Werner Pluskat (1912 11 June 2002) was a

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

, commanding the 1st Battalion of the 352nd Artillery Regiment of the German 352nd Infantry Division during the Allied invasion in Normandy. He was credited in the movie '' The Longest Day'', a film about the D-Day invasion, with being the first German officer who saw the Allied invasion fleet on 6 June 1944, heading toward their landing zone at

Omaha Beach Omaha Beach was one of five beach landing sectors of the amphibious assault component of Operation Overlord during the Second World War. On June 6, 1944, the Allies of World War II, Allies invaded German military administration in occupied Fra ...

. In an interview to the French news broadcast "Cinq Colonnes à la Une" aired on June 6, 1964 for the 20th anniversary of the Allied invasion in Normandy, Pluskat confirms this depiction: "twenty years ago, I was on this very place, as the first German officer to have witnessed the approaching of the Allied flottilla". However, Heinrich "Hein" Severloh, a German machine gunner on Omaha Beach that day, wrote in his book ''WN62: A German Soldier's Memories of the Defence of Omaha Beach, Normandy, June 6, 1944'' that Pluskat was not with his unit the day of the invasion and "was not truthfully portrayed" in the film. Pluskat's men fired their guns on Omaha Beach until they ran out of ammunition. ''

Oberleutnant (English: First Lieutenant) is a senior lieutenant Officer (armed forces), officer rank in the German (language), German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. In Austria, ''Oberle ...

'' (M.A.)

Walter Ohmsen Walter Ohmsen (7 June 1911 – 19 February 1988) was a highly decorated ''Oberleutnant zur See'' in the ''Kriegsmarine'' during World War II. On 6 June 1944 the Allies of World War II, Western Allies launched Operation Overlord, the Amphibious ...

, commander of the

Crisbecq Battery The Crisbecq Battery (sometimes called Marcouf Battery) was a German World War II artillery battery constructed by the Todt Organization near the French village of Saint-Marcouf, Manche, Saint-Marcouf in the department of Manche in the north-east ...

, was also credited with being the first to discover the Allied invasion fleet through the battery

rangefinder A rangefinder (also rangefinding telemeter, depending on the context) is a device used to Length measurement, measure distances to remote objects. Originally optical devices used in surveying, they soon found applications in other fields, suc ...

.Tanne, p. 67. Pluskat was with Generalleutnant

Kurt Dittmar Kurt Dittmar (January 5, 1891 in Magdeburg – April 26, 1959 in Stadtoldendorf) was a German general in World War II, who served as the Official Military Commentator of the German Armed Forces. Biography Dittmar entered the German Imperial A ...

when they surrendered to soldiers of the U.S. 30th Infantry Division at

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

on 23 April 1945. For the production of '' The Longest Day'', Pluskat was one of many

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

and Allied military consultants to have actually been on the beach on

June 6 Events Pre-1600 * 913 – Constantine VII, the eight-year-old illegitimate son of Leo VI the Wise, becomes nominal ruler of the Byzantine Empire under the regency of a seven-man council headed by Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos, appointe ...

. In the film, he was portrayed by

Hans Christian Blech Hans Christian Blech (20 February 19155 March 1993) was a German film, stage and television character actor who found success in both Germany and Hollywood. Career He served in the German Army and fought on the Eastern Front during World War II ...

References

Bibliography

* Tanne, Philippe. ''Batterie de Crisbecq — The Crisbecq Battery'' (in French and English). Album Memorial by Editions Aubert'Graphic.

External links

The Batterie at Longues sur Mer
* ein Severloh, WN62: A German Soldier's Memories of the Defence of Omaha Beach,I.M.K. Creativ Verlag, Garbsen, Germany, 2000 German Army officers of World War II 2002 deaths 1912 births {{Germany-mil-bio-stub