On the morning of June 6th, 1944, soldiers on their way to Normandy in landing craft of all shapes and sizes awoke to the sound of thousands of allied aircraft overhead. Bombers and fighter planes filled the air in what must have been one of the most incredible sights of the entire war. The vast naval flotilla which carried these soldiers and sailors into battle were equally matched by the formations of propeller driven warbirds manned by brave crews piercing the thin air above… ALL on their way to destiny.
Since the end of World War II, much has been written in the history books concerning the effectiveness of the allied bombing campaign on D-Day. I think that it would easy to debate either position, but no one can question the bravery and the courage of those who did it. As I walked this past June though German, Commonwealth and American cemeteries which stretch across the beautiful countryside of Normandy, among the thousands of brave souls that gave their lives are the graves of airmen whose missions ended abruptly long before the initial planning of Operation Overlord ever began.
For the aircrews of bombers sent on missions hundreds of miles from their English bases, D-Day itself was the midpoint of all of that sacrifice. In weather unpredictable, against a hardened and entrenched enemy who embraced the emerging technology of radar and who were also equipped with some of the most accurate and deadly weapons ever conceived, these men somehow mustered the might needed to assure victory.
To honor those brave aircrews and to remember all those who served on that longest day on both sides, D-Day Conneaut is pleased to present our 8th D-Day series commemorative challenge coin; “Over the Target”.
The Allied side inset of the 2016 coin features a B-26 Martin Marauder as it crosses the channel on its way to a low level strike mission to support the Allied landings.
This Marauder was one of 11,590 allied aircraft of various types used during D-Day. The Marauder and its cousin, the Douglas A-20 Havoc, provided low level bombing missions against bridges, railroad yards, arms and fuel depots. Four engine heavy bombers, the B-17’s, B-24’s, Lancaster’s, Halifax, Stirling’s and numerous others flew countless missions over a year in advance of the invasion to soften targets, disrupt communications and to disable the enemy’s production of weapons of war.
Spearheading this heavy bombardment was the American 8th Air Force, who undertook a strategic campaign of high level bombing, then supported by the tactical campaign of medium to low level missions of the American 9th Air Force who both were complimented by missions flown by the Royal Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force. Together, day and night, a relentless stream of aircraft was sent over the channel to the front door of the enemy, wherever they may be.
It only fitting that appearing on the Allied face of the 2016 challenge coin is the all encompassing U.S. Army Air Forces shoulder insignia to the east and the Bomber Command insignia of the Royal Air Force to the west. Also highlighted are the 6 major bombers used by the allies in the battle; the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, the Handley Page Halifax, the Avro Lancaster, the Douglas A-20 Havoc and the aforementioned B-26 Martin Marauder.
Rounding out the elements of the 2016 Allied side of the coin is the 48 Star Flag of the United States at 12 o’clock high. To “Old Glory’s” east, the Free French Flag, to the west, Australia. The British Flag takes up position on the bottom right and the Canadian Flag to the lower left. As in all the coins in the series, Liberte’, and the longest day itself, D-Day June 6, 1944 complete the scene.
Depicted on the Axis side of the coin is the radar installation at Douvres-la-Délivrande France. The site today is one of the few places were you can see a giant convex shaped radar dome called a Wurzburg. Impressive, not only in its size alone, the radar dome and support system weighs nearly 20,000 pounds. Close inspection of the dome itself reminds me of the honeycombed construction of one of the most famous aircraft of the 20th century, the zeppelin. In fact the Wurzburg was designed and manufactured by Telefunken and the Zeppelin Company, the maker of the Hindenburg.
This Wurzburg radar site served a duel role in the battle of Normandy; detection of oncoming allied air-raids and as a high tech tool to provide a vectored direction and intercept elevation for defending Luftwaffe Fighter patrols. Hidden underground in a concrete bunker, measuring 6 foot thick in some places, was the heart of the entire site; a central room featuring a large gridded glass topped table. Using data gathered from the radar domes, operators in the control center shone color coded lights from underneath illuminating the positions of aircraft both friend and foe. German pilots were then given instructions as to where to fly to. Their movements could then be tracked in relationship to the targets. As they flew, even more precise directions and altitudes were then given for the intercept. This tactic worked extremely well for the Germans early on.
In addition, German radar sites throughout Normandy were also linked to coastal gun batteries operated by the Kriegsmarine. The shore batteries received information about a pending raid via an elaborate, thus slow, communication network that was also encumbered by cross service delays.
On the evening of D-Day, most of the radar sites that were still standing after countless allied bombing raids were rendered useless by allied jamming and deception tactics. First of these deception operations was called operation “Taxible” which employed 16 Lancaster bombers which dropped thousands of aluminum foil strips called “Window”. These particles slowly floating through the air confused the operators of the radar station and overwhelmed the radar system itself. Operation “Glimmer” caused even more confusion when 6 more British Stirlings conducted a similar operation at low level that simulated an invasion convoy approaching Boulogne. Operation “Titanic” didn’t deploy any “window” particles but were easily tracked, on purpose. What was dropped over these areas were thousands of dummy parachutists which carried explosive charges set to go off upon impact with the ground or set to blow up on a time delay. These dummy parachutists were nicknamed “Rupert” and you might see a few hanging in trees around the grounds of Conneaut.
The radar site at Douvres-la-Délivrande is located just north of the French city of Caen and just a few miles south of Juno Beach. Well worth the visit, the site is often overlooked by the tremendous history that surrounds the entire Normandy coastline.
The main feature on the Axis side of this year’s coin is the Wurzburg radar dome. Shown in the foreground is a towed 88mm anti-aircraft gun and crew and a second 88mm gun in the distance. Encircling the scene is the phrase “Der Feind Sieht Dein Licht!, meaning, “The enemy sees your light.” The Luftwaffe Observer Badge appears at the bottom of this scene, to the west, the German Luftwaffe Flak Badge, and to the east, the Coastal Artillery Badge of the Kreigsmarine. Above, a flight of B-17’s can be seen in the distance as the German soldat calls out “Luftangriff!” - Air Raid!
The remaining features of the 2016 commemorative coin celebrate the 72nd anniversary of D-Day, LXXII, and our 17th year XVII of the event here in Conneaut.
This coin and all those in the D-Day Conneaut series was researched and designed by Eric Montgomery, WWII Veteran Liaison, D-Day Conneaut, and is available at the event PX or online at www.ddayohio.us/px-store.html
