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2nd Armored Division

The US 2nd Armored Division played a critical role in the breakout from the Normandy beaches, particularly in support of the lightly equipped airborne units behind Utah Beach. Their operations illustrate armoured exploitation, breakthrough tactics and coordination with infantry and air support.

US Troops of 4th Infantry Division storm ashore at Utah Beach

⚔️ D-Day: Utah Beach landings,
6 June 1944

In the early hours of D-Day, 6 June 1944, 13,200 paratroopers of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions landed behind Utah Beach to secure the beach landing sites and prevent German interference. A few hours later, the US 4th Infantry Division stormed ashore on Utah Beach. The amphibious forces landed about 2,000 yards south of their intended site, but rapidly secured the beachhead and moved inland to link-up with the paratroopers. By the end of D-Day, more than 21,000 troops were ashore at Utah Beach.

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⚔️ D-Day: 101st Airborne Division and the Battle of Bloody Gulch,
13 June 1944

The Battle of Bloody Gulch was fought on 13 June 1944, just west of Carentan, Normandy. The battle followed immediately after 101st Airborne Division’s capture of Carentan on 12 June. Lightly armed American paratroopers from 506th (PIR) Parachute Infantry Regiment and 501st PIR faced a major armoured counterattack by the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division and Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 6. The timely arrival of the American 2nd Armored Division saved the day and turned the battle into an allied victory.

82nd airborne division 508th pir pathfinders team 3 1

⚔️ D-Day: US Airborne Operations, Sainte-Mere-Eglise,
6 June 1944

As a former 82nd Airborne Division paratrooper, the town of Sainte-Mere Eglise in the Cotentin Peninsula of Normandy holds a special place for me. In the early hours of 6 June 1944, ahead of the Normandy Beach landings, the US 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions parachuted into this area. The 82nd was to seize the crossings over the Merderet River and the major road junction at Sainte-Mere Eglise, while the 101st was to seize key towns and the four beach exits in support of the landings at Utah Beach.