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Special Operations Executive 17th August 1940 Secret agent mission 21st August 1940  Special Duties Flight formed 23rd August 1940 Agent dropped into Holland 3rd September 1940 Operations 21st October 1940 Lysander lost in Scotland 18th February 1941 Special Op crashed in Belgium 16th March 1941 Special Duties Flight renumbered 11th April 1941 Crash landing at Tangmere 8th July 1941  Agents dropped in Normandy 25th July 1941 Crash landing near Newmarket 25th August 1941 Special Duties Squadron designated 30th Oct 1941 138 Squadron Whitley lost 8th November 1941 Polish crew make forced landing in Sweden 28th November 1941 French pilot killed in training 28th December 1941 Shot down back at base 30th December 1941 Special Operations to Greece 1st January 1942 SoE sortie to Greece aborted 3rd January 1942 Successful supplies drop in Greece 28th Jan 1942 Poor Conditions 29th January 1942 SOE mission failed to return 27th Feb 1942 Secret Operations 1st Mar 1942 Operations 3rd March 1942 Liberator flight created 4th March 1942 Communist Agents dropped into France 8th March 1942 Lost off Dutch Coast 10th March 1942 Czech aircrew killed 11th March 1942 SOE move to new airbase 28th March 1942 German trap catches Dutch Agent 1st Apr 1942 SoE Operations 1st Apr 1942 Operations 1st Apr 1942 Operations 8th Apr 1942 Move 21st April 1942 Austrian Agents killed in crash 24th Apr 1942 Poor Visibility 24th Apr 1942 Operations 26th Apr 1942 Operations 26th Apr 1942 Operations 27th Apr 1942 Unexpected passenger 30th Apr 1942 Operations 30th Apr 1942 Operations 30th Apr 1942 Operations 30th Apr 1942 Operations 5th May 1942 Operations 5th May 1942 Operations 24th May 1942 Operations 24th May 1942 Operations 28th May 1942 Operations 28th May 1942 Operations 28th May 1942 Operations 29th May 1942 Operations 29th May 1942 Operations 29th May 1942 Special ops pilot captured, but escaped 30th June 1942 Aircraft transferred 3rd July 1942 Borrowed Wellington shot down 30th July 1942 SOE mission lured into a trap 25th August 1942 Aircrew evaded capture 28th August 1942 Crash landing after operation 1st September 1942 Evaded capture 20th September 1942 Failed to return 25th Sep 1942 161 Squadron Whitley lost 27th September 1942 Secret mission crashed in France 30th September 1942 Saboteurs dropped into Greece October 1942 Role assignment 2nd October 1942 Four Agents dropped in poland 2nd October 1942 Ditched off the Dutch Coast 3rd October 1942 Ditched on Special Operations 22nd October 1942 Pilot killed in crash landing 23rd October 1942 Ditched off Eastbourne 30th October 1942 Two Halifaxes lost on SOE mission 1st November 1942 Crashed in severe weather 15th November 1942 Squadron dispersed 23rd November 1942 Lost at sea 25th November 1942 Training on the Halifax 27th November 1942 C/O flies abortive SOE Mission 23rd December 1942 Shot down over Holland 14th February 1943 Hudsons used for SOE ops 20th February 1943 Crash Landing in France 22nd February 1943 Whitley borrowed for SOE sortie 5th March 1943 Detachment to Russia 14th March 1943 Two aircraft shot down 14th March 1943 Special Duties Flight redesignated as 148 Squadron 15th March 1943 Two Halifaxes lost on Special Ops 20th March 1943 Failed to return from Norway 25th March 1943 Successfully ditched 1st April 1943 New Special Duties Flight 5th April 1943 Relocated 13th April 1943 Crash Landing 14th April 1943 Crashed into the Channel 18th April 1943 Crashed near Caen 5th May 1943 Radio Equipment delivered 12th May 1943 Crashed at sea 12/13th May 1943 138 Squadron crash landed at Troyes 14th May 1943 SOE Operation crashed 19th May 1943 C/O flies sorties to France 22nd May 1943 Crashed in Noord Holland 12th June 1943 Shot down on SOE Mission 23rd June 1943 Halifax lost in the IJsselmeer 24th June 1943 Polish crew shot down in Holland 24th June 1943 Special Agent brought back from France 13th July 1943 Polish crew lost in France 17th