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Winds, Waves, and Warriors - Battling the Surf at Normandy, Tarawa, and Inchon (Hardcover)
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Winds, Waves, and Warriors - Battling the Surf at Normandy, Tarawa, and Inchon (Hardcover)
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Winds, Waves, and Warriors examines the oceanographic conditions
that U.S. military planners considered, or should have considered,
when landing troops and vehicles on the beach at three historic
amphibious assaults: Normandy, Tarawa, and Inchon. Oceanographer
Thomas M. Mitchell brings welcome insight into a little-studied yet
extraordinary aspect of ground warfare by explaining why certain
tidal and weather conditions existed at those specific places and
times, and how they affected the Army and Marine foot soldiers
fighting to get ashore. Mitchell offers easy-to-understand
descriptions of basic oceanographic concepts and applies them to
actual amphibious operations. Winds and waves hampered the Allies'
efforts on D-Day but less than they would have had the soldiers
attempted storming the beach at Normandy the day before or after.
Coral reefs and tides contributed to high Marine casualties at
Tarawa Atoll in the Pacific. General Douglas MacArthur used the
element of surprise by attacking the North Koreans at Inchon
despite treacherous soft mud bottoms and unfavorable tidal
conditions. Mitchell details how wartime necessity led to the
development of clever methods to estimate such factors as water
depth, beach slope, and underwater shoals, all of which affected
troops' assaults and potentially changed the outcomes of key
battles. An Army Air Corps lieutenant, for example, dug a hole on
the beach at Normandy to help him predict tides more accurately.
The Army's Beach Erosion Board and research groups such as the
Scripps Institution of Oceanography exploited elementary principles
of physical oceanography to develop crude but effective instruments
and techniques for ocean remote sensing and forecasting. Indeed,
soldiers, Marines, staff planners, commanders, oceanographers,
meteorologists, and researchers all contributed to some of the
largest and most important military invasions in history. Winds,
Waves, and Warriors tells of the U.S. military's struggles with a
foe that was sometimes just as formidable and unpredictable as the
opposing army. When unheeded, unfavorable weather and ocean
conditions could lead to tragic and avoidable deaths. The threat
posed by the ocean at these three historic battles was an important
factor not only in the outcomes of these operations but also to the
survival of the troops who fought there.
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