The Rogue British Officer Who Broke All the Rules Founded the SAS and was Nicknamed by the Germans, “The Phantom Major” - Page 2 of 2 STORE The Rogue British Officer Who Broke All the Rules Founded the SAS and was Nicknamed by the Germans, “The Phantom Major” SHARE: Facebook Twitter A Fight from Beginning to End Although taken aback by Sterling’s unorthodox entry, General Richie read his plan and thought it had merit. Stirling was given the task to raise a force of 60+ men who would fight behind enemy lines and exact maximum damage for little cost to the British Army. To raise such a crew of misfits, Stirling would seek those who were frequently under military discipline but displayed a strong heart for action. He would gather his men, but would still not win any friends with the Middle East Command bureaucracy. And while they attempted to delay the supply of his unit, David Stirling made it his unit’s first mission to steal what they needed to win the war. Famously raiding a New Zealand military camp for everything but the kitchen sink, they established their base and began training on their own.

After approval from General Aucheleck, his newly formed Special Air Service was given the task of parachuting behind enemy lines and destroying German aircraft in advance of the British offensive, Operation Crusader. An unfortunate desert storm would turn this jump into a disaster in which over 40 of his 60 plus men were lost. But turning misfortune into favor, David Stirling realized that utilizing the British long-range desert group that was designated as their Operation Crusader extract was a better method of entry than parachuting. Members of the SAS in North Africa via commons.wikimedia.org With this newfound method of entry behind enemy lines, David Stirling and his newly formed SAS would wreak havoc on the German and Italian positions in North Africa. By January 1943, Stirling’s men had destroyed over 250 aircraft on the ground as well as many other supply positions and enemy personnel. Through his own initiative and disdain for the rules of traditional warfare, he proved that a small force of elite warriors could exact a heavy toll on the enemy with little risk to the allies. Unfortunately, in 1943, these raids behind enemy lines would lead to Sterling’s capture by the Germans.

In fitting fashion, he made multiple escape attempts that eventually led to him being imprisoned at the escape-proof Colditz Castle for the remainder of the war. A Legacy for Future Generations After the war, Sterling’s unconventional tactics and disdain for traditional military culture would see him commit to a variety of private military ventures. But out of his World War II efforts, the modern British SAS were formed where Stirling and his men are simply referred to as, “The Originals.” Had Stirling never broken the rules and thumbed his nose at traditional British military hierarchy, the SAS may have never existed. Statue of David Stirling in Scotland via commons.wikimedia.org Since its inception, the SAS has proved itself as one the most capable military forces in the world ready to take the fight to the enemy when they least expect it and where they least expect it. It was Stirling himself to who coined the SAS phrase, “Who dares wins.” British General Montgomery would go on to describe Stirling as “mad, simply mad.” But it would take such a demeanor to conduct such missions and while the British SAS who value secrecy guard all secrets closely, there is one story they believe should always be told.

Namely, that of David Sterling and the originals who paved the way for clandestine military success. FEATURED VIDEO Featured Articles about Military Unit - Page 3 - latimes FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT MILITARY UNIT - PAGE 3 WORLD NATO rapid-response military force proposed September 19, 2008 | Julian E. Barnes and Paul Richter, Times Staff Writers Seeking to reassure countries that have grown fearful of Russia, Western defense ministers will consider the creation of an easily deployable military force that could be sent into nations feeling threatened, a senior U.S. Defense official said Thursday. The creation of such a force would take NATO back to its roots as a deterrent against Soviet might after years of concentrating on missions in Kosovo and Afghanistan. Advertisement Shlomo Baum; Founded Israeli Military Unit January 18, 1999 | From Associated Press Shlomo Baum, a founder of a feared Israeli commando unit and a noted right-wing activist, died in Jerusalem on Sunday, Israel TV reported. He was 70. The cause of death was not immediately known.