July 1943 Collision on the ground at Blida 22nd Jul 1943 SOE Aircraft Lost: 5 crew evaded 13th August 1943 138 Squadron Halifax lost 17th August 1943 Supply drop airmen evade capture 17th August 1943 Halifax Shot down 2nd September 1943 Relocated 8th September 1943 Failed to return from supply drop over Greece September 1943 Long-range SOE duties 14th September 1943 Two SOE Halifaxes lost 15th September 1943  Shot down into the Baltic 15th September 1943 Detachment to North Africa 17th September 1943 Two SOE Halifaxes lost 20th September 1943 Aircraft Ditched 22nd September 1943 Agents delivered to SE France 25th September 1943 Landing on fire 4th October 1943 Special Duties 9th October 1943 Interned in Sweden 15th October 1943 Pick up from occupied Greece 16th October 1943 Agents collected from France 19th October 1943  Aircrew and agents evaded capture 19th October 1943 Big push to support the Maquis in SE France 20th October 1943 SOE Missions to Albania and Greece 21st October 1943 Shot down at Valenciennes 25th October 1943 Training for Special Duties. 1st November 1943 SOE missions to Yugoslavia 3rd November 1943 Crash in fog 3rd November 1943 Liberator lost over Yugoslavia 4th November 1943 Polish Special Duties Flight 5th November 1944 Ditched off Yugoslavia 7th November 1943 Aircraft Shot down 11th November 1943 One survivor from Halifax crash in France Pilot evaded Bogged down  New role for Squadron 25th November 1943 SOE Operation 10th December 1943 Turbulent flight 11th Dec 1943 138 Squadron Halifax lost 17th December 1943 8 Special Duty aircraft lost in fog 20th December 1943 Radio relay work 6th January 1944 Two Special Operations aircraft lost 8th January 1944 SOE Mission aborted January 1944 Increase in Special Duties squadrons 12th January 1944 Failed to return from Albania 31st January 1944 Relocated and re-equipped 3rd February 1944 First SOE Op for 196 Squadron 4th February 1944 Lost on SOE Op in France 5th February 1944 Crashed in the Vosges 6th February 1944 Lost on Special Duties 8th February 1944 Halifax lost over France 8th February 1944 Lost in a storm over France 9th February 1944 The Sussex Plan 11th February 1944 SoE mission crashed over Yugoslavia 11th February 1944 Crashed on landing 12th February 1944 Detachment on Special Duties Training 3rd March 1944 Shot down over Italy 3rd March 1944 Crashed but evaded capture 4th March 1944 Shot down by a train 14th March 1944 Pilot collected from France 20th March 1944 Lysanders allocated 30th March 1944 Crashed in River Westerscheldt 30th March 1944 SOE Operation 1st Apr 1944 138 Squadron Halifax lost 10th April 1944 Lost on SOE Mission 10th April 1944 SOE Mission crashed in France 11th April 1944 Operations 11th April 1944 Hit by Flak over France 11th April 1944 Stirling crashed in Dorset 24th April 1944 Crashed in Poland 27th April 1944 Lost in the North Sea 29th April 1944 No one hurt in crash landing 30th April 1944 Agents retrieved from France 30th April 1944 SOE Operation 3rd May 1944 SOE agents and pilot killed 3rd May 1944 Supplies to the Resistance 4th May 1944 Crashed on take off 5th May 1944 Crashed into farmhouse 7th May 1944 SOE Operation 8th May 1944 Two Special Duties flights lost 10th May 1944 Aircrew join the Maquis! 10th May 1944 Gunner baled out 11th May 1944 SOE Operation to Yugoslavia 30th May 1944 Shot down 1st June 1944 Two Halifaxes lost over Holland 1st June 1944 SOE Hudson shot down over Holland 2nd June 1944 Shot down over France 2nd June 1944  Crash due to engine failure 3rd June 1944 Drowned in Zeeland 5th June 1944 First Jedburgh Team dropped into France 6th Jun 1944 149 Squadron Stirling lost on special duties 6th June 1944 Diversionary Tactics 6th June 1944 Dummy paratroops dropped 7th June 1944 Agents dropped in France 8th June 1944 Special Duties 9th June 1944  Hidden by the resistance 11th July 1944 Aircrew picked up by hospital ship. 14th June 1944 SOE mission 17-18th June 1944 Troops and supplies dropped