WWII: total number of aircraft used during D-Day 1944

The aerial superiority established by the Allies throughout 1943 and 1944 was one factor that made the D-Day landings possible on June 6. 1944. As the war progressed, the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) inflicted significant damage on the Luftwaffe, and German production struggled to replenish its numbers, especially as Allied attacks on German industry intensified. In the weeks before June 6, USAAF and RAF bombers targeted airfields and supply lines in France and Belgium to weaken the Luftwaffe further, although the civilian casualties and heavy damage to French urban areas became a point of contention between the Allies. On the night before the invasion, thousands of paratroopers and gliders were air dropped behind the beaches to sabotage and outflank German defenses. On D-Day, the Allied air fleet numbered at over 10,000 (including transports), while the German air fleet in Normandy was just several hundred. German aerial resistance was fairly futile, and Allied bombers continued to provide air support throughout the day, although their effectiveness has been questioned as so many of the bombs were dropped well behind the frontline to avoid hitting their own men.