Lanterna Rally

Author: Shaun Clarke

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2013-12-12

Total Pages: 190

ISBN-13: 1408842238

In the North African desert in 1941 the war is being won by the brilliant German commander General Rommel, and the British are in retreat on all fronts. A young British army lieutenant, David Stirling, believes that the only way to reverse this situation is to attack the enemy behind their own lines, using small groups of men who can insert by land, sea or air as required. The first of these men are dropped by parachute to attack enemy airfields in the Gazala area, but the raid is a disaster, with many lives lost. The following year, the survivors of that operation, now working hand in hand with the Long Range Desert Group, mount a series of spectacular, successful raids in heavily armed jeeps against airfields in the Benghazi region, destroying nearly a hundred enemy aircraft, leaving the German army reeling, and reversing the course of the war. In September 1942, having proved their worth, that group of bold, resourceful men is formed into a new British army regiment to be used for special and especially dangerous operations behind enemy lines. They are listed officially as the 1st Special air Service Regiment the SAS! Soldier G SAS: The Desert Raiders is the colourful story of the birth of the most renowned regiment in the history of the British Army forged with fire and steel in the vast, sun-scorched plains of the North African desert, pitting themselves against the might of the formerly invincible German Army, and gaining a reputation that would make them a legend in their own time.