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LANDING CRAFT ON TANKS ?
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We all know about
tanks on landing craft, but what about landing craft on
tanks?
The picture shown here, courtesy of Martin Wilson, came
via Andrew Whitmarsh at the D-Day Museum in Portsmouth
in the hope that we might be able to explain it – we
can’t, so this is an appeal to anyone else who
can. |
![[image] Can you help us identify what's going on in this picture?](images/new-images/tank_landingcraft.jpg) |
The tank is a Sherman, without
its turret, and the craft is a Landing Craft Assault (LCA).
We think the location is Crown Point near Fremington in North
Devon. There was a large Combined Operations Experimental
Establishment (COXE) here during the Second World War.
Typically an LCA weighs about ten tons so it is quite
a load for a Sherman and we assume that in this picture it
has just about reached the launching point. The tank is
not fitted with any deep wading equipment so if it goes
much deeper it will flood and the driver would be in considerable
danger.
Smaller landing craft; LCM, LCVP etc., were used during the
Rhine Crossing of March 1945. Most were brought to the scene
by tank transporter but this may be an experiment using
redundant tanks to carry such craft to less accessible launching
sites.
However we do not really know, nor do we know when. If you
do, please let us know:
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