On this day during WW2

The Battle Of Normandy
5/6 June 1944

1,012 aircraft - 551 Lancasters, 412 Halifaxes, 49 Mosquitos - to bomb coastal batteries at Fontenay, Houlgate, La Pernelle, Longues, Maisy, Merville, Mont Fleury, Pointe du Hoc, Ouisterham and St Martin de Varreville. 946 aircraft carried out their bombing tasks. 3 aircraft were lost - 2 Halifaxes of No 4 Group on the Mont Fleury raid and 1 Lancaster of No 6 Group on the Longues raid. Only two of the targets - La Pernelle and Ouisterham - were free of cloud; all other bombing was entirely based on Oboe marking. At least 5,000 tons of bombs were dropped, the greatest tonnage in one night so far in the war.
110 aircraft of Nos 1 and 100 Groups carried out extensive bomber-support operations: 24 'Airborne Cigar' (ABC)-equipped Lancasters of No 101 Squadron patrolled all likely night-fighter approaches, so that their German-speaking operators could jam the German controllers' instructions; No 100 Group flew 34 RCM sorties and 27 Serrate and 25 Intruder Mosquito patrols. 2 Intruders and 1 ABC Lancaster were lost.
58 aircraft of Nos 3 and 5 Groups carried out a variety of operations to conceal the true location of the invasion for as long as possible. 16 Lancasters of No 617 Squadron and 6 G-H fitted Stirlings of No 218 Squadron dropped a dense screen of Window, which advanced slowly across the Channel, to simulate a large convoy of ships approaching the French coast between Boulogne and Le Havre, north of the real invasion coast. These flights required exact navigation; both squadrons had been practising for this operation for more than a month. The second diversion was carried out by 36 Halifaxes and Stirlings of Nos 90, 138, 149 and 161 Squadrons. These aircraft dropped dummy parachutists and explosive devices to simulate airborne landings over areas not being invaded. 2 Stirlings of No 149 Squadron were lost while carrying out this duty.
31 Mosquitos bombed Osnabrück without loss.
Total Bomber Command effort for the night: 1,211 sorties, 8 aircraft (0.7 per cent) lost. The number of sorties flown was a new record. British, American and Canadian divisions landed on five Normandy beaches early the next morning.
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I am reminding all my colleagues at work of todays date - not one of them seem to care. Sad that.

I will raise my glass in memory of all those who took part in this great campaign.

 

Meanwhile back in Italy the 2nd Wiltshires were resting and refitting in the Castel Porziano area. They weren't allowed to visit Rome as it was out of bounds to British troops.
They deserved a rest as they'd been fighting for eleven months since the Invasion of Sicily. In that time their casualties were 27 Officers and 590 Other Ranks. Winning one Victoria Cross in the process.

Silly new to the forum question here Owen D - But are you a veteran of Italy, and were you aware at the time that the invasion in Normandy had started?

 

No mate, I ain't,, I'm only 39. My profile http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/members/owen-d.html
Just like to remember the lads of the Wiltshires and make sure they're not forgotten.

I am sorry, I really should have done my own research.

Well, today at least we know that members on this forum will be remembering all those who served from 1939-1945.

 

On two sides of the world, the Devonshires and Dorsets were fighting simultaneous battles on the beaches of Normandy (2nd Devons & 1st Dorsets brought back from Italy for this big day) and pushing the Japanese back through the inhospitable terrain of Kohima and Imphal in the Far East.

World War 2

 

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.


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On the 8<SUP>th</SUP> of June 1946 I was home on leave from Italy under a scheme referred to as LIAP (Leave in addition to PYTHON).

PYTHON was the HM Forces scheme that brought one home from overseas after 4 years of service, LIAP was available after 3 years. As I had been abroad since April 1943 I therefore qualified.