Baum was one of the founders of the 101 unit, which carried out bloody reprisal raids in Jordanian-held territory in the 1950s. The unit was led by Ariel Sharon, now Israel's foreign minister. NEWS David Stirling; Founded Elite British Military Unit November 7, 1990 | From Times Staff and Wire Reports David Stirling, who founded Britain's elite Special Air Service in World War II, a unit that relied on stealth and skill to kill Germans and, years later, to free hostages, has died, his biographer reported. Stirling was 74 when he died Sunday night in the London Clinic after what Alan Hoe, a former SAS major and Stirling's biographer, described only as a long illness. The SAS, whose motto is "Who Dares Wins," has maintained its reputation for swift, clandestine and effective action. NEWS Racism, Brutality Charges Hit Canada Military Unit January 21, 1995 | CRAIG TURNER, TIMES STAFF WRITER The Canadian military's elite Airborne Regiment appeared headed for extinction Friday after a series of revelations--some on home video--of racism, lack of discipline and savagery in the ranks.

The 600-member unit has been under scrutiny since mid-1993, when it was disclosed that soldiers assigned to the U.N. humanitarian mission to Somalia had tortured to death a Somali teen-ager who was caught sneaking into their camp and suspected of theft. NEWS OC Disaster Preparedness, Military Units Extend Help October 18, 1989 | DAN WEIKEL and DAVID REYES, TIMES STAFF WRITERS In the wake of the catastrophic earthquake that hit the San Francisco Bay Area Tuesday, Orange County's disaster preparedness agencies and the military mobilized today to provide relief to the shattered Northern California communities. Among the first to go was the California Army National Guard's 143rd Combat Support Hospital based in Los Alamitos. NEWS S. Africa Halts Activities of Secret Military Unit Tied to Hit Squads February 27, 1990 | From Associated Press Responding to harsh criticism, Defense Minister Magnus Malan told South Africa's Parliament on Monday that he has suspended all operations of a secret military unit accused of involvement in the killings of anti-apartheid activists.

Malan also revealed that Anton Lubowski, a prominent anti-apartheid politician in Namibia who was killed last year, was a paid intelligence agent for the South African Defense Force. NEWS U.S. Military Unit in Mexico Aids Drug War June 7, 1990 | DOUGLAS JEHL and MARJORIE MILLER, TIMES STAFF WRITERS Despite recent frictions, the United States and Mexico have quietly established a U.S. military counternarcotics team at the American Embassy in Mexico City to relay intelligence and help plan operations for a new Mexican strike force, The Times has learned. The new link for the first time establishes the U.S. military as a crucial player in the Mexican anti-drug fight. The move threatens to inflame Mexican concerns about the role of the United States south of the border. NEWS Air Force Orbits Navstar Satellite in Network to Guide Military Units October 22, 1989 | From Times Wire Services A Navstar navigation satellite rocketed into orbit Saturday to become part of a network of spacecraft that guide bombers, warships, missiles and ground troops with pinpoint accuracy.

An Air Force Delta 2 rocket propelled the $65-million satellite into an orbit ranging out to 11,000 miles high after a fiery liftoff that brilliantly illuminated the sky. BUSINESS Litton to Buy SAIC's Military Computer Unit January 17, 1997 | From Bloomberg News Litton Industries Inc. said Thursday that it agreed to buy the portable computer unit of closely held Science Applications International Corp. Terms weren't disclosed. The unit, SAI Technology, is a leading maker of portable computers for the military and is expected to have sales of about $90 million in the fiscal year ending Feb. 1, Litton said. "The purchase will give us added breadth and depth in our product line," said Litton spokeswoman Kathleen Wailes. David Stirling Significant Scots David Stirling The founder of the SAS was a Scottish Laird named David Stirling. Prior to World War II, Stirling was engaged in training to climb Everest. He was always adventurous, and eager to take on new challenges. He definitely stood out in a crowd; at 6 foot, 5 inches frame he was not one to be ignored.

When the war started, Stirling joined the Scots Guards as a subaltern, but soon volunteered for 8 Commando, named after it's commander Captain Robert Laycock as Layforce. At this time in history all Special Forces elements were viewed by the military establishment as more cost then they were worth. "Private Armies" as they were disdainfully known were given little support in quality men and materiel, and were under trained and over-criticized. An Old-Guard mentality was pervasive, and set-piece battles were seen as the only way to achieve success. Young David Stirling got his first taste of this in Layforce which was dismantled in all but name prior to arriving in North Africa. Special Forces as used in North Africa seemed doomed by this unfortunate circumstance. Fortunately for the British army, David Stirling saw the possibilities for Special Operations behind enemy lines. He reckoned that a group of highly-trained, highly motivated soldiers could wreak havoc on enemy supply lines, bases and moral. He joined forces with Australian Jock Lewes , an officer with the Welsh Guards, and this meeting would prove to be the nucleus of the Special Air Service Regiment.

