Utah Beach
"Utah" was the code name for the farthest beach on the right of the five
landing areas of the Normandy Invasion. Located on the eastern shore
of the base of the Cotentin Peninsula, it was a late addition to the areas
scheduled for invasion. The original Overlord plan did not call for a
landing on the Cotentin, but General Dwight D. Eisenhower, supreme
commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces, added it to ensure an
early capture of the port of Cherbourg at the northern tip of the
peninsula.
The Utah landing area was
approximately three miles (5
kilometres) wide and was
located northwest of the
Carentan estuary on sandy,
duned beaches. Compared to
German fortifications at Omaha
Beach, the defenses at Utah,
based on fixed infantry positions,
were sparse because the
low-lying areas immediately behind the landing area were flooded and
the Germans could control the flooding with locks. Four causeways
exited the beach through the flooded lowlands and severely restricted
movement inland. Indeed, all land traffic was restricted to established
routes, especially through the important crossroads towns of Carentan
and Sainte-Mère-Église. Defenses along the causeways consisted
mostly of strong points equipped with automatic weapons. Two miles
inland were some coastal and field artillery batteries. The defending
forces consisted of elements of the German 709th, 243rd, and 91st
Infantry Divisions.
The assault sectors at Utah Beach were
designated (from west to east) Tare Green,
Uncle Red, and Victor. The invasion was
planned for Tare Green and Uncle Red, with
the number 3 causeway almost in the middle
of the landing area. H-Hour was scheduled
for 0630 hours (6:30 A.M.. The beach was to be
assaulted by the U.S. 4th Infantry Division.
The plan was to cross the beach and seize
control of the coast roads, link up with
airborne troops who were to have been dropped inland five hours
earlier, and then be prepared to attack toward Cherbourg. The 8th
Infantry Regiment was to attack first; supported by 32 special
amphibious tanks in the first wave, it was to land opposite
Les-Dunes-de-Varraville, a well-fortified area.
The landing plan went
wrong from the beginning.
Strong currents beset the
landing craft, and the area
was obscured by smoke
from the preceding shore
bombardment. But the main
problem was the loss of
three of the four designated
control craft to mines. The
fourth control craft eventually rounded up the confused landing craft
looking for directions and, using a bullhorn for communication, led them
in. The force landed 2,000 yards (1,800 metres) east of the designated
landing area, in the less defended Victor sector and almost astride
causeway number 2.
The assistant division commander, Brigadier
General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., quickly
realized the error. Uttering his famous remark,
"We'll start the war from here!" he ordered
the division to advance. Three hours later
exits 1, 2, and 3 had been secured, and by
1200 hours (12:00 noon) contact had been made with
paratroopers from the 101st Airborne
Division around the town of Pouppeville. By
the end of the day the 4th Division had
pushed inland about four miles, and its westernmost units were within a
mile of the 82nd Airborne's perimeter near Sainte-Mère-Église.
For an assault that had begun
with such terrible confusion, the
Utah Beach landings ended as a
spectacular success beyond the
most optimistic expectations.
The 2,000-yard error had
placed the landing force away
from the heavily defended area
of Les-Dunes-de-Varaville and
into a less defended section of
beach. Twenty thousand troops
and 1,700 motorized vehicles
had landed at Utah with
surprisingly few casualties--fewer than 300 men.
The Germans had not counterattacked the
seaborne assault, owing to the success of the
Allied airborne troops in holding the roads
that led to the beach approaches and also to
confusion among the German commanders as
to exactly where the main attack was taking
place. The Germans, however, were in a
position to counterattack in the Cotentin
Peninsula at the end of D-Day.