The Nauticapedia

Site Navigation:

• Searchable Databases

  • Biography (People) Search
  • Vessel (Ship) Search

• Articles Archive

  • Pacific Nautical Heritage...

    • Vessels & Ships
    • Marine Industry
    • Nautical & Maritime Heritage
  • Gallery of Light and Buoy Images
  • Gallery of Mariners
  • Gallery of Ship Images
  • Gallery of Ship Wrecks
  • Gallery of Monuments and Statues
  • Gallery of Nautical Images
  • Gallery of Freshwater Images
  • Gallery of New Books

  • Canadian Naval Topics…

    • Reserves
    • Admirals
    • Vessels
    • Interesting Topics
    • World War II
  • Nautical History Videos
  • UNTD
  • British Columbia Heritage
  • Arctic and Northern Nautical Heritage
  • Western Canada Boat and Ship Builders
  • Gallery of Arctic Images
  • Reflections on Nautical Heritage
  • British Columbia Heritage

Site Search:

Looking for more? Search for Articles on the Nauticapedia Site.

The Ships of the Royal Canadian Navy Present Off the Juno Beach on June 6/1944 and June 7/1944 (The Normandy D–Day Landings)

compiled by Commander Fraser McKee RCN(R) 2013 (Updated 2017)

Landing craft from HMCS Prince David (Photo from Wikipedia)

Destroyers:

• HMCS Algonquin – LCdr D.W. Piers, RCN
• HMCS Sioux – LCdr E.E.G. Boak, RCN

Landing Ships Infantry (Medium):

• HMCS Prince David – Cdr T.D. Kelly, RCNR
• HMCS Prince Henry – Cdr V.S. Godfrey, RCN

Their two LCA Flotillas:

• HMCS Prince Henry’s: 528 Flotilla – Lt R.G. Buckingham, RCNVR
• LCA #736 – Lt. G.W. Hendery RCNVR
• LCA #850 – L/S P. Duchnicky RCNVR
• LCA #925 – L/S ? Moody RCNVR
• LCA #1021 – L/S ? Townson RCNVR
• LCA #1033 – S/Lt J.A. Flynn, RCNVR (+ Lt R.G. Buckingham, RCNVR as Flotilla Officer)
• LCA #1371 – A/B ? Mellway RCNVR
• LCA #1372 – Lt. G.E. Nuttal, RCNVR)

• HMCS Prince David’s: 529 Flotilla – Lt J.C. Davie, RCNVR
• LCA #1059 – Lt. J. McBeath RCNVR
• LCA #1137 – L/S G.R. Lavergne, RCN
• LCA #1138 – Lt J.F. Beveridge, RCNVR
• LCA #1150 – Lt J.C. Davie, RCNVR (+ served as Flotilla Officer)
• LCA #1151 – Lt D.F. Graham RCNVR
• LCA #1375 – Lt G.E. Allin, RCNVR

RCN Minesweepers: with RN flotillas:

14th Flotilla:

• HMCS Georgian – A/LCdr H.A. Boucher, RCNVR
• HMCS Guysborough – Lt B.T.R. Russell, RCNR
• HMCS Kenora – Lt D.W. Lowe, RCNVR

Plus two RCN Flotillas:

31st Flotilla:

• HMCS Caraquet – Cdr A.H.G. Storrs, RCNR (as S.O.)
• HMCS Blairmore – Lt J.B. Marston, RCNR
• HMCS Cowichan – A/LCdr K.W.N. Hall, RCNR
• HMCS Malpeque – Lt D. Davis, RCNVR
• HMCS Fort William – A/LCdr H. Campbell, RCNR
• HMCS Milltown – Lt E.H. Maguire, RCNVR
• HMCS Minas – Lt J.B. Lamb, RCNVR
• HMCS Bayfield – Lt S. Pierce, RCNR

32nd Flotilla:

• HMCS Thunder – Cdr H.D. Mackay, RCNR (as S.O.)
• HMCS Canso – Lt J. Kincaid, RCNR
• HMCS Mulgrave – Lt R.M. Meredith, RCNR
• HMCS Vegreville – Lt T.B. Edwards, RCNR
• HMCS Wasaga – Lt J.J.H. Green, RCNR

Landing Craft Infantry (Large) – LCI(L)s: (Manned by RCN, ex–RN ships):

1st Canadian Flotilla (ex-RN’s 260th)