My 28 day’s leave coincided with the official Victory celebrations and I got to see representatives of my unit driving past my vantage point in Whitehall
The page in my Album is a splendid aide-memoire.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/40/a4768040.shtml
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1941 : Allies invade Syria and Lebanon


On this day in 1941, British and Free French forces enter Syria and Lebanon in Operation Exporter.
In May, the pro-Axis Rashid Ali rose to power in Iraq and refused to allow British maneuvers within his country in accordance with the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930. Britain quickly restored the status quo ante by driving Ali and his followers out of Iraq. And to ensure that German military supplies shipped to Ali via Syria did not result in Axis control of that country and neighboring Lebanon, Britain decided to take preventive action. With Australian and Indian support, as well as that of Free French forces, Britain invaded both Syria and Lebanon, fighting Vichy French garrisons loyal to Germany. Resistance lasted five weeks before an armistice was finally signed on July 14, giving the Allies control of both Syria and Lebanon. Among those wounded in the fighting was the 26-year-old leader of Palestinian volunteer forces, Moshe Dayan, the future hero in the fight for an independent Jewish state. He lost an eye.

 

ASHIGARA (June 8, 1945)
The 13,380-ton Nachi class Japanese cruiser sunk by the British submarine HMS Trenchant commanded by 'Baldy’ A. R. Hezlet. (It was estimated that around 1,200 Japanese troops were on board on their way from Batavia to reinforce the garrison at Singapore). At the last minute, the Ashigara had altered course and was hit by five torpedoes out of the eight fired by the Trenchant. In an effort to beach herself she headed towards Klipped Shoal near Sumatra but half an hour after being hit, the blazing Ashigara capsized and sank. A total of 853 survivors were rescued by the Japanese escort destroyer Kamikaze. Commander Hezlet was later awarded the DSO and the United States Legion of Merit.

 

USS RICH (June 8, 1944)
US destroyer escort sunk during Operation Neptune off Utah Beach, Normandy, after striking a mine. The ship had left Plymouth on June 5 and while off the Normandy coast went to assist the destroyer USS Glennon which had struck a mine earlier. While attempting to give assistance to the Glennon, a mine exploded beneath her keel blowing off about fifty feet of her stern. Two minutes later another mine exploded under her forward section. The USS Rich sank at 9.40 just fifteen minutes after the mine exploded. Of her crew of 12 officers and 203 other ranks, 89 men lost their lives. There were 73 men wounded.

 

8/9 June 1944

483 aircraft - 286 Lancasters, 169 Halifaxes, 28 Mosquitos - attacked railways at Alençon, Fougères, Mayenne, Pontabault and Rennes to prevent German reinforcements from the south reaching Normandy. All of the raids appear to have been successful. 4 aircraft were lost, 2 Lancasters from the Pontabault raid and 1 Lancaster and 1 Mosquito from the Rennes raid.


The first 12,000lb Tallboy bombs developed by Barnes Wallis were used on this night by No 617 Squadron in a raid on a railway tunnel near Saumur, 125 miles south of the battle area. The raid was prepared in great haste because a German Panzer unit was expected to move by train through the tunnel. The target area was illuminated with flares by 4 Lancasters of No 83 Squadron and marked at low level by 3 Mosquitos. 25 Lancasters of No 617 Squadron then dropped their Tallboys with great accuracy. The huge bombs exploded under the ground to create miniature 'earthquakes'; one actually pierced the roof of the tunnel and brought down a huge quantity of rock and soil. The tunnel was blocked for a considerable period and the Panzer unit was badly delayed. No aircraft were lost from this raid.
17 Serrate and 19 Intruder patrols, 34 aircraft minelaying from the Scheldt to Lorient. No aircraft lost.
Total effort for the night: 585 sorties, 4 aircraft (0.7 per cent) lost.

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1944 : The Red Army invades Karelian Isthmus in Finland


