26 July 1943 Part 2

26 July 1943 Questions on naval protection of the western Cotentin Annex 32

Top secret. To the Admiral Commanding Channel Coast. British instructions recommend landing where the enemy considers a landing unlikely. Successful use of this tactic in Sicily compels review of the Cotentin peninsula’s western front. Distribution of troops and reserves partly depends on the navy’s assessment of maritime security and the resulting possibility of surprise landings.

Corps requests answers to the following questions as the basis for its assessment: Are naval forces patrolling the narrows between the mainland and Alderney and between the three Channel Islands at night? Are protective forces stationed off the Bay of Saint-Michel? Are there mines or other barriers? Are detection devices on the islands, and especially along the west coast as far as Granville, positioned so that approaching formations and individual craft can be detected with some confidence? Copy to the 709th Division.

T-314 Roll 1604, T314_R1604_English_Translation.docx. 26 July 1943 | Source PDF pages 726. Selected island-related text; document or report date governs placement.