the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade and 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade. East of the road, under the 51st (Highland) Division were the 154th (Highland) Brigade and the 33rd Armoured Brigade. These two columns would bypass the front-line defenders and capture the main German anti-tank defences around Cramesnil and Saint-Aignan de Cramesnil at dawn. The second phase would follow immediately. While the remaining four infantry brigades of the 2nd Canadian Division and 51st (Highland) Division cleared up the isolated German forward defences and the 3rd Canadian Division and 49th (West Riding) Division (I Corps) began subsidiary attacks to widen the base of the salient captured in the first phase, the 4th Canadian Armoured Division and 1st Polish Armoured Division would move up the corridor to Cramesnil and prepare to advance further south. To prepare for their attack, bombers of the US Eighth Air Force would bombard the German reserve positions at Hautmesnil. The ultimate objective was the high ground north of Falaise, beyond the start line. First Canadian Army attack During the evening of 7 August 1944, the attacking forces formed up in six columns, four vehicles wide, comprising tanks, Kangaroo APCs, half tracks, self-propelled anti-tank guns and Mine flail tanks. At 23:00, Bomber Command commenced the bombardment of German positions along the Caen front. At 23:30, the armoured columns began their advance behind a rolling barrage. Movement was slow at first, many APC drivers became disoriented by the dust caused by the vehicles. Several vehicles became stuck in bomb craters. Simonds had arranged several methods for the columns to maintain direction; some vehicles were fitted with radio direction finders, the artillery fired target-marking shells, Bofors 40 mm guns fired bursts of tracer in the direction of the advance. In spite of all these measures, there was still confusion. Several vehicles collided or were knocked out. The attack broke through the German defences in several places. By dawn, the attacking columns from the 51st (Highland) Division had reached their intended positions. The infantry dismounted from their Kangaroo APCs within of their objectives at the villages of Cramensnil and Saint-Aignan de Cramesnil, rapidly over-running the defenders. The columns from the 2nd Canadian Division were delayed by fog and unexpected opposition on their right flank but by noon on 8 August, the Allied forces had captured Verrières Ridge. The novel methods used by Simonds ensured that the attackers suffered only a fraction of the