in France 24th June 1944 Crash 23-24th June 1944 SAS troops dropped 28th June 1944 Aircraft Lost 3rd July 1944 Four aircraft lost on Special Duties 3rd July 1944 SOE Ops resumed 6th July 1944 Killed in crash landing 6th July 1944 Eight killed on SOE flight 11th July 1944 SoE mission 19th July 1944 Special Duties aircraft lost 30th July 1944 Halifax lost 31st July 1944 Special Duties 2nd August 1944 SoE Mission shot down over Hungary 3rd August 1944 Crashed near Venice 3rd August 1944 SOE operation 4th August 1944 Warsaw Uprising 5th August 1944 Five SoE flights lost on mission to Warsaw 8th August 1944 Special bombing mission 9th August 1944  Funeral in France 15th August 1944 Supplies dropped to Warsaw August 1944 SOE squadrons re-equipped 15th August 1944 Three Liberators lost onsupply drop to Warsaw 16th August 1944 Seven aircraft lost on Warsaw supply drops 16th August 1944 Thirteen killed over Italy 17th August 1944 SOE Operation 18th August 1944 Lost on supply mission to Warsaw 22nd August 1944  Shot down 25-26th August 1944 War Correspondent killed 28th August 1944 Four aircraft lost supplying the Warsaw Uprising 28th August 1944 Stirling ditched in the Channel 29th August 1944 161 Squadron Halifax lost 1st September 1944 Two Stirlings lost 2nd September 1944 Four aircraft lost on supply drop to Warsaw 9th September 1944 Aircraft hit balloon cable 11th September 1944 Polish Flight loses 4 aircraft on mission to Warsaw 12th September 1944  Hit a mountain in Italy 14th September 1944 Liberator shot down over Hungary 23rd September 1944 Halifax crew drowned 24th September 1944 Special Duties Squadron disbanded 25th September 1944 Crash Landing 26th September 1944  Failed mission for SOE 28th September 1944 Back on SOE Missions 30th September 1944  Special Operations 7th October 1944 SOE op crashed in Denmark 8th October 1944 Crash landing 17th October 1944 Crashed in Slovenia 29th October 1944 Lost without trace 25-26th October 1944 SOE and SAS Operations November 1944 On-board Radar improvements 6th November 1944 Engine failure 6th November 1944 Major supply drop to Yugoslavia 6th November 1944 Stirling lost on SOE mission 7th November 1944 Flight redesignated as a Squadron 8th November 1944 Stirling lost in the North Sea 9th November 1944 Three Stirlings, 23 airmen and 2 agents lost 10th Nov 1944 Aircraft Lost 21st November 1944 Shot down by USAAF 23rd November 1944 Operations delayed 27th November 1944 Hudson shot down over Belgium 3rd December 1944 Stirling reported lost at sea 28th December 1944 Successful op to Norway 30th December 1944  Gales disrupt SOE Ops 31st December 1944 Shot down on flight to Norway 31st December 1944  Successful ops to Norway 4th January 1945 Shot down 26th January 1945 Crashed in fog 26th January 1945 Missing over Yugoslavia 1st February 1945 Crash landing in Yugoslavia 10th February 1945 Stirling lost in a storm 14th February 1945 Crash-landing in Yugoslavia 20th February 1945 SOE and SAS Operations 20th February 1945 Strong winds 21st Feb 1945 Hudson lost 22nd February 1945 Stirling lost over Norway 23rd February 1945 Stirling lost at sea 23rd February 1945  SOE ops to Norway 25th February 1945 Shot down over Norway 26th February 1945 SOE Operations 27th February 1945 Shot down off Norway 1st March 1945 New aircraft arrive 2nd March 1945 Uneventful SOE ops 5th March 1945 Mid-air explosion 5th March 1945 Shot down over Denmark 9th March 1945 End of Special Duties role 21st March 1945 Three SOE Hudson's Lost to Friendly Fire over Belgium 23rd March 1945  Rear gunner survived 30th March 1945 Strange events observed over Norway 30th March 1945 Stirlings lost over Norway 31st March 1945 Stirling shot down over Norway 2nd April 1945 SOE Ops to Denmark 2nd April 1945 Crashed off the coast 3rd April 1945 SOE Operations to Holland 10th April 1945 SOE Ops with mixed results 10th April 1945 Stirling lost in Friesland 12th April 1945 SOE and SAS supply operations 13th April 1945 SEO