Dean Vanlandingham, 96, of Fort McCoy, landed on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944; Harold Stephens, 92, of Ocala, landed on Utah Beach four days later. They were among the Allied troops, including American soldiers who stormed the beaches in Normandy in northern France in what has been called the beginning of the end of WW II.

Today marks the 73rd anniversary of D-Day, or the first day of the massive World War II invasion of Normandy, which gained a foothold for Allied forces in France.

Dean Vanlandingham, 96, of Fort McCoy, landed on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944; Harold Stephens, 92, of Ocala, landed on Utah Beach four days later.

According to history.com: "The battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of Frances Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. Prior to D-Day, the Allies conducted a large-scale deception campaign designed to mislead the Germans about the intended invasion target. By late August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated, and by the following spring the Allies had defeated the Germans. The Normandy landings have been called the beginning of the end of war in Europe."

In spite of German fortifications, establishing a beachhead at Normandy was needed to allow Allied forces to march across Europe to Berlin, Germany, to defeat Hitler and the Nazi regime.

According to the article "D-Day" on http://www.history.com, Gen Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander during the war, gave the order to start the invasion, known as Operation Overlord, on June 5, 1944, but weather caused a 24-hour delay. He called the Battle of Normandy, which lasted from June to August 1944, the start of a "Great Crusade."

Eisenhower was so concerned about the outcome of the invasion attempt, however, that he wrote a note on June 5, 1944, taking all responsibility if the invasion failed, according to "General Dwight D. Eisenhower launches Operation Overlord," also on History.com

The first amphibious assault on beaches code named Utah, Omaha and Gold, which stretch for about 50 miles in Normandy, began at 6:30 a.m. after paratroopers and glider troops had begun securing locations behind enemy lines, the "D-Day" article states.

By the end of June 6, 1944, more than 4,000 Allied soldiers had died. By June 11, the beachhead was secured and 326,000 soldiers had landed, along with 50,000 vehicles and 100,000 tons of equipment, the article notes.

Dean VanLandingham, 96, a resident of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Veterans Village in Fort McCoy, is a native of Scott, Ohio. He moved to Plymouth, Michigan, as a youth. He earned the Eagle Scout rank at age 17 and was attending college and had worked in a steel mill before he enlisted in the U.S. Army shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, on Dec. 7, 1941.

He was 23 when he went ashore at Utah Beach from an LST (landing ship tank) later in the day June 6, 1944.

"I was scared to beat hell," he said. "Most soldiers were 18 to 25 years old and most of us didn't have any idea what would happen."

When the bullets started flying and guys started dropping, soldiers became scared, except for a few "crazies (that) it didn't bother," he said.

He described the terrain at Utah Beach as "hilly" and opposition when he landed as "moderate," with "machine gun, rifle and some artillery" fire.

VanLandingham said after three days the Allies were able to position some artillery and prior to that the assault had relied on support from the guns on Allied ships offshore.

He said the goal was to crack the German Siegfried Line of defense as his outfit moved forward through Metz, France, and fought in the Battle of the Bulge near Bastogne.

He was awarded the Bronze Star for his actions related to overtaking a large group of German soldiers and knocking out enemy tanks by directing the movement of armored tank destroyers.

He recalled hearing the Nazi V-1s, or "buzz bombs," going overhead with a "putt-putt" sound on their way to crashing and exploding.

According to the Smithsonian Institute website, https://airandspace.si.edu, about 20,000 of the V-1s or "Vengeance Weapon One" pilot-less missiles, which could travel about 150 miles and carried a 1-ton high-explosive warhead, were launched mostly at London and Antwep.

VanLandingham was wounded and knocked unconscious for about a half an hour on Jan., 20, 1945, near the Luxemburg border by shrapnel from an artillery shell that exploded nearby.

During the war, he received three Purple Heart Awards for his wounds and four battle stars.

Following the war, VanLandingham returned to school, married and fathered two sons. He and his wife, Mary, moved to Mount Dora in 1960, where he worked as a consultant for several publishers. Mary died in 2006, after 59 years of marriage.

Gary VanLandingham, 60, a professor at Florida State University in Tallahassee, said his father did not speak much of his involvement in D-Day until the last five years. He said his father likely was minutes behind the initial attack.

"He felt like he was just doing his job and the invasion was something that needed to be done. He may not have been very happy to be there, but he did it for the other guys," Gary Van Landingham said, adding that his father didn't feel his act was "heroism."

Harold Stephens, 92, of Ocala, landed on Utah Beach on June 10, 1944.

Stephens, a native of Jellico, Tennessee, had dropped out of school to work in a grocery store because his father passed away when he was 7 and he was helping his mother support a family of four children. He was drafted in 1943, at age 18.

As D-Day approached, Stephens was stationed at Birmingham, England, "waterproofing vehicles" and then was sent to Torquay, near the English Channel, to board an LST wearing his equipment, canteen and mess kit and carrying his rifle.

On Utah Beach, he said, he had to watch for enemy "bombings, (aircraft) strafing and booby traps."

Stephens said he was assigned to Gen. Omar Bradley's 1st Army and traveled inland to Saint Lo, France, and then was assigned to Gen. George Patton's 3rd Army. He went through Belgium and Luxembourg and eventually "stood where Hitler once spoke" in Nuremberg, Germany.

Stephens said D-Day should be remembered.

Other locals also said that D-Day is a significant part of American history.

Diana Atkins, 42, said she intends to teach her children, Andrew, 10, and Isabel, 8, about D-Day at the appropriate time because it is "very important."

Daniel Brewer, 11, the son of Rick and Carrie Brewer, has been taught about World War II by his parents, who have studied the history of the war. Daniel, who will enter sixth grade next school year, is familiar with the Battle of Normandy and D-Day.

Daniel and fellow students Rishit Shaquib and Joseph Lavdas made a "brief history" of World War II, with graphics and animation, that earned a first place award and "Best of Show 3-5" in the recent 16th annual Marion County Public Schools Student Media Festival.

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Local veterans recall D-Day battle on beaches in France - Ocala