'Part of the invasion fleet assembling off Portsmouth', Operation OVERLORD, 1944

Photograph by Major Wilfred Herbert James Sale, MC, 3rd County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters), World War Two, North West Europe (1944-1945), 1944.

Some of the over 5,000 ships and landing craft that crossed the English Channel on 5-7 June 1944. The ships and landing craft are protected from air attack by barrage balloons.

The war diary of the 3rd County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters) records the embarkation of the unit on to LCTs at Gosport on 6 June 1944, 'When loaded the LCTs joined a much larger convoy and lay off shore from 1 to 3 hours, finally sailing sometime during the afternoon'. The diary records that two LCTs had to turn back due to overloading, while another, carrying Royal Air Force personnel, was sunk, probably by a German E-Boat.

From a photograph album containing 210 photographs compiled by Major W H J Sale, MC, 3rd/4th County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters), 1944.