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X 20 (Exemplar)

Built By: Broadbent (Huddersfield)
Build Group: X

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Unofficially named Exemplar

Prior to the D-Day landings X20 spent four days off the French coast performing periscope reconnaissance of the shoreline and echo-soundings during daytime.

Each night X20 would approach the beach and 2 divers would swim ashore. Soil samples were collected in condoms. The divers went ashore on two nights to survey the beaches at Vierville-sur-Mer, Moulins St Laurent and Colleville-sur-Mer in what became the American Omaha Beach. On the third night, they were due to go ashore off the Orne Estuary (Sword Beach), but by this stage fatigue (the crew and divers had been living on little more than benzedrine tablets) and the worsening weather caused Hudspeth to shorten the operation, returning to Dolphin on 21 Jan 1944.

Hudspeth received a bar to his DSC Acted as lightship to help the D-Day invasion fleet land on the correct beaches

Events

15-12-1944 Completed
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X 10 (Excalibur) X 21 (Exultant)