
BNPS_ExerciseSmashTanksRecorded_06.jpg


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Pic: PurbeckSubAquaClub/BNPS
The divers laid a wreath in memory of the six soldiers who died.
Seven amphibious tanks which sunk during a crucial rehearsal for the D-Day landings off the south coast of England have been examined by underwater archaeologists as part of a project to commemorate the six soldiers who drowned in the operation.
The remains of the Valentine Duplex Drive (DD) tanks still lie on the seabed 73 years after Operation Smash took place on April 4, 1944 on Studland Bay in Dorset.
All seven tanks have been photographed by divers from the Isle of Purbeck Sub Aqua Club for the Valentine 75 exhibition which will mark the 75th anniversary of the exercise.
The divers found that the hulls of the tanks are all relatively intact and there are significant debris fields around each one. Most tanks have at least part of the turret and the guns seem to have survived.
Pic: PurbeckSubAquaClub/BNPS
The divers laid a wreath in memory of the six soldiers who died.
Seven amphibious tanks which sunk during a crucial rehearsal for the D-Day landings off the south coast of England have been examined by underwater archaeologists as part of a project to commemorate the six soldiers who drowned in the operation.
The remains of the Valentine Duplex Drive (DD) tanks still lie on the seabed 73 years after Operation Smash took place on April 4, 1944 on Studland Bay in Dorset.
All seven tanks have been photographed by divers from the Isle of Purbeck Sub Aqua Club for the Valentine 75 exhibition which will mark the 75th anniversary of the exercise.
The divers found that the hulls of the tanks are all relatively intact and there are significant debris fields around each one. Most tanks have at least part of the turret and the guns seem to have survived.
©PurbeckSubAquaClub 21 Sep 2017 970x652 / 144.9KB