The story of how, in General Eisenhower's now historic words,
"Allied naval forces, supported by strong air forces, began landing allied armies on the northern coast of France," will be an astonishing record of co-ordination and precision when it can be told in full, and the details that have been released this week about the weather prevailing on D-day show the Navy's achievement as even more remarkable than had been realised. Even so the most remarkable
part of the whole affair is the virtual absence of all naval opposition. A few E-boats created some nuisance till they and their lairs at Le Havre and Boulogne were destroyed from the air, but other surface forces were simply non-existent, and as for the . U-boats, which it had been believed would, be a real danger to any landing- force, it was as though no such thing as a submarine had ever been invented. The whereabouts and the intentions of the U-boats remain a mystery still. It may be that the destruction of the boats and of the works where they were built has been more effective than was ever realised. What is certain is that such boats as are available will never have such opportunities for usefulness as the opportunities they have missed.
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