Allied Amphibious Doctrine , the Landing Craft Shortage of 1943-1944 , and Operation OVERLORD
At 2,160-tons landing-load displacement , the Landing Ship , Tank ( LST ), is the largest sea-going amphibious support ship , second only to the Landing Ship , Dock ( LSD ). A ramp , behind the clamshell bow doors , allowed the LST to deposit its 500-ton load of motor vehicles directly on the beach . Where coastal geography did not allow the LST to beach , a pontoon causeway was streamed to span the gap and tanks , truck , half-tracks or jeeps rolled-off onto the beach .
the rejection of the ten division plan as the break that was needed to begin anew .
Morgan ' s assessments quickly reduced the figure of 8,500 landing craft to around 4,000 , a much more manageable number . He estimated that , by the spring of 1944 , the Allies could provide lift for five divisions afloat , three in the initial assault and two in the immediate follow-up . He further determined that two additional divisions could be landed using craft returning from the assault and immediate follow-up .
Morgan arrived at these figures by allowing for two major Mediterranean operations for 1943 after the invasion of Sicily and the projected production figures for delivery by late spring , 1944 . The completion of those operations should allow for the transfer of sufficient craft , added to the new inventory , for the cross-Channel operation . Twenty-six to thirty Allied divisions were projected to be present in Britain by the time of the operation and available for use in the reinforcement , buildup , and expansion phases . Mor-
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