convinced that the Allies would come in at the narrowest point of the Channel, between Calais and Dieppe; Rommel, following Hitler's intuition, believed it would be Normandy. Rommel's greatest fear was that German air inferiority would prevent an adequate defense on the ground; it was his plan to meet the Allies on the coast-before the Allies had a chance to come ashore. Rommel began constructing underwater obstacles and minefields, and set off for Germany to demand from Hitler personally more panzer divisions in the area.
Bad weather and an order to conserve fuel grounded much of the German air force on June 5; consequently, its reconnaissance flights were spotty. That night, more than 1,000 British bombers unleashed a massive assault on German gun batteries on the coast. At the same time, an Allied armada headed for the Normandy beaches in Operation Neptune, an attempt to capture the port at Cherbourg. But that was not all. In order to deceive the Germans, phony operations were run; dummy parachutists and radar-jamming devices were dropped into strategically key areas so as to make German radar screens believe there was an Allied convoy already on the move. One dummy parachute drop succeeded in drawing an entire German infantry regiment away from its position just six miles from the actual Normandy landing beaches. All this effort was to scatter the German defenses and make way for Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy.

[Peter Clare]

MIKUMA (June 5, 1942)

During the Battle of Midway, Japanese Admiral Yamamoto was going to attempt not to make Midway a complete failure. He sent out an urgent message to send four of his smaller aircraft carriers down from the Aleutians and brought up a number of heavy cruisers to join his main fleet.
But the attempt at the taking of Midway was destined to failure. Yamamoto finally signalled his ships to withdraw. Two of the cruisers from the Midway force under the command of Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita, the Mikuma and the Mogami, both of the Mogami class heavy cruisers, came under attack of the USS Tambor, a submarine of the US Strike Force. Both the Mikuma and the Mogami turned so as to avoid attack, but turned into each other. The Mogami, building up full power turned into the path of the Mikuma hitting her amidships. Both cruisers were badly damaged. Rear Admiral Spruances' dive bombers found the two cruisers early the following morning, their bombs adding greatly to the damage. The Mikuma finally sunk, Two of her survivors were picked up by the American submarine USS Trout. The crippled Mogami managed to get back the base at Truk where she was fitted out as an aircraft carrying cruiser, but the Mogami was finally sunk by US aircraft in the Philippines in October 1944.

The crippled Japanese cruiser Nikuma

[Peter Clare]

5 Jun 1944 - On the day preceding D-Day, Bomber Command simulated an Allied air invasion by dropping dummy paratroops. Lancasters and Stirlings also dropped Window at fixed intervals over the Channel to simulate the approach of an invading fleet. During the night, aircraft of Nos. 38 and 46 Groups dropped American airborne forces in the Caen area. Also on this day, Rome was liberated by Allied forces.

[Peter Clare]

USS HAMMANN (June 6, 1942)

US destroyer lost during the Battle of Midway. When the aircraft carrier Yorktown was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine I-168 the Hamman moved close and tied up to the carrier in an effort to protect her from further damage. Sighting the wakes of four more torpedoes, the Hammann's gunners opened fire but failed to hit anything. The first torpedo passed under the keel of the destroyer and exploded against the Yorktown. The second smashed into the Hammann's side and into the No. 2 boiler room. Her keel broken, it took only four minutes for the destroyer to sink. Many of her survivors were killed in the water when her depth charges exploded.
The destroyers USS Balche and USS Benham rescued the survivors from the Yorktown and the Hammann and raced toward Pearl Harbor and safety. Of the Hammann's complement of 241 officers and men, five officers and 71 crewmen were lost. While en route to Pearl Harbor, 26 others died of their wounds.