ops to Denmark 14th April 1945 Stirling lost on SOE Operation to Norway 17th April 1945 PoW's repatriated 21st April 1945 Evaded capture 25th April 1945 SOE operations May 1945 Transport role June 1945 New role dropping agents into Malaya 21st July 1945 Battle a disaster for Japan If you can provide any additional information, especially on actions and locations at specific dates, please add it here. Those known to have served with Special Operations Executive during the Second World War 1939-1945. Ball CdeG. Edward lawrence. Sgt. Boelskov Erik. 2nd Lt. (d.25th Aug 1943) Bradley William. Sgt. (d.31st August 1944) Brown William Wallace. F/O (d.31st August 1944) Button Harold Victor. Sgt. (d.12th Oct 1944) Bégué MC. Georges. Careless Alfred. Capt. (d.20th Oct 1943) Careless Alfred. Captain (d.20th October 1943) Carnegie Thomas Edward. F/O. (d.1st June 1944) Cloutier Joseph Darie Louis. F/O (d.15th September 1943) Dove A. S.. Sgt. Fuke Harry. Cpl. Gay Leonard Charles. Sgt. (d.15th September 1943) Goss James. W/S/Sgt. Green Frederick George. Flt.Sgt. (d.27th Sep 1942) Hart Edward Chichester. F/O. (d.15th Sep 1943) Howells Henry Spencer. Flt.Sgt. Johannessen Poul Herman Johannes. 2nd Lt. (d.5th September 1942) Kempton Henry John. Sgt. Layzell Gordon Edward. Maj. (d.2nd Feb 1944) MacDuff Robert Denver. F/O (d.31st August 1944) Martin-Leake Stephen Philip. Major (d.7th June 1944) Mudge William Henry. Sgt. (d.15th September 1943) Nearne Nancy. Nicholls GC, ERD. Arthur Frederick Crane. Brig. (d.11th Feb 1944) Norie Kenneth Ross. Sgt. (d.15th September 1943) Parramore Eric George. Capt. Pearson Frederick. F/Sgt. (d.31st August 1944) Peterson DFC, CdG. Malcolm Albert. Roberts MM. Sydney George. Cpl. (d.22nd Dec 1943) Rockingham David William. Sig. (d.20th Oct 1943) Sayles DFM Francis. F/O (d.31st August 1944) Smith John Bonsall. F/Sgt. (d.31st August 1944) Smith Sidney John. Sgt. (d.15th September 1943) Stiles . (d.27th Jun 1944) Stroud Bernard. Flt.Sgt. (d.19th July 1944) Taylor Charles Richard. Tuyl Daphne Joan. Vieuxbled Jacques Robert. Cmdr. Wake Nancy. Wallace David John. Major (d.17th August 1944) White Norman Arthur. Flt.Sgt. (d.31st Dec 1944) Windsor Kenneth Charles. Sgt. (d.15th September 1943) Zygmuntowicz Ryszard. F/O (d.21st April 1942) The names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed, please Add a Name to this List Records of Special Operations Executive from other sources. The Wartime Memories Project is the original WW1 and WW2 commemoration website. Announcements The Wartime Memories Project has been running for 24 years. If you would like to support us, a donation, no matter how small, would be much appreciated, annually we need to raise enough funds to pay for our web hosting and admin or this site will vanish from the web. 18th April 2024 - Please note we currently have a huge backlog of submitted material, our volunteers are working through this as quickly as possible and all names, stories and photos will be added to the site. If you have already submitted a story to the site and your UID reference number is higher than 263925 your information is still in the queue, please do not resubmit, we are working through them as quickly as possible. Looking for help with Family History Research?   Please read our Family History FAQ's The free to access section of The Wartime Memories Project website is run by volunteers and funded by donations from our visitors. If the information here has been helpful or you have enjoyed reaching the stories please conside making a donation, no matter how small, would be much appreciated, annually we need to raise enough funds to pay for our web hosting or this site will vanish from the web. If you enjoy this site please consider making a donation. Want to find out more about your relative's service? Want to know what life was like during the War? Our Library contains an ever growing number diary entries, personal letters and other documents, most transcribed