Exercise Tiger

by Nigel Lewis

On April 28, 1944, while on a D-day rehearsal in the English Channel, Convoy T-4 was attacked by German E-boats, losing hundreds of lives. In this laborious work, Lewis (Paperchase, 1982) argues that the Allied Command tried to cover up the deadly series of mistakes and lack of cooperation between military forces that led to the disaster. The details of the tragedy--some of which were still coming to light in the late 1980's--were so confused and obscured that for five years they were unknown even to Gen. Omar Bradley, Commander of the U.S. Army in Northwestern Europe. Earlier exercises in the Channel had been less than successful, but Gen. Eisenhower and the Allied Command were determined to ensure victory on D-day. Of major concern were the conflicting style and ordinances, the lack of efficient communications, and the animosity between American and British forces, from the common foot-soldier to the brass. According to Lewis, these concerns were borne out when communications became