Landing (tactic)
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A landing (also called a landing , landing company or sea landing ) is a military tactic to get from a very large body of water (usually a sea) to a coast or to a shore in enemy territory. The aim is to capture enemy land by the infantry . The intention of a landing is to create a bridgehead for advancing own or allied units, to secure the terrain, to reconnaissance and to advance further on foot or with small vehicles.
It is usually carried out by marines as part of amphibious warfare . When landing, the soldiers are relocated by watercraft near or directly to the coast.
She frequently uses landing craft and hovercraft when landing directly. Furthermore, especially after securing the lines, heavy equipment with special ships, e.g. B. armored landing ships or amphibious assault ships are landed.
One of the largest landings in history occurred in June 1944 as part of Operation Overlord in Normandy (the first days of the landing were called D-Day by the Allies ).
advantages
In the event of a landing, the attacker can determine the location of the battle. While the defender has to defend more or less the entire coastline, the attacker can concentrate all his forces on one point and thus achieve a high numerical superiority at certain points. This is also due to the fact that a shipped division can be transported considerably faster than a unit bound by road and rail on land. An inferior attacker can inflict severe damage on the enemy with relatively little effort.
disadvantage
A successful landing requires almost absolute control of the sea and airspace. In addition, attackers may find themselves exposed to attacks from defenders in expanded or elevated positions. Since the attackers are extremely vulnerable, especially in the first phase of an attack, this can lead to serious losses. In addition, landing units are often not equipped with heavy equipment to the same extent as the defenders (for example, an Amtrac of the US Marine Corps is far inferior to a tank in direct combat) and also depends on supply from the fleet. If the defender succeeds in regaining sea or air sovereignty, the landed troops are cut off from supplies and acutely threatened with destruction.
literature
- Dan van der Vat: D-Day. The Allied Landing in Normandy , Collection Rolf Heyne, 2004, ISBN 3-89910-199-5
- Jürgen W. Schmidt: Ludwig von Wolzüge, Duke Eugen von Württemberg and the memorandum on the defense against a Russian sea landing in East Prussia . In: Deutsche Schiffahrtsarchiv Vol. 31 (2008) pp. 289–303