Operation Tiger - sacrifice on the sands
On the night of 27th April 1944 during World War Two, a terrible tragedy unfolded just off Slapton Sands on the coast of Devon. 946 American servicemen died during Operation Tiger, the rehearsals for the D-Day landing on Utah Beach in Normandy, France.
Operation Tiger was designed to be as realistic as possible, with the use of live ammunition, and on 22nd April 1944 it began. Landing craft loaded with soldiers, tanks and equipment were deployed along the coast.
However, unbeknown to the military, under cover of darkness nine German E-boats had managed to slip in amongst them in Lyme Bay.
Two landing ships were sunk and a third badly damaged. Lack of training on the use of life vests, heavy packs and the cold water contributed to the disaster: many men drowned or died of hypothermia before they could be rescued. Over 700 Americans lost their lives.
Despite this, the rest of the exercise continued at Slapton beach, but with disastrous results. The practice assault included a live-firing exercise and many more soldiers were tragically killed by ‘friendly fire’ from the supporting naval bombardment.
Because of fears of its impact on morale, the terrible loss of life during the exercise was not revealed until long after the war. Fewer soldiers died during the actual landing on Utah Beach than during Exercise Tiger.
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