May 28, 2019
Defense Primer: 75th Anniversary of D-Day, June 6, 1944
June 6, 2019, marks the 75th anniversary of the historic
amphibious landing by Allied Forces on the coast of
Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944, during World War II
(1939-1945). D-Day marked the beginning of the Allied
campaign to liberate Europe from Nazi Germany.
What is the “D” in D-Day?
The “D” in D-Day is the designation for the first day of any
important invasion or military operation. The days before
and after a D-Day are indicated using minus and plus signs,
(i.e., D-1 means one day before (June 5) while D+7 means
seven days after D-Day (June 13)).
D-Day Preparation and Operations
At the Tehran Conference in August 1943, Allied leaders
decided that a cross channel assault was crucial to defeat
Nazi Germany. In January 1944, General Dwight D.
Eisenhower became Supreme Allied Commander and took
charge of Operation OVERLORD, the codename given to
the combined land, naval and air operation. Tens of
thousands of troops, with equipment and supplies, gathered
in England in preparation for the assault.
Figure 1. D-Day Embarkation Ports in England and
Beach Designations in Normandy, France
Source: DOD, Map from the U.S. Army Transportation Museum.
By May 1944, after considerable deliberation among Allied
leaders, Normandy in northwestern France was chosen
because of its proximity to the British coast and because it
provided an element of surprise. Code named
FORTITUDE, the deception operation prior to D-Day
convinced the Germans that the Allied invasion was to be at
the Pas-de-Calais directly opposite Dover, England, or via a
northern route in Norway. The deception deflected the
German high command’s attention away from Normandy
and resulted in panzer divisions being stationed inland. This
left the “Atlantic Wall,” a 2,400-mile line of obstacles (6.5
million mines, thousands of concrete bunkers, thousands of
tank ditches and pillboxes containing heavy artillery
manned by Germans), as the main barrier to the invasion
force. Allied leaders initially set June 5, 1944, as D-Day but
on the morning of June 4, stormy weather over the English
Channel forced Gen. Eisenhower to postpone the attack for
24 hours to June 6 when a break in the weather was
expected. Operation NEPTUNE was the code name given
to the seaborne assault phase. See Figure 1.
Allied Landings on June 6, 1944
Before dawn on June 6, 1944, 13,000 paratroopers from
three airborne divisions—the U.S. 82nd and 101st and the
British 6th—parachuted and landed by glider behind
targeted beaches. See Figure 2. Over 1,200 aircraft were
used in the pre-landing drop. Allied naval forces, including
the U.S. Coast Guard, conveyed assault forces across the
English Channel. Beginning at 0630 AM, six American,
British and Canadian divisions landed on Utah, Omaha,
Gold, Juno and Sword Beaches in the largest amphibious
assault in history. The 29th Infantry Division (Omaha
Beach), comprised of units from Maryland, Virginia and
Washington, D.C., was the only National Guard division to
land on D-Day. See Figure 3 for additional data. By the
end of June 11, 1944 (D+5), 326,547 troops, 54,186
vehicles and 104,428 tons of supplies were landed and the
six beaches were secured.
Figure 2. Normandy Beaches on D-Day
Source: D-Day: The Beaches, U.S. European Command (EUCOM).
Participation and Casualties
According the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) about
16 million Americans served during WWII. As of April
2019, there were approximately 496,777 living WWII
veterans.VA estimates that 348 WWII veterans are dying
each day. There are no VA statistics on the number of
living D-Day veterans. Casualties for Allied Forces on June
6, 1944, were estimated at 10,000 killed in action (KIA),
wounded, and missing in action (MIA) including 6,603
Americans, 2,700 British, and 946 Canadians.
