PEOPLE from all over the South Hams came along to take part in the 71st anniversary service for Exercise Tiger.

Held at the memorial car park in Torcross on Sunday, April 26, and led by John Roberts of the Royal Tank Regiment Association, it was a fitting tribute to the lives lost off our coast during the preparations for the D-Day landings.

John Casner Junior, 88, a veteran of Exercise Tiger, attended the memorial service and said a few words to those assembled at the Sherman tank memorial.

Laurie Bolton was also there in tribute to her uncle, Sgt Louis Bolton, who died on one of the ships attacked by German E-boats in Lyme Bay, along with Dean Small, son of Ken Small, who recovered the tank from the sea in 1984.

Laurie said: 'Dean and I were very pleased with the service and we look forward to next year. It was heartfelt and simple, and as Dean told me, his father would have approved.'

Exercise Tiger was the biggest loss of life from a training incident of the Second World War.

In the early hours of April 28, 1944, eight landing ship tanks full of American servicemen were converging in Lyme Bay, making their way towards Slapton Sands for Exercise Tiger, which was a rehearsal for the D-Day landings.

A group of four German E-boats, alerted by heavy radio traffic in Lyme Bay, intercepted the three mile-long convoy of vessels. The heavily laden, slow-moving LSTs were easy targets for the torpedo boats, which attacked the unprotected rear of the convoy.

A series of tragedies, including

the absence of a British Royal Navy destroyer assigned as an escort due to it having been ordered into port for repairs, and an error in radio ­frequencies, led to three of the LSTs being hit by German torpedoes.

More loss of life was caused by life jackets being worn incorrectly by army personnel and the extreme cold of the sea, resulting in hypothermia.

As a result, 639 American soldiers and sailors died in the early-morning hours of Exercise Tiger.

The loss of life was greater than that later suffered by the assault troops during the initial attack on Utah Beach.

When the news reached the Allied commanders, they were greatly worried that so many lives were lost and that the news might make its way into German hands, revealing their intentions for the D-Day landings.

Approximately 12 weeks before the military exercises, many of the villages surrounding Slapton Sands had been evacuated. The soldiers and sailors who survived were ordered not to speak about the incident, with many staying silent about the tragedy until 50 years later.