1. Bomber Command – Death by Moonlight
0 - 35:00
47:30 – 1:03:45
Reg Harrison

2. D-Day and the Battle of Normandy
Spring 1944, Germany had occupied France for nearly 4 years, with no established fronts by the allied forces.
While strong pushes had been made in the Italian campaign and the Soviet Front, the allies knew they must get a Western Front.
Planning for D-Day began a year in advance and would involve Sea, Land and Air elements
Germany had created a costal fortress line, constructed by slave labour (Prisoners of War POW) to defend against a landing invasion
Referred to as “Fortress Europe.”
Hitler envisioned a costal defense from Denmark to the South of France
Harbors would need to be seized, in order to continue flow of supplies once landed.

4. Target was 80 kilometers of coastline, with 5 landing zones:
Initial assault was months prior to D-Day, where allied forces carried out aerial bombardment of coastal defenses.
June 6, 1944, a massive force crossed the English Channel to secure beachheads in what was called “Operation Overlord”
Target was 80 kilometers of coastline, with 5 landing zones:
Juno Beach (Canada)
Gold Beach (Britain)
Sword Beach (Britain and France)
Utah (USA)
Omaha (USA)
RCN and RCAF bombarded the beach on the day.
Allied air force would consist of nearly 4000 bombers and 3700 fighter/fighter bombers
450 Canadian Paratroopers were dropped in at dawn, 14,000 would follow by landing invasion

6.
Joint naval forces would include 1,200 warships and 4,100 landing craft
German defenses included 4 million anti-tank and anti-personnel mines, and 500,000 beach obstacles
Nearly 800,000 German Soldiers were positioned along the French Coastline
The defensive construction of Juno beach wasn’t quite entirely done. German construction had yet to fully finish, making them vulnerable to the RCN bombardment and unable to return sufficient fire.
160,000 troops crossed the English channel, resulting in 10,000 casualties for the allied forces
German losses would be nearly 1,000
Estimates for casualties for Juno beach were 2,000; actual casualties were approx. 800