2007-06-26 21:20:12 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ History
They did, all along the coast to foil the Nazi strategists and Hitler, persuading them that they would land by Calais. But at that time bombs were dropped from very high, with very limited targeting systems and spread over a wide area. The thickness of the bunkers built on the beach lines, especially on Omaha beach, also meant that if those bombs levelled out the civilian houses they barely scratched the bunkers.
http://www.photoway.com/fr/dest/NORM02_07.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Omaha_Beach_Bunker.JPG
2007-06-27 00:07:24 · answer #1 · answered by Cabal 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
They bombed the whole coastline from the invasion beaches all the way up to Calais and points north. The reason they spread it out is because they didn't want to give away the position of the actual invasion. If they had just bombed the hell out of Normandy, it would have been pretty obvious to the Germans where we were planning to land. Hitler and his generals were pretty convinced that the landing would take place at Calais because it was the shortest route across the channel, and he had diverted a large portion of his tank corps to that area. The allies didn't want to chance going up against the entire German Army of the West, so they tried the trick and it worked pretty well. In the hours immediately before the landing, the U.S. Navy did a lot of pre-invasion bombardment in an effort to soften up the defenses, and it was successful in some areas (Gold and Sword beaches) but not in others. The main thing it accomplished was to shock and confuse the Germans, and it also created foxholes on the beaches and inland for the invading allied soldiers to fight from.
2007-06-26 21:33:24 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
Then it wouldn't have been a surprise attack. Bombing was very poor. The bomber grids were around one square mile! They had trouble taking out factories, let alone men on the ground. The U.S. did shell the beach with their battleships and they still missed obvious targets.
2007-06-26 21:32:20 · answer #3 · answered by gregory_dittman 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
They did but the defences were too deeply dug in soft ground on the cliff top and inland for the bombs to wipe out all the defenders.
2007-06-27 05:45:54 · answer #4 · answered by brainstorm 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
true it would of save some lifes may be you should make a law suit, but however if they did bomb the beach, then they would of lost a lot of areoplanes if you watch band of brothers maybe you will understand.
and also they wernt exactly up to date then its not like launching a missle against a country today
2007-06-26 21:26:24 · answer #5 · answered by mazzo2001 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
the germans never new of the landings until it happened bombing the beach would have aroused the germans suspicion and they would have thrown every thing they had in defending the beach and many more would have died and possibly an unsuccessful landing
2007-06-26 21:35:55 · answer #6 · answered by sparks9653 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They did, but unfortunately most of the bombs missed the target (See Cornelius Ryan's The Longest Day)
2007-06-26 23:38:32 · answer #7 · answered by Hobilar 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