into plain text. We are now on Facebook. Like this page to receive our updates. If you have a general question please post it on our Facebook page. Wanted: Digital copies of Group photographs, Scrapbooks, Autograph books, photo albums, newspaper clippings, letters, postcards and ephemera relating to WW2. We would like to obtain digital copies of any documents or photographs relating to WW2 you may have at home. If you have any unwanted photographs, documents or items from the First or Second World War, please do not destroy them. The Wartime Memories Project will give them a good home and ensure that they are used for educational purposes. Please get in touch for the postal address, do not sent them to our PO Box as packages are not accepted. World War 1 One ww1 wwII second 1939 1945 battalion Did you know? We also have a section on The Great War. and a Timecapsule to preserve stories from other conflicts for future generations. Want to know more about Special Operations Executive? There are:1615 items tagged Special Operations Executive available in our Library   These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Second World War. Malcolm Albert Peterson DFC, CdG. No. 138 Squadron I know so little about my father Malcolm Peterson's war record. I have his log books and I know he trained to be a pilot in Blenheim NZ before travelling via Canada to Britain where he first joined 51 Squadron in Sept 1941, during which time he flew on bombing ops over Europe. Following that he joined No. 138 Squadron in January 1942, and this is where the information becomes sketchy because his logbook states 'ops as ordered', rather than mentioning towns which were bombed as happened during the time with 51 Squadron. I think this is when he was with SOE flying out of RAF Stradishall. From July 1942 there was a stint at No. 10 OTU Abingdon followed by one at No.24 OTU Honeybourne, and on 14th February 1943 a crash at RAF Greenham Common, where the aircraft was totally destroyed. There were no injuries sustained by the crew, but my father was very badly injured and out of the war for 10 months. He recuperated at Stretton Hall, Staffordshire where he met my mother who was a nurse there. There seems to have been a long period of training when my father returned to the war, and finally he joined No. 692 Squadron in Feb 1945. He was awarded the DFC and also the Croix de Geurre avec palme for his war efforts. Jane Ivers Add to this record. Stiles (d.27th Jun 1944) I am looking for any information about a parachute Joe possibly named Stiles, in Larra, France, landed 20th of September 1943 in Operation Horde conducted by No. 138 Squadron, RAF. We believe that this agent was arrested by the Gestapo of Toulouse and shot in the wood of Reulle (Castelmaurou) on 27th of June 1944. Patrice Castel, Professor of History and Geography. Add to this record. Flt.Sgt. Henry Spencer "Taffy" Howells Special Duties Flight 240 Squadron Henry Howells, Taffy was in W8405 Catalina flying boat of 240 Squadron. The flight flew operations of up to 32 hours from Redhills Lake Madras to the Gulf of Siam. They were dropped off, picked up and around re-supplied SOE and OSS agents tasked with disrupting Japanese held territory. Add to this record. Sgt. Henry John Kempton 161 Squadron My uncle, Henry Kempton, was a gunner in a Halifax, flying out of RAF Tempsford. On his last mission, Operation Iridium, which was to drop some Czechoslovakian operatives, the aircraft was shot down and crashed with the loss of all crew. They were buried in Durnbach Cemetery in Bavaria. Michael Wallace Add to this record. Flt.Sgt. Bernard Stroud 138 Squadron (d.19th July 1944) Bernard Stroud was a Flight Sergeantin the RAF in 138 Squadron based at Tempsford. He was tragically killed aged just 20 on a World War 2 night SOE mission when his Halifax Mk.V plane LL364 NF-B was in collision with an American Liberator B24H aircraft of the 801st Bomber crew over a drop zone at