One of the many airborne operations undertaken on the night of 5th/6th June 1944 in support of the D-Day landings in Normandy was Operation Coup de Main, the capture of two road bridges over the River Orne and the Caen canal. These bridges could greatly assist the Germans in an armoured counterattack against the invasion, but in Allied hands they offered a useful exit east of the landing on Sword Beach. The action was successfully carried out by British airborne forces and both bridges were captured intact, and held until relieved. The bridge was later renamed Pegasus Bridge after the emblem of the British airborne forces, and while now retired, it still stands as part of the local Pegasus museum.
Many of the Italeri battlesets contain old Esci figures, and this one is no exception. The figure sets to be found here are:
The German infantry have an early war look about them, but with weapons that are appropriate for 1944, so make a reasonable but not brilliant group for this set. The initial capture of the bridge was carried out by glider infantry, not paratroops like these, but they appeared very similar, and British paratroopers later arrived to help in the defence of the newly-won bridges, so these figures are fine. Also part of the package is the old Esci set of German anti-tank guns marketed by Italeri as set 7026 but originally sold by Esci as Set 8020. This contains a PaK 40, a PaK 35 and a FlaK 38. A static PaK 40 was part of the defence of the bridge, and while the rest may not have been directly involved in the battle, they are useful items for the wider Normandy campaign. The set also includes a couple of vehicle kits:
- 1 of Italeri Opel Blitz (7014)
- 1 sprue from Italeri Kubelwagen (7024)
Whether these vehicles played any part in the battle for the bridge is unknown, and of course they were not combat vehicles, but again useful components for the wider battle in Normandy. Some more appropriate items could have been included, including of course the gliders used to land the assault troops, but perhaps it was felt, with some justice, that they took no part in the actual battle. Accounts differ as to what armoured vehicles were employed by the Germans during the fight, but a Mk IV would seem reasonable, though all the tanks may have been French ones. Also included is a set of Italeri's Battlefield Accessories, which offers some useful signposts, drums and other bits and pieces as might be expected in the area of the bridge.
The only new item in the box is of course the bridge itself. It is a fantastically complex model and looks great, but Italeri do not offer us a photo of the raw completed model, so we have instead this graphic from the box. It seems very true to the original structure, and provides some nice multi-layer platforms for firefights.
As the range of battlesets expanded, so Italeri got more and more ambitious with their ready-made dioramas. The one photographed for this set is particularly heavy on the base, terrain and other parts not included in the set because it has built the entire canal around the bridge, roadways at both ends and even a trench system. It's a great model, but so far removed from what the contents of the box actually offers that we are uneasy about this degree of marketing.
The bridge is much the most impressive thing here, although the figures and anti-tank guns are fairly accurate and appropriate. The two vehicles do however feel like something of a box filler, although of course they may well have been present at the time. So this is a really unusual and interesting location for your WWII soldiers to do battle, and it depicts a key action of the enormous battle that was D-Day.