Lauren Child Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 Seeing recent mentions of a saved LCM and the last LCT being in some distress, I was wondering how many of each type of WW2 landing craft were left and what state they are in? I seem to remember that the last LST got cut up. I also remember a thread a while back about a higgins boat on a roundabout and another in someone's garden in France? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
private mw Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 good question ! :-\ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ford 369 Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 there seem to be a fair amount of higgins boats surviving in Normandy,1 at utah beach museum 1 at the grande blockhaus 2 ouside a private museum near omaha 2 at the omaha museum 2 at grand camp maisy,there was 1 at the isle of wight tank museum as well but this was a post war one used in saving private ryan,I will try to get some pics in Normandy when I am there in august Nigel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.O.S. Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 And a N.O.S.crated Higgins boat engine and gearbox on Milweb!! http://www.milweb.net/classifieds/large_image.php?ad=62347&cat=38 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woa2 Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 I know the last British LCA boat got cut up at the D-day museum in arromanches but they kept the front of it. They had 2 Ford V8 engines powering them, hence my interest, but were made of plywood so not made to last. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex van de Wetering Posted June 2, 2012 Share Posted June 2, 2012 I know the last British LCA boat got cut up at the D-day museum in arromanches but they kept the front of it. There is a nose section resembling an LCA in the Arromanches museum, but it's too small to be the original nose of their LCA. The Utah Beach museum also had an LCA back in the 70's, which was replaced by an LCVP later on. Apart from some wrecks and some converted to houseboats, I don't know of any other LCA's in preservation. The LST at pounds was a British built LST, built late in 1944. There are at least two US LST's preserved in the US, along with an LCI and a number of US LCT's. I wouldn't be surprised if there are more LST's still around. There is a wreck of one on the North-West African coast and a chunk of one on one of the islands in the pacific. Apart from the LCVP's mentioned by Nigel, there is a very nicely restored example in France, that could be seen in ation during the D-day remembrance 2009. There is a webste on this boat, which I can't seem to find at the moment:embarrassed: When it comes to British built LCT's, it's just as sad as with LCA's. Apart from an LCT2 in Haifa Israel (Navy museum), there are no LCT's preserved as far as I know. Albania had an LCT3 (ex Italian navy) converted into a giant generator and I don't know if it still exists. ....Sad story is still LCT7074 if you ask me. The last I heard is that it sank and only the funnel can now be seen stcking from the water in the Liverpool docks. A true Normandy veteran and British built LCT left to rot. There is one commercial vessel still in service in Holland, which was converted from an LCT3....sadly it is hardly recognizable. The LCM in the blockhouse museum in Quistreham was one of the ships used on Saving private ryan. According to After the Battle magazine, both were in fact British built LCM's converted to look like US ones for the movie. Isn't the other one in display on a Roundabout in the UK? Alex p.s. Don't think the LCM in the other thread is wartime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarab Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 Isn't the other one in display on a Roundabout in the UK? The one that was on the Roundabout at Shoreham by Sea has now been removed and the roundabout now has a advert for a local car garage on it. The "Official" reason for it being withdrawn by the council given was it was causing too many accidents from people looking at it rather than at the road. I have no idea where its gone now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David I Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Hi All. One of the more unusual D Day craft still to survive is Landing Barge Kitchen (LBK) 6, which is now used as a boat clubhouse at harwich. Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan76 Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 I gather that LCT 7074 is the last D-Day landing craft left. Growing up in Crosby just north of the docks, I remember writing to the Merseyside Maritime Museum in the 1980s asking why they couldn't save it? Eventually, it was moved to the historic warship collection at Birkenhead but when that went under, the fleet once again became at risk. The U Boat (can't remember the number) ended up being cut up into sections and displayed at one of the Mersey Ferry Terminals, HMS Plymouth I gather is on the verge of being cut up and the Landfall, having just Googled, sank at her berth in 2010 but no idea what happened since. Yes the Vulcan team did it - but planes are sexy and have many busy-body RAF types to push for money and it's future. We seem to care little about our maritime heritage, although after Sunday's Diamond Jubilee River Pageant, maybe we'll awaken from out slumber. Mind you, after the BBC's appaling coverage of the event, perhaps not.... http://evans-experientialism.freewebspace.com/landfalls_sad_end.htm Cheers, Duncan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.O.S. Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 One that didn't survive. Nice image of LCT319 - now just a wreck to dive on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lauren Child Posted June 23, 2012 Author Share Posted June 23, 2012 That's a cracking photo - you don't see many pictures of them out of the water and brand new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Cubed Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 (edited) There is a nose section resembling an LCA in the Arromanches museum, but it's too small to be the original nose of their LCA. The Utah Beach museum also had an LCA back in the 70's, which was replaced by an LCVP later on. Apart from some wrecks and some converted to houseboats, I don't know of any other LCA's in preservation. The LST at pounds yard was a British built LST, built late in 1944. There was a big writeup about it in one of the MVT mags sometime ago, gave the history of it, built after the war and did not see service. But it has now been cut up and gone. :embarrassed: Apart from the LCVP's mentioned by Nigel, there is a very nicely restored example in France, that could be seen in ation during the D-day remembrance 2009. There is a webste on this boat, which I can't seem to find at the moment:embarrassed: When it comes to British built LCT's, it's just as sad as with LCA's. Apart from an LCT2 in Haifa Israel (Navy museum), there are no LCT's preserved as far as I know. Albania had an LCT3 (ex Italian navy) converted into a giant generator and I don't know if it still exists. ....Sad story is still LCT7074 if you ask me. The last I heard is that it sank and only the funnel can now be seen stcking from the water in the Liverpool docks. A true Normandy veteran and British built LCT left to rot. There is one commercial vessel still in service in Holland, which was converted from an LCT3....sadly it is hardly recognizable. The LCM in the blockhouse museum in Quistreham was one of the ships used on Saving private ryan. According to After the Battle magazine, both were in fact British built LCM's converted to look like US ones for the movie. Isn't the other one in display on a Roundabout in the UK? Alex p.s. Don't think the LCM in the other thread is wartime. Edited June 26, 2012 by R Cubed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulbrook Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 A book worth reading is The War of the Landing Craft by Paul Lund and Harry Ludlam ISBN 0-572-00935-6 and also a book which I think was called The Forgotten Fleet about Army vessels including LST and LCT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lauren Child Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 Thanks Paul, I'll track it down. I'm quite surprised there's not wider preservation given the historical importance of the vehicles. I can understand the big ones being difficult to preserve, but the smaller ones seem absent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mash Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Any one fancy a project? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/WWII-Wooden-Higgens-Boat-REAL-deal-not-fiberglass-/330759908642?pt=Military_Vehicles&hash=item4d02d3ad22#ht_500wt_1182 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David I Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 Does anyone know the current status of LCT7074 at Birkenhead? Most reports are now around two years old. Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.O.S. Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Looky here for a LCVP for sale. http://www.milweb.net/classifieds/large_image.php?ad=63384&cat=38 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.