Q&A · 2:37:08-2:38:50

How more LVT-2s could change the Normandy campaign

Replacing half the small landing craft with LVT-2s improves inland mobility and later bridging support but reduces the conventional craft available to move troops and supplies ashore.

Question

What changes on D-Day if half the small landing craft are replaced by LVT-2s?

Short answer

The assault force becomes more mobile inland and gains useful amphibious vehicles for later crossings, but it sacrifices conventional landing-craft capacity needed to sustain the beaches.

Notes

Tracked amphibious vehicles could carry troops beyond the waterline instead of stopping at the beach. On British beaches, where DD tanks generally landed successfully, combined armored and LVT forces might push inland faster after the initial assault. The vehicles could later assist bridging and river-crossing operations, potentially changing mobility problems as far ahead as Market Garden. The tradeoff is sealift: every LVT substituted for a landing craft removes some capacity for the repeated ship-to-shore movement of men and supplies. This creates a different balance between beach throughput and tactical mobility rather than guaranteeing an easier landing.