The Royal Air Force at Omaha Beach
Photographic Credit – US National Archives
Why was there a small contingent of RAF Technical personnel mixed up with over 130,000 highly trained combat troops attempting to land on Normandy beaches on D-Day?
Spare a thought this evening of the 5th June 2024 that 80 years ago, 7000 ships and landing craft manned by 195,000 naval personnel from 8 allied countries. Almost 133,000 troops from the USA, British Empire & their allies: were on the eve of what was to be the largest seaborne invasion in history, 6th June 1944. This historic date was to be the most momentous happening in modern history and was the beginning of the liberation of Europe from the tyranny of Nazi Germany.
Planning for the allied invasion of Europe finally got underway in May 1943 during an Anglo – American conference in Washington. Consideration was given to the opening of a front in Western Europe for offensive operations against German occupation. The planners selected 50 miles of coast in western Normandy. Five beaches were selected as invasion sites Juno, Gold, Utah, Sword & Omaha.
As detailed planning progressed it was strongly recommended to get Radar coverage for the Landing Beaches and once landing progressed to get further Radar units set up in Normandy, all of which were to provide vital protection from the Luftwaffe during the amphibious landings on exposed beaches.
Radar protection for the beaches was established by the conversion of 3 Landing Ships Tank (LST) into air surveillance & control ships designated as Fighter Direction Tenders (FDT); crewed by RAF technical personnel with the Navy providing the marine crew. The 3 FDTs were positioned & anchored at strategic locations off the Normandy coast & provided outstanding air coverage.
The following link provides an excellent Briefing Paper by the Association of RAF Fighter Control Officers. The D-Day Fighter Control Story, compiled & edited by Group Captain Tim Willbond RAF (Retd)
Further Radar protection was planned to be established inland of the Normandy landing beaches to provide air coverage further into Normandy as the allies progressed. To achieve this objective, RAF personnel were selected to form Mobile Radar Units & extensive training began from mid 1943 in Scotland which included practice landings from landing craft which operationally was usually associated with “front line infantry”. See the following link
https://www.therafatomahabeach.com/precis/
Further recommended reading on mobile GCI radar units is covered in a very informative book, Off to War with “054”, by Sqd Ldr John Kemp who was the second CO of GCI RAF Ripperston (the radar rooms)
THE RADAR ROOMS 
What a great connection with history you have at your place, it made particularly interesting reading today, the longest day, the 6th June 2024. It is a great shame that more young people are not made more aware of what sacrifices were made on that day to allowing us to live as we do today.
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A very interesting story and some thing I did not realize had gone on.
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I have known John and Jane for a number of years and share their interest in the RAF but in the area that most people are more familiar with I.e. aircraft, guns and bombs etc. So it’s great to see that John is bringing to life that less well known story of the RAF and the privations and dangers that those personnel went through. It wasn’t only aircrew that were on the front line. Witness Flight Sergeant Charles Cox, the engineer who stripped the German radar for its secrets on the Bruneval raid, and has John has pointed out those members of the RAF who were at Omaha beach establishing a radar chain to cover the invasion from the earliest landings. A great story that is little known and deserves to be recognised. John you really have done the memories of those pioneers, from Watson-Watt to the Battle of Britain personnel who manned the RDF Chain and were under constant air attack, proud.
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