PARACHUTIST RAID

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24855, 3 March 1942, Page 5

PARACHUTIST RAID

SUCCESS OF VENTURE INTERESTING EXPERIENCES (Rec. 11 p.m.) LONDON, Mar. 1. A former Fleet street journalist. Lieutenant Peter Young, aged 22, was assigned the task of dealing with the German radio location post at Bruneval, regarding which further interesting experiences are detailed by the raiders. Lieutenant Young said that the R.A.F. put the British parachutists down within 10 yards of where they were wanted by him. They had almost reached their objective before encountering opposition. A German sentry twice challenged the approaching troops and then fired. The parachutists, who had withheld their Are as long as possible, “rubbed him out,” then hunted out other Germans from cellars, trenches arid rooms with hand grenades, automatic weapons, revolvers and knives. Most of the Germans were killed, but some ran away. “ One tried to hide over the edge of a cliff,” said Lieutenant Young. “After getting there he wanted to surrender. I looked over and found him with his hands up. At the time I thought I had seen nothing funnier than the German trying to scramble up the lip of a cliff with his hands held up. After the capture of the post it was the sappers’ job to destroy the apparatus, search the beach for mines, and lay anti-tank mines.” Other officers of the parachutists said that the Germans were stubborn when behind cover and in good positions, but if confronted at short range —much of the fighting was done at short range—generally turned and ran. There was never a moment without some firing. Two parachutists went through the village and saw no sign of life- in the houses nor peeping through the curtains. The aeronautical correspondent of the Daily Express says that the destruction of the Bruneval radio location station may seriously handicap the Germans for a considerable time because it is believed it was the master station linking up a network of minor radio location bases. Bruneval contained highly sensitive machinery which cannot be quickly replaced. Specialists make it and the installation is a slow business.