ENPages
Page 2
Ack 2/6/58 E THE ASSAULT LANDINGS IN NORMANDY D DAY: MIDNIGHT JUNE 5 -- MIDNIGHT JUNE 6
What is your full name? Geoffrey Roger Fox.
What is your present address? 69,Beech Avenue,Acton.W.3.
Telephone number: No phone
What was your unit, division, corps? H.M.L.C.T. 1066. 48th Landing hCraft Flotilla.
Where did you land and at what time? Ouisterham at about 6.30a .m. (Sword Area)
What was your rank and age on June 6, 1944? Leading Seaman. 19yrs
Were you married at that time? No.
What is your wife's name? No.
Did you nave any children at that time? No.
When did you know that you were going to be part of the invasion? On 3rd June 1944
What was the trip like during the crossing of the Channel? Do you remember, for example, any conversations you had or how you passed the time? The crossing was rough and heavy seas made the steering of the craft difficult. On sailing from Newhaven the crew were closed up at action stations until we had landed our troops at the beach head concerned.I spent most of the time on the helm of the craft trying to steer a straight course.
Were there any rumours aboard ship? (Some people remember hearing that the Germans had poured gasoline on the water and planned to set it afire when the troops came in.) No.
Did you by any chance keep a diary of what happened to you that day? No.
Page 3
2.
Were any of your friends killed or wounded either during the landing or during the day? One of the L.C.T's forming part of our flotilla was damaged severly damaged by gunfire, three of the crew were killed and two others injured. I cannot give any further details on this incident.
Do you remember any conversations you had with them before they became casualties? No.
Were you wounded? No.
How were you wounded? [crossed out] [illegible] [end crossed out]
Do you remember what it was like -- that is, do you remember whether you felt any pain or were you so surprised that you felt nothing?
Do you remember seeing or hearing anything that seems funny now, even though it may not have seemed amusing at the time? Or anything unexpected or out of - place? While we [crossed out] were [end crossed out] were unloading the troops and equipment at the beach head I saw a warrant officer (army) supervising the loading of casualities onto landing craft, the stretcher bearers were German and as they were carrying a stretcher containing a casualty, the beach received a burst of shelling, the bearers dropped the stretcher and sought cover, . The W.O however ran after them , grapped them by the neck, kicked their behinds and ensured that they carried on with the work concerned. I can only add that the W.O seemed to be oblivious of danger that was exploding in his very close proximity.
Do you recall any incident, sad or heroic, or simply memorable, that struck you more than anything else? As we approached the beach head, we had the misfortune to wrap a 'Dan buoy' around our port screw. One of the crew, Able Seaman Tilley went over the side, and in heavy seas managed to clear the buoy from the screw. For this he was awarded a decoration, I cannot say what, but I do know he was eventually presented with this decoration at the temporary depot at Westcliffe on Sea.
Page 4
3.
In times cf great crisis, people generally show either great ingenuity or self-reliance; others do incredibly strange or stupid things. Do you remember any examples of either? No.
Do you know of anybody else who landed within the 24 hours ( midnight 5 June to midnight 6 June) either as infantry, glider or airborne troops, whom we should write to? No.
What do you do now? I am a Police Constable, attached to Hammersmith Police [crossed out] Sat [end crossed out] Station, 'F' Division.(CID).
Please let us have this questionnaire as soon as possible, so that we can include your experiences in the book . We hope that you will continue your story on separate sheets if we have not left sufficient room. Full acknowledgement will be given in a chapter called "Where They Are Now."
Cornelius Ryan Joan O. Isaacs The Reader’s Digest
Page 5
The troops we helped to land during the intial assault (seaborne) were part of the 3rd British Infantry Division, The Warwickshire Regiment. Wev had trained with these men for months previous in waters of the West Scottish Coast.
On, the 3rd of June 1944 we were briefed for the operation ' Overlord ' at a Cinema in Newhaven , by a R.N. Officer of Flag Rank. We were told to expect heavy casualties to some 75% and the officer concerned finished the briefing with the words, "Fight to get your troops ashore, fight to save your ships and if you have got any strenght left fight to save yourselves".
On the evening of June 3rd we loaded up with our troops and equipment at the small harbour at Portslade near Hove and on completion we put to sea, only returning to Newhaven as we later learned that bad weather had caused a postponment ofm the operation.
From a sailor's piont of view we did not envy the task of our army colleagues, ours was to get them to the beaches and for them to fight on. I later learnt that the men we put ashore had a very rough time and that very few did in fact survive. I obtained this information from the Captain in charge of our troops with whom I had a chance meeting in Lowestoft, he was recuperating from wounds. One of the craft in the 48th Flotilla was heavily damaged on the beach, and was abandoned, the crew however went ashore and took part in the fighting. I cannot quote names however as with time the memory dims.
If I can be of any further use I shall be pleaded to do so, yours sincerely
G.R. Fox.