Lewes, an amazing adapter and improviser had scrounged a supply of fifty parachutes, which at first seemed to be the best mode of delivery for troops to get behind the lines. He and David started to jump immediately, and the result was at one disastrous and fortuitous. Disaster struck when David jumped from the old Valentia aircraft, which was most unsuited for the job, his parachute snagged on the tail of the aircraft. David was injured in the fall, and he ended up spending 2 months in the hospital. While uncomfortable, he was now able to devote his time to planning his new unit. Upon his release from the hospital, Subaltern (2nd Lt.) Stirling headed straight for the High-Command Head-Quarters to see the Commander-in-Chief General Auchinlek. Now, the British military establishment has a strict protocol, and the chain of command had to be obeyed to the letter. David knew that if he tried to get things done in an appropriate fashion, it would never come to bear fruit. So David slipped past the guard, on crutches, and hobbled into the building, hastily seeking refuge in an office. In this office was Deputy Commander Middle East General Ritchie.

Ritchie was instrumental in the formation of the new unit. He read David's pencil written notes, and promptly presented the plans to Auchinlek. Both Generals saw the opportunity to use the new unit immediately, as an offensive was planned for the near future. The new unit was to consist of sixty-six men from Layforce, including seven officers and many NCO's. This independent command was to be called L Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade. This was done to make the German's think it was larger than it actually was. Stirling's dream had become reality. Thus began an unparalleled adventure in North Africa. Rommels Afrika Korps had arrived, Britain's forces where being pushed back to Egypt by the Desert Fox, and supplies to the Allies were running short as Malta lay under siege. The first mission for the SAS (November 17th 1942) was to jump behind enemy lines and gather intelligence as well as harassing and tying up German forces while the British mounted the offensive. It was a disaster. Because moral was high and the troops well trained, Stirling decided to jump despite terrible conditions. Many men never made it back, of the sixty-six who went only twenty-two returned.

While disastrous, Stirling and his officers Lewes and Paddy Mayne learned much from the experience. One of the most import innovations came from Jock Lewes, who was challenged to devise a bomb small enough to be carried which would both explode and ignite when detonated to put a plane out of action. The Lewes Bomb was created, out of oil and thermite. It would explode on top of a wing and ignite the fuel within. It weighed one pound, and one man could carry enough to decimate a squadron of planes. The focus now changed from aircraft insertion to overland. The Long Range Desert Group, a motorized reconnaissance unit would pick up the SAS raiders, circle south and west then north to enemy territory, drop off their cargo and rendezvous at a specified point at a predetermined time. The SAS would walk to their destination, usually an airfield carrying minimal weapons and supplies. They moved mostly at night and laid up during the day to avoid German and Italian Air and foot patrols. The most successful of all the raiders was Paddy Mayne, an Irish rugby player who's fierce determination and courage accounted for dozens of planes blown on the tarmac.

At one point, out of Lewes bombs, he ripped out an aircraft control panel with his bare hands. He is a legend in the Regiment today, embodying the rugged individualism sought when recruiting Special Forces personnel. As the SAS successes mounted, and dozens of aircraft were destroyed on the ground, the Germans high command took notice. Their activities caused Hitler to issue the infamous Kommandobefehl , To his credit Field Marshal Irwin Rommel was the only German General that disregarded this order and treated Special Ops prisoners of war in the correct manner . acc to Geneva Convention . Accordingly, the German Army stepped up security and patrols in order to intercept the Raiders. This caused a change in tactics - along with the acquisition of several Jeeps. The SAS could now mount their own mobile operations. Jeeps were equipped with twin Vickers K machine guns, and became a formidable weapon, perfect for the long, rugged journeys they encountered. The jeeps formed the nucleus for mounted raids on enemy airfields. A Squadron of jeeps would enter onto the tarmac, fan out and throw a sustained series of fire , consisting of tracers at the aircraft, causing them to be torn to shreds and ignite.

