I'm currently doing research on the British 6th Airborne Division and have come across a slightly curious reference to the 352nd Division, those famed defenders of Omaha Beach, in General Richard "Windy" Gale's With the Sixth Airborne Division in Normandy (1948):
Now I suspect this is an error, as surely there was no way that the 352nd could counter-attack the British airborne positions? To do so it would have had to have gone through the 716th Division, or the long way around Caen, which seems highly unlikely. Even if one is to assume that the intelligence then available suggested that the 352nd had not moved up to the coast, as far as I am aware it was still behind Omaha and Gold beaches, so it seems even more unlikely that it would hit the airborne bridgehead, located as it was beyond Sword Beach and a good distance away."In addition [to the 711th and 716th Divisions] there was an infantry division, the 352nd, available for counter-attack..." - p.40
So is the General referring to the Fifteenth Army's 346th Division, which eventually defended the area East of the airborne positions as part of Panzer Group West? Prior to the landings it was near Le Havre, and according to one OOB I have the 17th Feld-Division was actually closer. Or is it just an error based on faulty intelligence or hurried recollection?
Best guesses or otherwise greatly appreciated,
Cheers,
-SC