大象传媒

D-Day Memories
page1/3 by Jack Nicholls

The first inkling that I had that the Invasion was imminent and that my Unit was going to be involved was two or three weeks before June 6th. At the time I was a corporal in a General Transport Company of the R.A.S.C, doing both Motor Cycle Despatch rider duties and Convoy Control, stationed at Barrhead in Scotland. There, we were operating a Drivers Training Centre, retraining as Drivers men who had previously been in the Ack Ack in this Country and were no longer required for that duty after the German Air raids virtually ceased in 1943 and 44. Incidentally a number of the men we trained became Drivers of the DUKWs, the amphibious vehicles that were used to bring supplies ashore, before the Mulberry Harbour was constructed at Arromanches and they did sterling work in very rough seas. To see them scrabbling for grip with their front wheels at a gap blown in the sea wall whilst the back end was still bobbing and weaving in the rough sea was a sight for sore eyes. They did a marvellous job although quite a few were overturned and sank. However, I digress. It was two or three weeks before D Day when I was ordered to report to the C.O. who gave me orders to make my way to CRASC Headquarters at Guildford in Surrey, pick up some sealed orders and from there to rendezvous with the rest of the Company, who were moving South at a place called Wansford in Northants, picking up petrol and grub at any convenient Unit on the way.
I spent the rest of the day working out my route - in those days most of the road signs had been taken down as a precaution against any German invasion. It was quite a journey, - about 450 miles South to Guildford then about 100 miles back North to Wansford and I naturally made sure that the route went via Sheffield, my home town, so I would have at least one night at home. I had a good bike, found my way to Guildford without any difficulty, collected the despatches then made my way back North to Wansford. There my Platoon vehicles (ERF Diesels) were leaded with Somerfeld tracking (Mesh) and Iron stakes and we were left in the dark having no idea of where the load was destined for禄 We had already waterproofed the engines of our vehicles and tested them in 4 ft. deep water in a loch in Scotland so we realised this was it, - we were booked for the Invasion. From Wansford we first filled the vehicle tanks to the brim and then went to a camp, simply designated R8, in the wilds of Norfolk. This was completely sealed off with Barbed wire and guarded with M.P.s so that, once in, no one could get out.
On the Thursday evening before D Day, the Officers and N,C.O.'s were called to a meeting to be briefed and told we were to land on 鈥淕old Beach" the first Platoon to land being our Platoon, A Platoon, on the day, and our, loads were to be delivered at all cost to a Map reference on the map of the Normandy coast with which we were provided, where a Pioneer Company would be waiting to use the material for the construotion of a temporary Runway for the RAF, the first in France B Platoon would follow four hours later with petrol and C Company .four hours after that with ammo for the planes. If we didn鈥檛 succeed to deliver, then a second Company would come in four hours later and If they were lost then a third Company with the same loads would follow. This didn't do much good to our morale, and the Officers wore told privately, I heard afterwards, that casualties were expected to be very heavy, but we had to get through with our loads at all costs. :
Friday morning come and we went to the Hards, a sloping concrete ramp down to the sea, at Felixstowe, loaded our vehicles on to an American L,S.T. boat which was waiting for us there. Once loaded we put to sea, then went down the coast for a while and finally anchored in the mouth of the Medway and the waiting began. A lot of the Drivers hadn鈥檛 seen any action before and didn't know what to expect, but there was a nucleus of us, from our previous Company, who had been at Dunkirk and we knew it was going to be no picnic. However, in for a penny, in for a pound and I am sure everyone was determined to do their best.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.