How did American forces of WWII gain traction in Europe after getting a foothold on the Normandy beaches of D-Day?

Answer: Martin Steel of Mansfield, Ohio.

France and Germany are made of mud and sand and mountains, none of which is particularly easy to drive over, or march over, or land a plane on.  So the U.S. Army devised a method whereby difficult earth could be covered with a layer of textured steel plates to create a serviceable road surface or runway surface.  It was called PSP: Perforated Steel Planking.  

It was manufactured on Longview Avenue right next to the tracks.

That was how the Army Air Force was able to land planes on all those little South Pacific islands made of sand: instant runways assembled from Mansfield steel.

READ MORE

Author: Timothy Brian Mckee