Photographs: Training on Landing Crafts (9).

Types of Landing Craft Grow in Number

Canadians waiting for departure aboard 262nd Flotilla of LCI(L)s for D-Day

Normandy. Tied up alongside in Southampton during a day of bad weather.

CP Photo as found on Page 231 in St. Nazaire to Singapore

Introduction:

As World War II continued, the number of Combined Operation Centres that dotted the shorelines of the UK, of servicemen who received training on landing craft at those centres, of the types and sizes of the landing crafts used, rapidly grew.

Thousands of men would have surely remembered their first, second, third (etc.) practise operations in southern England, north-west Scotland or on the mighty Thames - east of London, England - because embarking on an assault landing craft and later disembarking onto a shingle beach was no picnic on rough seas.

Canadians in Combined Operations, initially acquainted with ALCs and LCMs in Scotland before the Dieppe raid and invasion of N. Africa in 1942, and later introduced to other types of craft - including Landing Craft, Infantry (Large), aka LCI(L)s - in, e.g., the English Channel in preparation for D-Days in Sicily, Italy and France (and more), have stories about sea conditions, how troops fared on board unfamiliar crafts, and other matters about training.

Mr. L. Williams told the following story at the Maritime Museum of Vancouver BC in 1995. Some details were supplied by Jim Gibb.

Maritime Museum of BC. in Victoria. 2012

Mr. Williams says, "Operation Neptune, the naval phase of Overlord, had the primary task of landing the armies of liberation on French soil, and secondly the maintenance of waterborne lines of communication and supply."

Canada supplied 110 ships and 10,000 seamen to the enterprise, about 4 per cent of the Naval contribution. HMCS Prince Henry and Prince David, luxury liners transformed into landing ships early in the year, assembled at Cowes (Isle of Wight) with other LSI(M)s and given D-Day assignments.

Prince Henry, as a Senior Officer of Landing Ships (SOLS) in Force J would carry eight assault craft of the 528th Canadian Flotilla, and Prince David, as a Senior Ship in the same force, would transport six craft of the 529th along with six Royal Marine Boats. And shortly thereafter at Cowes, after lengthy training exercises, three Canadian Flotillas of LCI(L)s arrived, the 260th, 262nd [see top photo] and 264th, 30 craft in all.

Then began final exercises on a very large scale, the last of which (Operation Fabius) took place in broad daylight and later under a bright moon twenty-five miles south of the Isle of Wight, and likely was observed by the enemy, thus adding the risk of a possible attack. None came and the great force of ships and troops landed before dawn "under the thunder of supporting arms" east of Portsmouth and upon the beaches of Bracklesham Bay.

Williams says, "On May 24 the King inspected all the assault ships and craft.... (Officers and ratings were presented to the King) "after which the small ships were sailed past while His Majesty took the salute."

A signal announced the King's passing by his LCI(L)s in a barge

Officers and ratings await the Royal Sail Past in Southampton.

Photo by David Lewis, St. Nazaire to Singapore, Page 230

To read the entire address, please visit the following links:

Story: Normandy - Operation NEPTUNE Part 1

Story: Normandy - Operation NEPTUNE Part 2

[Editor's note: The online links to University of Alberta, home of the texts St. Nazaire to Singapore (two volumes of Canadian veterans' stories re Combined Operations) has been lost.]

For more information about Landing Crafts and Operation Fabius (training exercise in English Channel), please visit Search Our Collections at Imperial War Museum (IWM):

A23732. A Flotilla of Mark IV Landing Craft, Tank or LCT's at exercise.

Photo Credit - Lt. E.E. Allen, RN Official Photographer, IWM.

The following heading accompanies the above photo and several that come next:

Invasion craft rehearsal. 24 to 28 April 1944, off the Isle of Wight. Various craft during an invasion rehearsal.

A23733. Three LCT Mark 4 craft (LCT 804 and LCT 530) in line ahead during

an exercise off the Isle of Wight before the invasion of Normandy.

Lt. E.E. Allen, RN Official Photographer,

Imperial War Museum (IWM).

A23739. One of the latest landing ships infantry (LSI), HMS MONOWAI.

Photo - Lt. E.E. Allen, IWM.

A23740. One of the latest landing ships infantry (LSI), HMS MONOWAI.

Lt. E.E. Allen, IWM.

A23742. A Landing Ship Tanks (LST) belonging to the US Navy.

Photo - Lt. E.E. Allen, RN photographer, IWM.

A23743. Landing Ship Infantry (LSI) HMCS PRINCE DAVID ("would

transport six craft of the 529th along with six Royal Marine Boats").

Lt. E.E. Allen, IWM.

A23745. A British LCT Mark 1 in coastal waters off the Isle of Wight

during exercises for the Normandy landings. Lt. E.E. Allen, IWM.

A23746. Mark IV LCT's, Landing Craft Tanks.

Lt. E.E. Allen, RN Official Photographer

Heading with photographs: INVASION CRAFT REHEARSAL. 24 TO 28 APRIL 1944, OFF THE ISLE OF WIGHT. VARIOUS CRAFT DURING AN INVASION REHEARSAL.

A23747. A Landing Craft Rockets (LC(R))

Lt. E.E. Allen, RN photographer, IWM.

A23748. Mark IV LCT, Landing Craft Tanks.

Photo - Lt. E.E. Allen, IWM.

A23752. Gun crew of Landing Craft Gun Large [LCG(L)] close up at action

stations on a 4.7 inch gun during an invasion rehearsal off the Isle of Wight.

Further landing craft can be seen in the distance. Lt. E.E. Allen, IWM.

A23753. Landing Craft Gun, Large (LCG(L)) take up position for a

beach bombardment. Lt. E.E. Allen, RN photographer, IWM.

A23754. View of a Landing Craft Gun, Large (LCG(L)).

Lt. E.E. Allen, Imperial War Museum (IWM).

More photographs of various landing craft in training exercises prior to D-Day Normandy will soon follow.

Please link to Photographs: Training on Landing Crafts (8).

Unattributed Photos GH