Operation Deadstick [SEP] point in time
Operation Deadstick
Operation Deadstick was the codename for an operation by airborne forces of the British Army that took place in the early hours of 6 June 1944 as part of the Normandy landings of the Second World War. The objective was to capture intact two road bridges in Normandy across the River Orne and the Caen Canal, providing the only exit eastwards for British forces from their landing on Sword Beach. Intelligence reports said both bridges were heavily defended by the Germans and wired for demolition. Once captured, the bridges had to
6th Airborne Division, was the subsequent launching point for a number of following operations. I Corps conducted the eastern pincer of Operation Perch out of the bridgehead, but were halted by the 21st Panzer Division. A later operation, Dreadnought, was planned but cancelled; it intended for VIII Corps to use the bridgehead as a basis for an outflanking attack on Caen. Finally, Operations Atlantic and Goodwood attacked out of the bridgehead liberating the remaining sectors of Caen and ending the Battle for Caen.
Following Deadstick, the engineers,