Basil Elwyn Haddix – Sacrificed His Life for Our Freedom

Basil Haddix was born in Flint, Genesee County, Michigan, on May 13, 1925. From the 1940 Census, we learn that Basil’s father, also Basil, 33, worked as a machine operator at the auto factory. His mother, Winifred, 34, had two children living at home at this time; Basil, 14 and Peggy, 13. They lived at 712 Wolcott Street, in Flint.

According to the U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, Haddix registered on May 13, 1943, on his 18th birthday, in Flint, Michigan. He listed his father Basil as next of kin. He was employed by Zerka Resey. This document stated that his height was five feet one inch tall and he weighed 145 pounds.

Haddix enlisted in the Navy Reserve sometime in 1943. His military service number was 86 26 144. Basil attained the rating of Seaman First Class. He was assigned to the LCF Group aboard the USS LCF-31. Tragically Haddix was killed in action on the first day of the invasion, June 6, 1944. He was awarded a Purple Heart posthumously. His family placed a memorial stone at the Flint Memorial Park in Mount Morris, Genesee County, Michigan.

Landing Craft Flack (LCF) were converted Landing Craft Tank (LCTs) with the front ramp welded in position and the hold decked over as a platform for the guns. There were a number of variants (Marks) but most were around 150/200 ft long with a beam of around 30/40 ft.

LCTs were designed to carry tanks and heavy transport, while the LCFs were equipped with anti-aircraft guns to provide air cover for the invasion fleet, particularly the troop-carrying Landing Craft Assault (LCA) flotillas, which were poorly equipped to defend themselves against air attack.

This researcher found a related story that shed some light on what happened to USS LCF-31 during Operation Overlord while attempting to land on Omaha Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944. **DECORATED TRAVERSE CITY VETERAN WAS ONE OF 18 OF HIS 71-MAN CREW TO SURVIVE OMAHA BEACH **by AL PARKER- JUNE 1, 2019

In 1944, he was chosen to be part of an elite “special support group,” and underwent rifle training, electrical, welding, and other skills. “There were 1,500 of us, and it was all hush-hush,” he said. “We didn’t know why we were doing this.”

He soon found himself with about 20,000 U.S. troops aboard the Queen Elizabeth II heading to Europe. Taking a zig-zag route to avoid German submarines, the QEII docked in Scotland, where they were re-assigned as crews.

After a while, it was soon apparent that Lampton and the others would be the “spearhead” of the invasion of Europe. “We knew then that we were going for that,” he said.

Seventy-five years later, the D-Day invasion may only be a paragraph in a history book to some generations. But in 1944, the fate of the Western World hinged on whether the U.S. and its Allies could cross the English Channel, storm into France, and halt the German march across Europe.

France had already fallen to German troops and England was imperiled. The D-Day invasion was an attempt to turn back the German war machine.

Three weeks short of his 20th birthday, Lampton was a Master Mechanic 2ndClass aboard LCF-31, a heavily armed landing craft that would be among the first vessels heading toward Omaha Beach.

“Our first duty was to stay out about 10 miles and protect from air attacks,” he said. “But there was no air attacks, so we were sent in the first wave … nobody seemed to be upset. We were just doing our jobs.”

The largest of the D-Day assault areas, Omaha Beach stretched more than six miles with the western third of the beach, which was backed by a seawall some 10 feet high. The entire beach was overlooked by cliffs 100 feet high. There were only five exits from the sandy beach — the best a paved road leading to a village.

The Germans, under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, had built formidable defenses to protect this enclosed battlefield. The waters and beach were heavily mined, and there were 13 strong “resistance nests.” Numerous other fighting positions dotted the area, supported by an extensive trench system.

The defending forces consisted of three battalions of battle-tested veteran German troops, their weapons fixed to cover the beach with a hail of bullets and a swath of fire from the cliffs.

Omaha Beach was a killing zone.

From the beginning, everything went wrong at Omaha. Special tanks that were fitted with flotation devices sank in the choppy waters of the Channel. “They dropped 30 of those tanks in the water, and they all sunk,” said Lampton.

U.S. forces suffered more than 2,400 casualties. However, by day’s end approximately 156,000 Allied troops had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches. Less than a week later, the beaches were fully secured, and more than 326,000 troops and 50,000 vehicles had landed at Normandy.

The D-Day invasion involved some 5,000 ships, carrying men and vehicles across the English Channel. It was an impressive armada. “As far as the eye could see, there were ships,” said Lampton. “We could see the shells from the battle wagons. It was like a streak of fire.”

Some 800 planes launched more than 13,000 paratroopers, many behind enemy lines. Another 300 planes bombed German positions along the beaches.

As a Master Mechanic 2ndClass, Lampton was in charge of a seven-man crew that tended two 12-cylinder diesel engines, which powered the craft, and two 6-cylinder diesels that provided auxiliary power. He was down in the engine room with two of his men when his life changed.

“We heard a report of ‘Shell bursts off the starboard bow,’” he said. “Then it was ‘Shell bursts off the port bow.’” (Some reports say the LCF-31 struck a mine.)

Then Lampton’s world went black.

“It was black as the ace of spades,” he said. “I was knocked out, and when I woke, I couldn’t see a thing. All power was out. I ran my tongue across my front teeth and thought, ‘My God, my teeth were knocked out. Turns out they were just a little chipped.”

Lampton never saw either of his engine room mates again. He didn’t know what happened, but he knew that water was rising in the engine room, and he had to get out. Groggy from a head injury and feeling his way through the dark, Lampton reached a ladder and climbed slowly, rung by rung until he reached an emergency hatch at the top.

“I wasn’t sure about opening the hatch,” he said. “It was the only time I got scared, I think. I thought for a minute we might be underwater, and if I opened the hatch …”

The very thought of opening that hatch and drowning caused him to lose sleep and suffer nightmares for years. Now we’d call it PTSD.

But Lampton jerked open the hatch and saw open sky above. He climbed out on to the deck, which was deserted. “There was no one there,” he said. “It was strange.”

The surviving crew of the LCF-31 had been picked up by a Coast Guard Cutter, CGC-16. Out of a crew of 72, only 18 survived. An excerpt from the cutter’s log describes its D-Day activities:

“0530, accompanied invasion barges into shore under severe shelling attacks and with mines going up all around us. 0730, LCF-31 hit by shell 800 yards off shore, sinking immediately. While engaged in picking up survivors, a shell struck PC-1261, which disintegrated, scattering men and debris over a wide area. While so engaged, shells and bullets were falling nearby, and just after last man picked up, small landing craft only few hundred yards off shore blew up. Proceeded to spot and picked up all living survivors.” (CGC-16 Log.)

In the fog of war, Lampton had been left in the damaged engine room aboard his landing craft. He knew the LCF-31 was sinking, and he had to get off. Wearing his “Mae West” life preserver, he went into the water — completely alone in the rolling sea as the D-Day invasion raged on Omaha Beach.

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This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smart phone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

Resources: Special thanks to all of those who provided information about this sailor in order for me to have the privilege of compiling this story.

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/85470960:2442?tid=&pid=&queryId=6649c439dc8eedb9581a395363d5e464&_phsrc=tqd4826&_phstart=successSource

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=2238&h=268254967&tid=&pid=&queryId=6649c439dc8eedb9581a395363d5e464&usePUB=true&_phsrc=tqd4828&_phstart=successSource

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/139028489/basil-e.-haddix