U.S. anti-tank troops take cover in France. A U.S.

U.S. anti-tank troops take cover in France. A U.S. anti-tank unit, battling German armored forces in western Normandy, nugs the ground while enemy shells drop near their position. The Americans, less than 200 yards from the German lines, are part of the forces that on July 31, 1944, liberated the town of Avraches. The Germans in that area were making a last desperate stand to stem the American drive southward towards the Brittany peninsula. Six enemy divisions of about 60,000 men had been knocked out of in the week-old U.S. offensive.