Below is a list of ships responsible for bombarding targets at Utah Beach as part of the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944, the opening day of Operation Overlord. This force, code-named "Bombardment Group A", and commanded by Rear Admiral Morton Deyo, was a group of eighteen warships assigned to support the amphibious landings on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944 ("D-Day"); this was the opening day of Operation Overlord, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II.
It was part of US Navy Force U, which consisted of 865 ships under Rear Admiral Don P. Moon.[1] This was in turn part of the Western Naval Task Force, under Admiral Alan G Kirk.[2]
Name | Type | National service | Captain |
---|---|---|---|
Nevada | Battleship | US Navy | Captain P. M. Rhea[3] |
Erebus | Monitor | Royal Navy | Captain J. S. Colquhoun[3] |
Hawkins | Heavy cruiser | Royal Navy | Captain J. W. Josselyn[3] |
Quincy | Heavy cruiser | US Navy | Captain E. M. Senn[4] |
Tuscaloosa | Heavy cruiser | US Navy | Captain J. B. Waller; flagship of Rear Admiral Morton Deyo[3] |
Black Prince | Light cruiser | Royal Navy | Captain D. M. Lees[3] |
Enterprise | Light cruiser | Royal Navy | Captain H. T. Grant[3] |
Soemba | Gunboat | Netherlands | Lt. Cmdr. H. H. Propper[3] |
Butler | Destroyer | US Navy | Cmdr. M. Matthews[5] |
Corry | Destroyer | US Navy | Lt. Cmdr. G. Hoffman[3] |
Fitch | Destroyer | US Navy | Cmdr. K. Walpole[3] |
Forrest | Destroyer | US Navy | Cmdr. Letts[3] |
Gherardi | Destroyer | US Navy | Cmdr. M. Curtin[5] |
Herndon | Destroyer | US Navy | Cmdr. G. Moore[3] |
Hobson | Destroyer | US Navy | Lieutenant K. Loveland[3] |
Shubrick | Destroyer | US Navy | Lt. Cmdr. W. Blenman[3] |
Bates | Destroyer escort | US Navy | Lt. Cmdr. H. Wilmerding[5] |
Rich | Destroyer escort | US Navy | Lt. Cmdr. E. Michel[5] |
Hotham | Frigate | Royal Navy | A/Lt.Cdr. Sydney Ayles[6] |
Tyler | Frigate | Royal Navy | Lt. Christopher H. Rankin[7] |