You know about D-Day, but here's a look at a prior training operation.

Date published: 5/4/2004

SIXTY YEARS AGO, in the spring of 1944, England was, for lack of a better description, a massive staging area and aircraft carrier all in one. Some 11/2 million young Americans were taking residence in bivouac areas all over the country.

Living in tents--not that much fun during the chilly and rainy English spring--they trained and waited.

In the midst of this preparation they were all getting edgy for what the British liked to call the "Big Show" to begin: Operation Overlord, the invasion of Europe.  Nothing like it had been done before. Sure, we had done amphibious invasions in Africa, Sicily, Italy, and, of course, the Pacific, but nothing compared to D-Day in size and scope. Or, for that matter, sheer daring.

Generally, history paints a portrait of the preparations for D-Day as being relatively incident-free. The enemy was caught unawares, the German leadership just couldn't believe we would attack at Normandy, and nothing could rival the tenacity of the men at Omaha and Utah beaches as they overcame obstacles and determined enemy fire.

This is all true, but there is one story, left out of the telling at the time, and for good reason, that sometimes is forgotten. It's not necessarily glorious. A lot of men died, and it almost cost the Allies that critical element of surprise they needed so desperately to succeed.

For any amphibious operation to succeed, rehearsal is a necessity. An amphibious landing is a magnificently choreographed operation, and there is no substitute for practice. Of course, even then, things will go wrong. However, if the officers and men have an idea, however notional, of the sights, sounds, and experiences they will face--at least those that can be duplicated short of actual combat--they will be that much better prepared. That was the idea behind a practice landing, scheduled for the morning of  April 28, 1944, called Operation Tiger.

Date published: 5/4/2004