LCI (542) - Naval Cruise Book

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9 all hands had donned anti+gas suits, and we went to general quarters at 1647. Soon the ship was lying to about 3,000 yards off FOX Green B-each-Easy Red, Our' scheduled landing beach, was too cluttered to use. On signal from the 420 all twelve ships of the task- group made for the beach at 1735. At 1800 the 542 struck a sand barg ramps were lowered and the troops ordered aft while we tried to shove over without success, Roberts volunteered and jumped into the deep water first from one ramp and then the other in a vain attempt to carry a lifeline ashore. After ten minutes the ship hauled off for another try and at 1826 beached successfully closer in, just to starboard ofthe 417. The tide was low but coming in fast, most of the beach obstacles were exposed, although some were close under our bow. Almost dead ahead the Coast Guard LCI 93 was high and dry but with 'her engines going now that the tide was returning. As we dropp-ed our ramps and Company E began to disembark, the beach was under sporadic mortar, artillery and automatic weapon fire. Several Nazi aircraft dropped window and bombed the beach to port. Meanwhile our destroyers con- tinued their close-in bombardment. All went well with the 542 for five minutes, until the 418, minus her anchor, attempted to beach close aboard to starboard. She did not succeed, and the current swiftly carried her down up-on us. She started to retract, but caught her port sponson on our starb-oard fantail chock, throwing our stern over against the 417. Our gasoline drum was bro-ached, and Mr. Hand jettisoned it, cutting loose the barrage balloon at the same time, since it was attracting enemy 88mm fire. At 1840 the port ramp was disabled, and three minutes later the starboard one carried away. By this time we were very close to the 417, while the 418 had maneuvered astern, remaining entangled in our anchor cable, which only the skill of Wicks prevented from parting. Finally at 1846 the 418 was clear, we commenced retract- ing, and just in time, for a salvo of 88mm shells landed where the three ships had been seconds before, doing further damage to the luckless 93. The 542 had been beached for twenty minutes under fire and still had over a score of her passengers aboard. Half an hour later an LCM was located, which took them off. It was later learned, in a letter from the Colonel commanding the 26th Infantry, that the troops landed by our task group were the first to reach their D-Day objectives on Omaha Beach. ' ' As soon as the last soldier had departed, we made tracks for the 414 to report, only to- be sent out to the Assault Flagship U. S. S. ANCON in the Assembly Area for further orders, which were to stand by in the area. At 2320, while we were still under way, a bfiSk Cneml' air raid on beach and anchorage commenced. We steamed for twenty

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8 1 june 1944 was loading day, for hours the Tamar buzzed with LCVPS bringing the troops up from Plymouth to our LCls and also to the square-conned Mediterranean veterans that were to be part of the Utah Beach assault force. f0ur group of 13 LCIS was assigned to Follow-up Force Baker and scheduled to land its troops 12 hours after H-Hour.j At 1322 Company E, 26th Infantry, First Division, First Army, began to come aboard-193 men and 9 officers under the command of Captain Ozell Smootg they were tough, battle-hardened veterans of Africa and Sicily, and their quiet conidence was: hearten- ing to us. That afternoon Pvt. Akins went regretfully ashore, having been an adopted member of the crew for ten days. The ship- was sealed, and we w.ere ready to go g all hands knew the destination was France, since our guests lost no time in displaying their 100-franc notes. The day had not been decided upo-ng so we waited. Half of Lt. Com. Henry's Group had left to join the Coast Guard LCIS in the Omaha assault force, and the 419 had also departed after conversion into an army headquarters ship. 'There was a false start on june 3, when all ships got under way in a rush, only to anchor in Iennycliff Bay for the night and return. Finally, at 1215 on 5 June, we slipped the cable and proceeded down the Tamar to anchor in formation in Cawsand Bay. Shortly afterwards an RAF barge came alongside and tied a barrage balloon to the fantil, which floated just above the top of the mast. At last the word came: 6 june was to be D-Day. Promptly at 0030 on that day we sailed from Plymouth in formation of two co-lumns as Task Gro-up 126.3. LCH 414 was the flagship, in company were LCICLJS 401, 403, 415, 416, 417, 418, 420, 537, 538, 539, 542 and 556. All night we steamed at full speed Q14 knotsj along the coast of Southern England, the DE MALOY, Force Flagship, the AKA ACHERNAR, and an LSD joined us, together with some corvettes and a rescue cutter. The voyage was rough but suffered no enemy inter'- ference. At 1315 the Cherbourg Peninsula was sighted 5 two- hours later we entered the assembly area off Gmaha Beach and anchored. Conditio-ns were confused, loaded landing craft, rescue craft, patrol vessels, and small boats weaved aimlessly in and out among the. anchored ship-s. German artillery was shelling the landing forces, while allied destroyers, close in, returned the fire. Farther offshore to port lay a large French cruiser, her decks filled with civilians and a gigantic tricolor Hying from her stern. It was obvious from the number of assault force ships still lying to fully loaded that the situation on the beach was precarious and that our landing would have more of the character of an assault than of the peaceful reinforcement we had expected. After being anchored only four minutes, we started for the smoke-shrouded beach 3

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10 minutes more, trying to keep away from the big ships and narrowly missing collision with a flak boat as well as a stick of bombs. At last the anchor was dropped, and all hands secured below for shelter from shrapnel, since our 20mm guns were useless against the high-flying enemy. In half an hour the raid was over, three planes had fallen in flames, one plummeting directly overhead. The next morning we got under way at 0630 in a rough sea and finally left the Omaha anchorage two and a half hours later, with the 538, carrying Com. Cameron, as guide. We learned that the 416 had been abandoned on the beach after losing screws and cable when a land mine exploded, she was the only ship lost by the Flotilla, and only one of her crew was killed. We ourselves were battered but un- touched by the enemy. That afternoon we arrived off Weymouth and by nightfall had moored alongside the 539 at a buoy in Portland Harbor. Next day we moved to Weymouth docks, where workmen swarmed aboard to repair the damage and install a new starboard ramp. They worked fast, for by 9 June- the ship- was ready for sea once more. In the late afternoon of 10 june we were sent back to Portland for orders. There Lt. P. M. Thacker, RNVR, bustled aboard to ex- plain that the 542 was to escort his nine Royal Navy LCTS to Omaha Beach, carrying no troops herself. I-Ie was surprised to learn that the ship was less heavily armed than his LCTS, some o-f which had 40mm guns. The convoy sailed at 2130, speed six knots, and six- teen weary hours later arrived at the Omaha anchorage without inci- dent. After shepherding the LCTs to the beach to dry out, we an- chored for the night. The return voyage commenced the next morn- ing, after three hours o-f rounding up our charges, which in some cases meant running alongside and sending a man aboard to waken the crews. At 0439 the following morning we arrived at Portland and that evening were back in Weymouth for three days of relaxation. Around noontime on june 16 Z0 nurses, l8 oflicers, and 160 white and colored troops filed aboard-a nice billeting problem for Mr. Littlejohn, although someone helped him out with a fancy sign con- cerning the use of the head. When all were snugly berthed, we sailed in company with 493 and 540, Lt. Roper in command, to escort 18 British LCTS to the Far Shore. The time schedule caused a reversal of course for a few ho-urs in the convoy lane off the Isle of Wight, and thus it was that we ran head-on into a Westbound convoy of coasters in the pitch darkness. Suddenly one illuminated on the star- board bow, and before anything could be done clipped our port cat- head neatly and sheered down the port side-no damage done beyond cutting the port ramp cables. There was confusion all around for a