• LCI(L) #117 – Lt R.L. Gordon, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #121 – Lt D.H. Botly, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #166 – Lt G.M. Oliver, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #177 – Lt W.C. Gardner, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #249 – Lt J.E. O’Rourke, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #266 – Lt J.G. Wenman, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #277 – Lt W.H.M. Ballantyne, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #285 – Lt H.S. Square, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #298 – Lt J.S. Monteath, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #301 – Lt R.M. Smith, RCNVR

2nd Canadian Flotilla (ex–RN’s 262nd):

• LCI(L) #115 – Lt V.D. Ramsay, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #118 – Lt C.R. Bond, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #135 – Lt. John Douglas Kell, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #250 – Lt H.M. Harrison, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #252 – Lt R.E. St.J. Wakefield, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #262 – Lt P.R. Hinton, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #263 – Lt J.B.B. Shaw, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #276 – Lt A.A. Wedd, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #299 – Lt W.B. McGregor, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #306 – Lt A.K. Stephens, RCNVR

3rd Canadian Flotilla (ex–RN’s 264th):

• LCI(L) #125 – Lt C.R. Parker, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #255 – Lt H.E. Trenholme, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #270 – Lt A.C. Clark, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #271 – Lt W.R. Sinclair, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #288 – Lt W.E. Charron, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #295 – Lt P.G.R. Campbell, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #302 – Lt J.M. Ruttan, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #305 – Lt C.B. MacKay, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #310 – Lt L. Williams, RCNVR
• LCI(L) #311 – Lt D.J. Lewis, RCNVR

Motor Torpedo Boats of the 29th Flotilla: (Arrived in p.m. of June 6th)

• MTB #459 – Lt C.A. Law, RCNVR (as S.O.)
• MTB #460 – Lt D.A. Killam, RCNVR
• MTB #461 – Lt. C.A. Burk, RCNVR
• MTB #462 – Lt. R.J. Moyse, RCNVR
• MTB #463 – Lt. D.G. Creba, RCNVR
• MTB #464 – Lt. L.C. Bishop, RCNVR
• MTB #465 – Lt C.D. Chaffey, RCNVR
• MTB #466 – Lt S.B. Marshall, RCNVR

RCN Beach Commando "W" in Operation Neptune

• Principal Beach Master Lieutenant–Commander Dennis James O’Hagen RCNVR GM and Bar
• Deputy Principal Beach Master A/Lieutenant–Commander Richard John Johnstone RCNVR
• Beach Master W.1 Lieutenant Donald M. Sutherland RCNVR
• Beach Master W.2 Lieutenant A. Dudley Rayburn RCNVR
• Beach Master W.3 Lieutenant Forrest Angus RCNVR

Supplementary Author’s notes:

1. Many other RCN ships were in service in U.K. waters, or were on blocking or A/S patrols, or were escorting Normandy–bound Mulberry "Phoenixes" or were under RN or USN control etc.: (See page 312 of Ken Macpherson & Ron Barrie’s book "The Ships of Canada’s Naval Forces, 1910–2002", 3rd edition, 2002.) These vessels were not present at Juno Beach but may be considered to have been present at D–Day (off of one of the other beaches). The battle honour for D–Day was given to many ships which served in the area over the next two months (60 days) which were not present on the first two days of action.

2. I’m not sure if any of the MGBs of the 65th Flotilla were present there or not. They were larger (and slower!) D–Class MLs. No one has yet written their history. Douglas and Sarty et al say that they were on blocking patrols east of Normandy, so presumably they were not present at Juno Beach.




---

To quote from this article please cite:

McKee, Fraser (2013) The Ships of the Royal Canadian Navy Present Off the Juno Beach on June 6/1944 and June 7/1944 (The Normandy D–Day Landings). Nauticapedia.ca 2013. http://nauticapedia.ca/Articles/RCN_Present_D–day.php

Site News: November 2, 2024

The vessel database has been updated and is now holding 94,538 vessel histories (with 16,140 images and 13,887 records of ship wrecks and marine disasters). The mariner and naval biography database has also been updated and now contains 58,599 entries (with 3989 images). Vessel records are currently being reviewed and updated with more than 35,000 processed so far this year.

Thanks to contributor Mike Rydqvist McCammon for the hundreds of photos he has contributed to illustrate British Columbia's floating heritage.

My very special thanks to our volunteer IT adviser, John Eyre, who (since 2021) has modernized, simplified and improved the update process for the databases into semi–automated processes. His participation has been vital to keeping the Nauticapedia available to our netizens.

Also my special thanks to my volunteer content accuracy checker, John Spivey of Irvine CA USA, who continues (almost every day) to proof read thousands of Nauticapedia vessel histories and provided input to improve more than 14,000 entries. His attention to detail has been a huge unexpected bonus in improving and updating the vessel detail content.

---