Details for the first time the key role played by Allied coasters in supporting military operations during the Second World War in Western Europe. Part 1 of the book tells how over 40,000 personnel were evacuated by coasters, often under fire, from Dunkirk, and from ports right down the Bay of Biscay. Part 2 is concerned with the unique contribution coasters made to the military campaign which began with the invasion of Normandy in June 1944 and continued until VE day. Covers the convoys, the cargoes and the challenges during an operation which involved a total of 460 coasters of ten different nationalities.