[Peter Clare]

June 6, 1944
Allies invade France

On this day in 1944, Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower gives the go-ahead for the largest amphibious military operation in history: Operation Overlord, code named D-Day, the Allied invasion of northern France.
By daybreak, 18,000 British and American parachutists were already on the ground. At 6:30 a.m., American troops came ashore at Utah and Omaha beaches. At Omaha, the U.S. First Division battled high seas, mist, mines, burning vehicles—and German coastal batteries, including an elite infantry division, which spewed heavy fire. Many wounded Americans ultimately drowned in the high tide. British divisions, which landed at Gold, Juno, and Sword beaches, and Canadian troops also met with heavy German fire, but by the end of the day they were able to push inland.
Despite the German resistance, Allied casualties overall were relatively light. The United States and Britain each lost about 1,000 men, and Canada 355. Before the day was over, 155,000 Allied troops would be in Normandy. However, the United States managed to get only half of the 14,000 vehicles and a quarter of the 14,500 tons of supplies they intended on shore.
Three factors were decisive in the success of the Allied invasion. First, German counterattacks were firm but sparse, enabling the Allies to create a broad bridgehead, or advanced position, from which they were able to build up enormous troop strength. Second, Allied air cover, which destroyed bridges over the Seine, forced the Germans to suffer long detours, and naval gunfire proved decisive in protecting the invasion troops. And third, division and confusion within the German ranks as to where the invasion would start and how best to defend their position helped the Allies. (Hitler, convinced another invasion was coming the next day east of the Seine River, refused to allow reserves to be pulled from that area.)
Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, commander of Britain's Twenty-first Army Group (but under the overall command of General Eisenhower, for whom Montgomery, and his ego, proved a perennial thorn in the side), often claimed later that the invasion had come off exactly as planned. That was a boast, as evidenced by the failure to take Caen on the first day, as scheduled. While the operation was a decided success, considering the number of troops put ashore and light casualties, improvisation by courageous and quick-witted commanders also played an enormous role.
The D-Day invasion has been the basis for several movies, from The Longest Day (1962), which boasted an all-star cast that included Richard Burton, Sean Connery, John Wayne and Robert Mitchum, to Saving Private Ryan (1998), which includes some of the most grippingly realistic war scenes ever filmed, captured in the style of the famous Robert Capa still photos of the actual invasion.

[Peter Clare]

6 Jun 1944 - D-Day. Allied air forces flew a total of 14,674 sorties during the first 24 hours of Operation Overlord for the loss of 113 aircraft, many by friendly fire. Fighter cover for the invasion beaches was provided by nine squadrons of Spitfires, while Typhoon and Mustang fighter-bombers of 2nd TAF flew armed reconnaissance missions further inland. Such was the Allied air supremacy that the Luftwaffe only flew 319 sorties in the same period.

[GPRegt]

In Memory of



Staff Sergeant WILLIAM KENNETH MARFLEET

7537176, 1 Wing, Glider Pilot Regiment, A.A.C.
who died age 24
on 06 June 1944
Son of Jesse and Dora Ada Marfleet, of Stoke-on-Trent.
Remembered with honour
BAYEUX WAR CEMETERY



And


Sergeant VICTOR HAINES

1888144, Glider Pilot Regiment, A.A.C.
who died age 25
on 06 June 1944
Son of James Henry and Mary E. Haines, of Stapleford, Nottinghamshire.
Remembered with honour
ABBEVILLE COMMUNAL CEMETERY EXTENSION

My Uncle and his mate, and Co-Pilot, who died when their Horsa glider crashed into the Channel off the Normandy coast.

Steve W.

[Peter Clare]

June 7, 1942
Japanese land troops on the islands of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutians

On this day in 1942, Japanese soldiers occupy the American islands of Attu and Kiska, in the Aleutian Islands off Alaska, as the Axis power continues to expand its defensive perimeter.
Having been defeated at the battle of Midway--stopped by the United States from even landing on the Midway Islands--the Japanese nevertheless proved successful in their invasion of the Aleutians, which had been American territory since purchased from Russia in 1867. Killing 25 American troops upon landing in Attu, the Japanese proceeded to relocate and intern the inhabitants, as well as those at Kiska. America would finally invade and recapture the Aleutians one year later-killing most of the 2,300 Japanese troops defending it--in three weeks of fighting.