Mazignien, Nievre, France at 01.00hrs on 19th July 1944. A tragic twist of fate was that Bernard had in fact finished his tour of duty prior to this mission and was on leave at home when the MP`s turned up to call him back to RAF Tempsford to replace a crew member who had broken his leg in a motor cycle accident!! All 15 persons on board both planes were killed. There were 8 American crew. The British crew of 7 are buried together at the Communal Cemetery Graveyard at Marigny L`Eglise, Nievre, France and are always remembered there by villagers each year and many official ceremonies have been held in remembrance of them. There is a plaque with Bernard`s name on in the Lady Chapel of Hereford Cathedral where he had been a chorister. Paul Stroud Add to this record. F/O. Thomas Edward Carnegie 138 Squadron (d.1st June 1944) My Uncle Tom Carnegie was a navigator on board Halifax LL419, one of two SOE Osric missions flying out of Tempsford to be lost in the night on 1st of June, 1944. It is assumed that they were shot down by a night-fighter somewhere over the North Sea west of Schouwen, The Netherlands. All eight crew are listed as Missing. John Carnegie Add to this record. Flt.Sgt. Norman Arthur White 620 Squadron. (d.31st Dec 1944) I was named after my uncle Norman White shortly after he was shot down near Lister, Norway at the mouth of Skaggerak while on a Special Duty Operation. He was the rear gunner in a Short Stirling Mk IV LJ914. There were no survivors. A H N Palmer Add to this record. Sgt. Edward lawrence Ball CdeG. 1663 Conversion Unit My father Edward Ball served at at Pocklington and in Algiers (S.O.E.). Anthony Ball Add to this record. Major David John Wallace attd. Special Operations Executive King's Royal Rifle Corps (d.17th August 1944) Major Wallace was the Son of Capt. the Rt. Hon. Euan (David) Wallace, M.C., P.C., and of Lady Idina Wallace (nee Sackville), of Petworth, Sussex; husband of Joan Prudence Wallace, of West Kensington, London. He lost his life while attached as an observer to the 10th Greek Division, the strongest national resistance force fighting against the Germans He was 29 when he died and is buried in the Paramythia Civil Cemetery in Greece. s flynn Add to this record. 2nd Lt. Erik Boelskov Special Operations Executive (d.25th Aug 1943) Second Lieutenant Erik Boelskov was the son of Jorgen and Olga Boelskov of Koge, Denmark. He was aged 22 when he died and is buried in the Koge Cemetery in Denmark. S Flynn Add to this record. Recomended Reading. Available at discounted prices. Forgotten Voices of the Secret War: An Inside History of Special Operations in the Second World War Roderick Bailey Told through interviews recorded by the Imperial War Museum...Roderick Bailey has skilfully braided their stories into a coherent narrative, and the quality of their egregious courage catches at the heart. More information on: Forgotten Voices of the Secret War: An Inside History of Special Operations in the Second World War Links Tempsford Special Duties Squadrons

The free section of the Wartime Memories Project website is run by volunteers. We have been helping people find out more about their relatives wartime experiences since 1999 by recording and preserving recollections, documents, photographs and small items. The website is paid for out of our own pockets, library subscriptions and from donations made by visitors. The popularity of the site means that it is far exceeding available resources and we currently have a huge backlog of submissions. If you are enjoying the site, please consider making a donation, however small to help with the costs of keeping the site running. Hosted by: The Wartime Memories Project Website is archived for preservation by the British Library Copyright MCMXCIX - MMXXIV - All Rights Reserved We do not permit the use of any content from this website for the training of LLMs or for use in Generative AI, it also may not be scraped for the purpose of creating other websites.