How did the Allies plan and execute the most massive and daring invasion in military history? Read all about it in the DK Reader that explains in thrilling detail how the Nazis were defeated on the beaches of France. In the early morning light, landing craft surged from the sea on the west of the Seine Bay. The beach where they landed was code-named "Utah" after a US state. A single, big enemy gun protected the beach, but it was silent. Shells fired from the battleships had damaged it. US soldiers waded from their landing craft without firing a shot. When they got ashore they had a surprise. A current had washed them down the coast. They were a mile (1.5 kilometers) from where they had planned to land! It was a lucky mistake, for there were fewer defences here than anywhere else on the Normandy coast.