On this day in 1944, Russia penetrates into East Karelia, in Finland, as it fights to gain back control of territory that had already been ceded to it.
According to the terms of the Treaty of Moscow of 1940, Finland was forced to surrender parts of its southeastern territory, including the Karelian Isthmus, to the Soviet Union, which was eager to create a buffer zone for Leningrad. To protect itself against further Russian encroachment, Finland allowed Germany to traverse its country in its push eastward into Russia, despite the fact that it did not have a formal alliance with the Axis power. Emboldened by the damage Germany was inflicting on Russia, Finland pursued the "War of Continuation" and won back large parts of the territory it had ceded to Moscow in the 1940 treaty.
But as Germany suffered setback after setback, and the Allies continued bombing runs in the Balkans, using Russia as part of its "shuttle" strategy, Finland began to panic and made overtures to Stalin about signing an armistice. By June 9, the Red Army was once again in the East Karelia, and Stalin was in no mood to negotiate, demanding at least a symbolic "surrender" of Finland entirely. Finland turned back to its "friend," Germany, which promised continued support. A change in Finnish government resulted in a change in perspective, and Finland finally signed an armistice that gave Stalin what he wanted: all the old territory from the 1940 treaty and a guarantee that German troops would evacuate Finnish soil. Finland agreed but the German army refused to leave. Terrible battles were waged between the two behemoths; finally, with the defeat of the Axis, Russia got what it wanted, not only in Finnish territory, but also in war reparations to the tune of $300 million. Finland !
would become known for its passivity in the face of the Soviet threat in the postwar era.

 

1940 - The heavy cruiser USS Vincennes and destroyers USS Truxtun & Simpson arrive at Casablanca, French Morocco from the US The Bank of France's gold reserves, 200 tons of gold brought to Casablanca by a French auxiliary cruiser, will be loaded in the US cruiser and taken to New York City for deposit in US banks

 

1940 : Italy declares war on France and Great Britain


On this day in 1940, after withholding formal allegiance to either side in the battle between Germany and the Allies, Benito Mussolini, dictator of Italy, declares war on France and Great Britain.
What caused Il Duce's change of heart? Perhaps the German occupation of Paris did it. "First they were too cowardly to take part. Now they are in a hurry so that they can share in the spoils," reflected Hitler. (However, Mussolini claimed that he wanted in before complete French capitulation only because fascism "did not believe in hitting a man when he is down.")
Italy's lack of raw materials had made Mussolini wary of waging all-out war previously. Britain and France were also wooing him with promises of territorial concessions in Africa in exchange for neutrality. But the thought of its Axis partner single-handedly conquering the Continent was too much for his ego to bear. While Germany had urged Italy's participation in September 1939, at this late date such intervention would probably prove more of a hindrance than a help. For example, despite Italy's declaration of war on the 10th, it wasn't until the 20th that Italian troops were mobilized in France, in the southwest-and easily held at bay by French forces.
The reaction by the Allies to the declaration of war was swift: In London, all Italians who had lived in Britain less than 20 years and who were between the ages of 16 and 70 were immediately interned. In America, President Roosevelt broadcast on radio the promise of support for Britain and France with "the material resources of this nation."


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1940 - Allied operations in Norway end. This has cost the British and French 1 carrier; 2 cruisers; and 9 destroyers plus other smaller craft. There were 6100 KIA. The cost for the Germans was 3 cruisers, 10 destroyers, and several U-boats. There were 5600 KIA. There was also many Norwegian casualties

 

See post #517

1940 - USS Vincennes, escorted by two destroyers, gets underway from Casablanca, French Morocco, for New York City carrying 200 tons of gold, the Bank of France's gold reserves

 

1940 : Britain strikes back at Italy


On this day in 1940, Britain demonstrates that it will not remain on the defensive, by bombing Italian targets in response to Mussolini's declaration of war on England and France.
Having already marked out an offensive strategy in the event of Italian aggression, Britain bombed targets within the cities of Genoa and Turin. Africa was also another theater of conflict, as Italy and Britain were imperial neighbors. Italy had just bombed targets in the British-controlled Suez Canal territory, as well as the British-controlled island of Malta, in the Mediterranean. Britain retaliated with a raid on the Italian military installation in Eritrea. Even the Pacific would see fallout from this new conflict, with an Australian merchant cruiser giving chase to an Italian vessel, which ended up scuttling itself rather than surrendering.

 

1940 - The first Italian air raid of the war on the Island of Malta destroys one of the four Gloster Sea Gladiator fighters defending the island. The islanders or airmen will not name the remaining three. However 'Faith', 'Hope' and 'Charity' are the names bestowed by newsmen. These names have been repeated and become part of the lore about WWII