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Allied success in invading Fortress Europe (the area of Continental Europe occupied by Nazi Germany) depended on getting armor onto the beaches as fast as possible. This book explains how the Allies developed the specialist tanks it needed, their qualities, deployment and numbers, and how they performed on the two crucial days when France was invaded, firstly in Normandy and then in Provence.
The focus of this volume will be on the specialized tanks developed for the Operation
Neptune amphibious landings including the Duplex Drive amphibious Sherman tanks used on both the US and British/Canadian beaches. It also covers the specialized engineer tanks called "Armoured Funnies" of the British 79th Armoured Division and addresses the popular myth that US Army refusal to employ the Armoured Funnies was a principal cause for the high casualties at Omaha Beach. There is also coverage of Operation
Overlord's "Forgotten D-Day", the amphibious landings of Operation
Dragoon. This book addresses why there were so few Panzers opposing the landings from the German perspective as well as detailing the extent of German tank/assault gun activity on D-Day.
List of contents
INTRODUCTION
Lessons learned?
SPECIALIZED TANKS FOR OVERLORD
The CDL Canal Defence Light Night-Fighting Tank
The Sherman Duplex Drive Amphibious Tank
Deep-Wading Tanks
Churchill AVRE
AVRE Bridging Devices
AVRE Carpet Layers
Crab Flail Mine-Clearing Tank
Churchill Crocodile Flamethrower Tank
T1 Armored Engineer Vehicle
M1 Tank-Dozer
US Army acquisition of Armoured Funnies
TANKS, DOCTRINE, AND ORGANIZATION 21
Gunfire support groups
Armored engineer support
THE CAMPAIGN 25
Sword Beach
Juno Beach
Gold Beach
Omaha Beach
Utah Beach
The other D-Day
BATTLE ANALYSIS 45
FURTHER READING 47
INDEX 48
About the author
Steven J. Zaloga is a senior analyst for Teal Group Corp., an aerospace consulting firm, where he covers missile and drone technology as well as international arms transfers for clients in the aerospace industry and the government. He served for more than two decades as an adjunct staff member with the Strategy, Forces, and Resources division of the Institute for Defense Analyses, a federal think-tank, retiring in 2021. He is the author of numerous books on military technology and history, including NVG 294 Allied Tanks in Normandy 1944 and NVG 283 American Guided Missiles of World War II. He currently lives in Maryland, USA.Felipe Rodríguez Náñez (aka Felipe Rodna) lives with his wife and two sons in Salamanca, Spain, where he works as an architect and computer graphics artist. He combines his experience in CG art and his passion for modelling in his illustrations, where he looks for a good balance between technical detail and craft.
Summary
Allied success in invading Fortress Europe (the area of Continental Europe occupied by Nazi Germany) depended on getting armor onto the beaches as fast as possible. This book explains how the Allies developed the specialist tanks it needed, their qualities, deployment and numbers, and how they performed on the two crucial days when France was invaded, firstly in Normandy and then in Provence.
The focus of this volume will be on the specialized tanks developed for the Operation Neptune amphibious landings including the Duplex Drive amphibious Sherman tanks used on both the US and British/Canadian beaches. It also covers the specialized engineer tanks called "Armoured Funnies" of the British 79th Armoured Division and addresses the popular myth that US Army refusal to employ the Armoured Funnies was a principal cause for the high casualties at Omaha Beach. There is also coverage of Operation Overlord's "Forgotten D-Day", the amphibious landings of Operation Dragoon. This book addresses why there were so few Panzers opposing the landings from the German perspective as well as detailing the extent of German tank/assault gun activity on D-Day.
Foreword
An authoritative and fresh new study of Allied tanks' role in smashing the walls of Fortress Europe on D-Day.
