February 2011 - Issue 14

€6m revamp for D-Day museum

By Paul McNally on February 1, 2011

A major renovation project that will see one of Normandy’s most popular D-Day museums treble in size is on track to be completed in time for the 47th anniversary commemorations in June, the site’s director has confirmed.

The Utah Beach museum in Sainte-Marie-du-Mont (Manche) has been closed since last October for the €6m revamp.

Museum director Isabelle Attard said: “The surface area of the museum is going to treble, from 1,130m² to 3,510m² and we are re-doing everything inside.”

The project, led by American architect Nicolas Kelemen, includes the construction of a new hangar that will house a life-size replica of a B-26 bomber, as well as a flight simulator.

The ambitious extension and renovation has received the support of several key donors in the US, including Republican lieutenant-governor of Texas, David Dewhurst.

Mr Dewhurst made a donation after visiting Normandy in 2007 to find out more about his father, who was a highly decorated Second World War bomber pilot.

He said: “At the Utah Beach Museum, we came across my father’s name prominently displayed in one of the exhibits.

“It was only there I discovered that my dad led a squadron of B-26s on D-Day, attacking Nazi gun emplacements only minutes before the infantry landed on Utah Beach.

“It was an incredibly emotional experience to come face-to-face with details about dad’s life and his service during the war.”

The grand reopening, on June 6, will coincide with a large commemorative display in nearby Sainte-Mère-Eglise, with 800 American, French, British and German parachutists.

To find out more about the museum project, see www.utah-beach.com or call the tourist office in Sainte-Mère-Eglise on 02 33 21 00 33.