Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment approach Omaha Beach aboard an LCVP landing craft during the D-Day landings, June 6, 1944.
This famous photograph shows American soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment approaching Omaha Beach aboard an LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel) during the opening phase of Operation Overlord on June 6, 1944. Their landing sector was Easy Red, one of the most heavily defended sections of the Normandy coastline.
Most of the men are armed with M1 Carbines and M1903 Springfield rifles, while carrying the equipment required for an amphibious assault. Within minutes of this photograph being taken, many would face intense machine-gun, mortar, and artillery fire as they attempted to cross the beach and breach the German defensive positions.
The Normandy landings involved more than 160,000 Allied troops on the first day of the invasion. Omaha Beach proved to be one of the most difficult landing areas, where strong coastal fortifications and difficult terrain resulted in heavy casualties before Allied forces secured a foothold.
Photographed by Robert F. Sargent of the U.S. Coast Guard, this image has become one of the best-known visual records of D-Day. It captures the final moments before the landing craft reached the shore, documenting one of the defining operations of the Second World War.
Photo details
- Location: Omaha Beach, Normandy, France
- Date: June 6, 1944
- Photographer: Robert F. Sargent, U.S. Coast Guard
- Source: U.S. National Archives
- Omaha Beach D-Day
- Operation Overlord landing craft
- 2nd Battalion 18th Infantry Regiment