2024 Battle of Normandy Limited Edition Medallion PNC

The Battle of Normandy, codenamed Operation Overlord, was the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-Occupied Western Europe during World War Il. The operation aimed to establish a large-scale lodgement on the Continent. It began on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Normandy landings (Operation

Neptune). A 1,200-plane airborne assault preceded an amphibious assault involving more than 5,000 vessels. Nearlų 160, 000 troops Crossed the English Channel on 6 June, and more than two million Allied troops were in northern France at the close of Operation Overlord on 30 August.

Around 3,200 Australians participated in the D-Day landings and 13 lost their lives. Many more were killed over the course of the campaign while flying in support of the ground forces in Normandy.

In terms of total casualties, June 1944 was the worst month in the history of the Royal Australian Air Force.