249th (Airborne) Field Company RE on D-Day and Battle of Normandy

Xavier,

It's interesting that the information the footbridge was still intact at 9 A.M. on June 6th comes from 1 Corps. All the Field Coys that would be engaged in bridge building at that locality were from 1 Corps. There is no evidence in the 45 Commando WD that they used the footbridge to arrive at their destination. They crossed over the canal and river using Pegasus and Horsa bridge that were being held by the 6th Airborne. I'm not sure at this time if any other unit accessed the area using the footbridge.

I was surprised to learn in the Campbell Diary that the York 2 bridge over the Orne, built on June 13th, came prior to York 1 over the canal on June 27th. As you see from the attachment the east bank of the Orne River on the flood plain below Ecarde was still not fully secured.



Regards ...

 

Another information about the footbridge :
2 PL, 249 FIELD COY., R.E.
"Recce of the footbridge at 114762 was not possible before 1100 hrs owing to snipers who were extremely active in the neighbourhood."
(Extract from Headquarters, Royal Engineers)

Why they built on River before Canal ?
Because : "The approaches to the Ranville bridge were rather below this figure."

"Lieutenant Bence RE arrived on the scene: his glider had landed some 500yd from its target. Lieutenant Bence RE then set about the next task which was to assess what load class of vehicle the two bridges were capable of carrying. This involved taking measurements with tape and footrule and applying a known formula, and it was no healthy task with the sites still under aimed small arms fire. The answers showed that both the bridges were Class 30, ie capable of carrying Sherman tanks, but the approaches to the Ranville bridge were rather below this figure. This was important, as a Squadron of the amphibious Sherman tanks that had swum ashore leading the seaborne assault over the beaches were due to cross into 6 Airborne Division's Area to provide sorely needed tank support. Bearing in mind also that the formula included a factor of safety and that the doubtful area was clear of the watergap, the Commander Royal Engineers (CRE) of 6 Airborne Division took the decision when visiting the bridges during the morning that the tanks should be allowed to cross. This they did later without mishap." (Extract for The 6th Airborne Divisional Engineers on D Day 1944)

 

Another idea :

West of the Canal => Pegasus Bridge+London Bridge 1 (Bailey on canal) => Between the Canal and the River => Horsa Bridge+London Bridge 2 (Bailey on river)+York 2 (Bailey on river) => East of the River

It's more important to have a lot of bridge on the River to deploy more easily the units on the front. These units could stay between the Canal and the River before being deployed.

Why not...

Xavier

 

Xavier,

There was a double span bailey bridge erected over the locks in Ouistreham early on. Perhaps that was the reason they decided to build York 2 first as it would give them a temporary third crossing north of Caen. It was later replaced by the Tower 1 Bridge. A good view of it can be seen on this IWM video which also captures London 2 south of Horsa Bridge. Video dated June 15th, 1944.

ACTIVITIES IN THE ORNE BRIDGEHEAD, JUNE 1944 (PART 7)

It was a massive engineering feat to build all these bridges and lay out miles of access roads capable of handling tracked vehicles. They were all needed to handle the enormous amount of traffic in preparation for Operation Goodwood.

Regards ...

 

Hi,

I found two informations here (Headquarters, The Glider Pilot Regiment) :
"114762 - Reinforced concrete multispan" => footbridge
"Earth. Unoccupied strg. pt. at 108764" => WN11, strongpoint, west of the ferry on the canal

Regards,

Xavier

 

Xavier,

If they used reinforced concrete in the construction of the " footbridge" it must have been fairly substantial. Danny sent me the following attachments. The aerial shows target area "C" taken on March 24th 1944. I assume the circle and "V" and lines running off are trenches?



An interesting note on the barge seen in the above aerials from the Campbell Diary.



Regards ...

 

Some good views of the building of York 1 over the canal on June 27th, 1944.



I doubt the official army photographers ventured over to the Orne River to capture the bridges at the Ecarde crossing, which is a shame as it would have been an interesting sight to see them all together on completion.

Regards ...

 

An unexpected question :
What is the first name of sapper Yates who landed in the glider n°1 ?

 

Hi,
Attached is a photo of what might be the remains of the bridge. Titled “Amfreville The Banks of the Orne”. Not the best quality photo. Taken post war.

Regards

Danny

 

Xavier,

I looked around for Sapper Yates but could only find him listed in the Coup de Main nominal roll without first name or initial.

Danny,

Great find! It appears to be the footings of the original footbridge at the Ecarde crossing just visible above the water level. The treeline to middle left is one side of the triangular area between river and canal. There is a hint there as well of the approaches to York 2 and Tower 2 on the west bank.

Regards ...

 

Hi.
I have a problem with the photo of Danny. If Caen is behind us. Just in front of us, it's the Orne river. In this case, the bridge is on the Canal.
Where is the fault ?
Regards,
Xavier

 

I think your mistake is to say that the footbridge is on the Canal, whereas it is indeed on the River (see maps).

Michel

 

Hi Michel,
The informations about where is Caen is strange.
Regards,
Xavier

 

If Ouistreham is on my right, Caen is in front of me not on my left or behind me.
...

 

Hello Xavier,
Does this image help?

Regards

Danny

 

Thank you Danny.
I understand.
I don't see the bridge on the photo. I use my phone, may be with a computer, I could see better.
Regards,
Xavier

 

Xavier,

All that remains of the footbridge in the photo are the columns sunk in the river that once supported the platform. It seems to me to be in the right location. Not the best quality but it's the first glimpse we've had from ground level. The view is to the north west standing on the east bank of the Orne just upstream (south) of bridge remains.



Regards ...

 

I apologize for my bad analyse. It's better on the PC.
Thank you for your help, Danny, Michel and Cee.

 

Hi all,
1st, what do you think of this picture ?
2nd, I have created a Facebook's page for the 249th : fb.me/XPforAWAlexander
Regards,
Xavier

 

From here...
https://www.google.fr/maps/@49.2550...167.68297&pitch=0&thumbfov=100!7i13312!8i6656