The Secret D-Day

"This is the story of a terrible tragedy that befell American soldiers and sailors just before D-Day in 1944. A convoy of LSTs (Landing Ship Tanks) was making a practice invasion on Slapton Sands in England when it was attacked by German E-boats. [The author] and his squad, part of a defense platoon in Headquarters Company, Second Battalion of the 531st Engineer Shore Regiment, were stationed above the cliffs of Devon in preparation for a simulated assault landing. Little did they know that they were going to be witnesses from a distant vantage point of a sea battle that would be kept secret from the fighting men as well as the general public. Now many WWII documents, including those that relate to this event, have been declassified and are available for research"--Page 4 of cover.