Message #307212

[Eupher]

As I understand it, and going from memory alone, Bradley was operational commander of Omaha Beach and very nearly did give the order to withdraw from Omaha altogether. Utah, further west, was having far better success as were the Brits and Canadians further east.

Lots of things plagued Omaha in particular. The pre-invasion bombing was essentially useless against those fortifications (the Atlantic Wall was a real PITA); the offloaded amphibious armor swamped in the heavy seas after having been launched too soon; the terrain favored the defenders, who were beefed up by units that had just moved in the area; and the low tide left a lot of beach for the defenders to machine-gun, mortar, and bomb at will -- at least for awhile.

The causeways in back of the beaches were valuable and securing them was the mission of the airborne, simply to keep the Germans from throwing the invasion force back into the sea. Most of the land in back of the beaches had been flooded and the causeways provided the only means to move.

Had Bradley given the order to evacuate/abandon Omaha, there's no question that Utah would've been maximized, along with the westernmost Brit beach - Gold, I think.

The thrust into the Atlantic Wall could not have a segment of it unsecured - that's tantamount to the classic "leaving your flanks unsecured" tactic which is an invitation to a lot of headache. So the broad front needed to be broad enough to facilitate the landing of so many thousands of troops, their supply trains, and other support.

Omaha, in the end, needed to be taken. Thanks to naval gunfire and good leadership, it got taken by the end of the day.