James T. Lingg - WWII
Page 9 - D-DAY, Waiting Off-Shore

About 6 o'clock, the morning of June 6, we were notified there was a very important announcement we were to hear on the loud speaker. A message was announced from General Eisenhower that the invasion of France was being executed. We were told at this point that there was no return. "You go ashore and you have to keep going." There was no way we were going to get back on those boats and come back from France. This makes a rather odd feeling in one's stomach but we were young, eager, with the attitude of "I can't wait to get into this war". Well, I couldn't wait and the only thing I could think of was "I hope they don't sink us before we get there because it's just possible these things can happen". In fact, I don't know how many got sunk, but some of them did.

In the daylight hours of June 6, our boat and every other boat, or small ship that I could see in the distance, had a barrage balloon - a great big fat sausage - floating above it. It was tied to the fantail of the ship. This was to discourage any aircraft from attacking these small ships and coming in on strafing runs real close. For miles, all we could see were small ships. I had no idea there were that many small ships on the ocean. Every place we looked we saw ships.