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Operation Albumen
Operation Albumen was the name of British Commando raids in June 1942 on German airfields in the Axis-occupied Greek island of Crete, to prevent them from being used in support of the Axis forces in the Western Desert Campaign in the Second World War. The operations were carried out with similar raids against Axis airfields at Benghazi, Derna and Barce in Libya and were among the first planned sabotage acts in occupied Europe.
During the Battle of Crete (20 May – 1 June 1941), the Axis powers had captured the island of Crete, before they had won the Balkans campaign. In the late spring of 1942, the airfields of Crete gained increased importance by becoming the main transit base for the Luftwaffe to fly supplies to the Axis forces in Egypt in their advance on the Nile Delta (see also Battle of Gazala).
Luftwaffe aircraft based on Crete flew photo-reconnaissance, bombing and convoy sorties covering the south-east Mediterranean. To disrupt these operations, the British command in Cairo sent three groups from the Special Boat Squadron (SBS) and one from the Special Air Service (SAS) to Crete to sabotage the airfields of Heraklion, Kastelli, Tympaki and Maleme.
Aircraft types operating from Crete included the Junkers Ju 52 and Messerschmitt Me 323 transport aircraft, the Junkers Ju 88 and Junkers Ju 86 aircraft for bombing and photo-reconnaissance and the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter. Heraklion airfield was allocated to the SAS group and the SBS groups were assigned to the other three airfields. The SBS groups were met by Tom Dunbabin, the British liaison officer with the Cretan resistance, who provided them with local guides. The sabotage attacks were scheduled for the night of 7/8 June 1942.
The attackers on Kastelli consisted of Captain G. I. A. Duncan of the Black Watch, two NCOs of the SBS and the Greek gendarme Vassilis Dramoundanis. The operation went according to plan and on 7 June the saboteurs, assisted by the locals Giorgos Psarakis, Kimonas Zografakis (nicknamed Blackman) and Kostas Mavrantonakis, managed to destroy five aircraft, damage 29 and set fire to several vehicles and considerable quantities of supplies (including about 200 long tons (200 t) of aviation fuel) using delayed-action bombs.
The June 1942 operation is often referred to as the first raid on Kastelli, because of a similar operation that took place a year later. One of the objectives of this second operation was to lead the Germans into believing that an Allied landing on Crete (rather than the Allied invasion of Sicily) was imminent. On the night of 4/5 July 1943, two commando groups under the Danish Major Anders Lassen and the Greek Kimonas Zografakis, simultaneously attacked the airfield of Kastelli from two directions. Despite the strong security, they succeeded in deceiving the garrison and destroyed most of the parked aircraft and fuel dumps.[page needed]
The Heraklion operation was commanded by George Jellicoe and included four members of the Free French Forces commanded by Georges Bergé (the other three being Jacques Mouhot, Pierre Léostic and Jack Sibard) and Lieutenant Kostis Petrakis of the Hellenic Army. The group was transferred to Crete on board the Greek submarine HS Triton (Y-5) and rowed ashore in three inflatable boats. They had intended to land at Karteros beach but came ashore in the Gulf of Malia on the dawn of 10 June and late. The men had to march overland to reach Heraklion airfield. They hid by day and marched by night, arriving during the night of 12/13 June. Due to increased traffic caused by a succession of night sorties that was in progress, the team had to postpone their attack until the next evening. The group entered the airfield while it was being bombed by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and destroyed about twenty Ju 88s using Lewes bombs. All six saboteurs escaped from the airfield but their retreat was betrayed, resulting in 17-year-old Pierre Léostic being killed and the other three Frenchmen being arrested. Jellicoe and Petrakis escaped to Egypt.[page needed][page needed]
The Tympaki team (led by David Sutherland of the Black Watch) discovered that due to air raids from Egypt, the airfield had been temporarily abandoned and the aircraft based there had been moved.
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Operation Albumen
Operation Albumen was the name of British Commando raids in June 1942 on German airfields in the Axis-occupied Greek island of Crete, to prevent them from being used in support of the Axis forces in the Western Desert Campaign in the Second World War. The operations were carried out with similar raids against Axis airfields at Benghazi, Derna and Barce in Libya and were among the first planned sabotage acts in occupied Europe.
During the Battle of Crete (20 May – 1 June 1941), the Axis powers had captured the island of Crete, before they had won the Balkans campaign. In the late spring of 1942, the airfields of Crete gained increased importance by becoming the main transit base for the Luftwaffe to fly supplies to the Axis forces in Egypt in their advance on the Nile Delta (see also Battle of Gazala).
Luftwaffe aircraft based on Crete flew photo-reconnaissance, bombing and convoy sorties covering the south-east Mediterranean. To disrupt these operations, the British command in Cairo sent three groups from the Special Boat Squadron (SBS) and one from the Special Air Service (SAS) to Crete to sabotage the airfields of Heraklion, Kastelli, Tympaki and Maleme.
Aircraft types operating from Crete included the Junkers Ju 52 and Messerschmitt Me 323 transport aircraft, the Junkers Ju 88 and Junkers Ju 86 aircraft for bombing and photo-reconnaissance and the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter. Heraklion airfield was allocated to the SAS group and the SBS groups were assigned to the other three airfields. The SBS groups were met by Tom Dunbabin, the British liaison officer with the Cretan resistance, who provided them with local guides. The sabotage attacks were scheduled for the night of 7/8 June 1942.
The attackers on Kastelli consisted of Captain G. I. A. Duncan of the Black Watch, two NCOs of the SBS and the Greek gendarme Vassilis Dramoundanis. The operation went according to plan and on 7 June the saboteurs, assisted by the locals Giorgos Psarakis, Kimonas Zografakis (nicknamed Blackman) and Kostas Mavrantonakis, managed to destroy five aircraft, damage 29 and set fire to several vehicles and considerable quantities of supplies (including about 200 long tons (200 t) of aviation fuel) using delayed-action bombs.
The June 1942 operation is often referred to as the first raid on Kastelli, because of a similar operation that took place a year later. One of the objectives of this second operation was to lead the Germans into believing that an Allied landing on Crete (rather than the Allied invasion of Sicily) was imminent. On the night of 4/5 July 1943, two commando groups under the Danish Major Anders Lassen and the Greek Kimonas Zografakis, simultaneously attacked the airfield of Kastelli from two directions. Despite the strong security, they succeeded in deceiving the garrison and destroyed most of the parked aircraft and fuel dumps.[page needed]
The Heraklion operation was commanded by George Jellicoe and included four members of the Free French Forces commanded by Georges Bergé (the other three being Jacques Mouhot, Pierre Léostic and Jack Sibard) and Lieutenant Kostis Petrakis of the Hellenic Army. The group was transferred to Crete on board the Greek submarine HS Triton (Y-5) and rowed ashore in three inflatable boats. They had intended to land at Karteros beach but came ashore in the Gulf of Malia on the dawn of 10 June and late. The men had to march overland to reach Heraklion airfield. They hid by day and marched by night, arriving during the night of 12/13 June. Due to increased traffic caused by a succession of night sorties that was in progress, the team had to postpone their attack until the next evening. The group entered the airfield while it was being bombed by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and destroyed about twenty Ju 88s using Lewes bombs. All six saboteurs escaped from the airfield but their retreat was betrayed, resulting in 17-year-old Pierre Léostic being killed and the other three Frenchmen being arrested. Jellicoe and Petrakis escaped to Egypt.[page needed][page needed]
The Tympaki team (led by David Sutherland of the Black Watch) discovered that due to air raids from Egypt, the airfield had been temporarily abandoned and the aircraft based there had been moved.