ABSTRACT
On 6 June 1944 the Allied army breached ‘Fortress Europe’ with a force of approximately 170,000 men and more to come the following days (Beevor 2009; Ambrose 2003). The planning of the invasion started well before the first Allied soldier touched French soil. From 1941 onwards, the British started up the thinking process to find a way to liberate Europe from German occupation (Chasseaud 2001). For instance, the raid on Dieppe in the summer of 1942 was an attempt to assess how German coastal defences would react if a North Sea port was attacked (Downing 2011). The raid was a disaster, but it showed the Allied command that an assault on the mainland of Europe would need thorough preparation. In this preparation, aerial photographic reconnaissance proved to be vital.
