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What if the bombers hit their targets at Omaha Beach?

Discussion in 'What If - European Theater - Western Front & Atlan' started by phil5775, Jan 21, 2013.

  1. phil5775

    phil5775 recruit

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    If the AAF had approached their assigmnment in a different manner, i.e. flying parallel to the beach, making contingency plans to fly under the cloud cover , or using medium bombers instead of the heavies, and actually hit the German defenses, how much of a difference could it have made? I see at least 50% more destruction of the batteries and machine-gun nests, saving perhaps hundreds of soldiers from slaughter.
     
  2. mcoffee

    mcoffee Son-of-a-Gun(ner)

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    The flight path perpendicular to the beach was a requirement to get 1,200 heavy bombers of the 8th AF, plus the RAF, plus the 9th AF over the five invasion beaches in a very short allotted time between dawn and H-Hour. It simply would not be possible for that many aircraft to approach parallel to the beaches.

    Putting that number of aircraft underneath a 3,500 ft overcast would be a recipe for disaster.
     
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  3. efestos

    efestos Member

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    As I read in my copy of “Dawn of the D Day” heavy bombers were used to prevent bad weather and poor visibility conditions because they could bomb by instruments … RADAR? But the decision was took THE DAY BEFORE the D Day.

    The fleet should launch the DD Shermans from 3 miles off shore at (around) 05.40 … The DD Shermans reached around four knots … so they should had been too close to the shore to allow a “secure attack” of the B 24 against the beach.
    That delayed the bombing 30 seconds after the planes reached the shore’s line. At a speed of 215 mph ?these were 1, 8 miles inland just for the first planes. wasn't it?


    The LCTs reached a sped of eight knots… so if it had been planned to launch the DD Shermans from 1000 yards instead of the 5000 the “8 knots” of the LCTs would have allowed them to be two or three miles further than they actually were the D Day at 05.40 h. (06.00 h).

    That would have permitted the B 24 to hit the beach for ten minutes.


    IMHO The type of planes shouldn’t have been changed or such a good part of the plan should have been changed … or the possibility of the B 24 should have been considered before. (prescience needed) Should the plan have had more flexibility? But, was it possible those days?


    I must say that I disliked the DD tanks since I read my grandfather’s Dawn of the D day in my youth. But these “things” worked in other places.


    My own question is why the rockets of the LCT(R) completely failed?
     
  4. KodiakBeer

    KodiakBeer Member

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    Would a direct hit on a bunker even damage it? They might have busted up some of the wire and trenches, but how much difference would that really make?

    In a similar situation at the Seigfried Line, the Germans simply sheltered in the bunkers during air and artillery strikes then sallied back out to the trenches to engage the troops. In the Seigfried Line, the artillery and air strikes may have hindered the advance since the chewed up landscape made much of the terrain impassable to tanks. Of course, that was during the heavy fall rains so that may not have applied on D Day.
     
  5. efestos

    efestos Member

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    At least, an acuratte bombing of the beach would have provided , cover (holes in the sand ) , uncovered many mine fields, removed some wire and stunned the men in the bunkers for a while.
     
  6. mcoffee

    mcoffee Son-of-a-Gun(ner)

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    Typical bombing speed was 160 mph. Bombing was by H2X radar because of the low overcast. The drop was delayed by 30 seconds from the time the beach line was crossed as indicated by the radar display. This was in insure that no short drops would hit friendlies approaching the beach.
    The heavies were loaded with 100 lb bombs to prevent cratering the beaches as studies had shown that the craters would actually aid the defense.
    The bunkers were the job of the naval guns.
     
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  7. efestos

    efestos Member

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    I've read about the lack of cover , bomb craters, on the beach for years. Any sources, please.
     
  8. mcoffee

    mcoffee Son-of-a-Gun(ner)

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