Wikipedia:Today's featured article/July 24, 2023

American logistics in the Normandy campaign played a key role in the success of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of northwest Europe during World War II. By June 1944, some 1,526,965 US troops were in the UK, of whom 459,511 were in the Services of Supply. The First United States Army was supported over the Omaha and Utah Beaches, and through the Mulberry artificial port at Omaha that was specially constructed for the purpose. The Mulberry port was abandoned after it was damaged by a storm on 19–22 June. During the first seven weeks after D-Day, the advance was much slower than the Overlord plan had anticipated, and the lodgment area much smaller. The nature of the fighting in the Normandy bocage country created shortages of certain items, particularly artillery and mortar ammunition, and there were unexpectedly high rates of loss of bazookas, Browning automatic rifles, and M7 grenade launchers.