The 360° cinema

The D-Day landings in Normandy required months & years of reflection. Its vital success required an unprecedented logistical and military preparation.

This is how the Arromanches 360 cinema’s new film starts. On both sides of the channel, people were preparing for this very expected moment. Then, despite  inclement weather, came the morning of June 6th, which remains in the universal memory as the first and long hoped-for step towards the liberation of Western Europe.

The Battle of Normandy thus began; the paratroopers on the night of the 5th to the 6th of June, then the landings on the five world’s best known sandy beaches, in the Manche and Calvados departments. The Normans were to experience a three-month long battle on their own soil which would not be completed on the day Paris was liberated. This would last until 12 September, with the end of the tragic bombing of Le Havre.

The images we have chosen for this film and its nine screens are exceptional. English, Canadian, German, American and French archives.

A film of pure historical intensity.

Duration : 19 minutes

On 8th June 1944, two days after the liberation of Arromanches, the first Phoenix blockships were sunk. They formed a dike that sheltered the ships from the swell when they unloaded their cargoes. Some "whale" floating roadways and some platforms following the movements of the tide completed the deployment.

On 14th June, some ships started to unload their cargo. In 100 days, "Port Winston" permitted to land 400 000 soldiers, 4 million tons of equipment and 500 000 vehicles. It remained active until 1st December 1944.

A few dozen "Phoenix" blockships are still visible today and continue to keep the waters of Arromanches smooth.