This caused so much confusion that casualties for the SAS tended to be light, and they could slip away back into the desert. These operations lost quite a few jeeps due to enemy fire or break-downs. The cost was insignificant compared to the amount of damage inflicted. The SAS Brigade in Europe Eventually, disaster struck when David Stirling was captured and imprisoned at Colditz POW camp, where he was to spend the rest of the War. His brother Bill ended up commanding 2 SAS, while Paddy Mayne took over David's position as commander of 1 SAS. The War in North Africa ended, and Allied attention turned to Europe. SAS units became useful for establishing bases in France, far behind enemy lines. They were dropped in the standard squads of 4 men with limited supplies. Often they would contact groups of Maquisards, and arrange for drops of supplies, weapons and communications equipment. The SAS teams would implement training and carry out daring raids on German supply depots, rail-lines and strategic positions. Reconnaissance was the most important function as the Allies prepared for Operation Overlord, the D-Day Invasion.

The SAS succeeded in tying up hundreds of German troops who otherwise would have been used against the Allies at Normandy These actions were perilous for the men involved. At one point, twenty four men plus a US air force pilot were captured and evidence shows they were tortured and executed in dreadful fashion. ( see operation bulbasket ) Hunter Teams An SAS team remained in Europe at the end of the War, They investigated the deaths of their comrades who had been murdered after being captured in action They hunted down specific targets , SS men and Gestapo , Wermacht , and civilian traitors who tried to hide or slip away in the chaos. Memorial Statue Patrick W Anderson wrote in saying... Yesterday in glorious weather we visited DOUNE and having heard about the DAVID STIRLING Memorial statue from a friend my wife and I drove along the DOUNE to BRIDGE OF ALLAN road and just outside DOUNE in Stirlingshire on the B 824 road there is a wonderful statue of DAVID STIRLING dressed in Army Uniform and his Officers coat and he's holding a pair of Binoculars in his hand.

He is looking north and I would expect that would mean that he was looking north to his ancestral lands FORFEITED as his ancestors had their lands seized by the Crown after the 1745 rebellion being Jacobites. Pictures of the Statue Ranald McIntyre kindly took me for a run up to see the statue on 29th July 2003 and here are a few photos we took. Clicking on the pictures will bring up a larger image. And a few more we took when we were there... Scene from the Statue Ranald preparing to take a photo of the statue Doune Castle just 2 minutes drive from the statue Ranald in front of his new cottage at Doune Castle :-) Special Air Service - History Learning Site Special Air Service Citation: C N Trueman "Special Air Service" historylearningsite.co.uk. The History Learning Site, 25 May 2015. 16 Aug 2016. David Stirling founded the Special Air Service in 1941 . The work done by the Special Air Service (SAS) during World War Two was to revolutionise the way wars could be fought and many other special forces were to copy their tactics.

David Stirling had got a taste for unconventional warfare when he volunteered for 8 Commando, which was more commonly known as ‘Layforce’ after its commander, Captain Robert Laycock. The lack of enthusiasm for Special Forces was shown when Layforce reached North Africa for its first taste of action, only to find that it was effectively disbanded before it had been able to prove itself.The philosophy of the SAS was to throw out standard military tactics – in one sense, the regiment had no formal tactics and improvisation was at the heart of their success. Some of the higher echelons of the military were less than enthusiastic about what they called “private armies” and in its early stages, the SAS received little support from on high, especially from those senior officers who had been brought up in the traditional regiments of the British Army. Ironically, Stirling had joined one of these regiments at the start of the war – the Scots Guards. Possibly angered by this treatment of Layforce, and to prove a point, Stirling set about setting up a unit that could fight behind enemy lines with the minimal of support but to devastating effect. Stirling believed that a small group of like-minded, highly trained and dedicated men could cause havoc to the Germans.

He was joined in the venture by an Australian called Jock Lewes, an officer in the Welsh Guards. While in early training, Stirling was injured in a parachute jump. He spent two months in hospital. For this energetic man, it must have been a difficult time as he was by his own standards, inactive. However, Stirling’s hospital stay may well have saved the SAS. Because he could do little physical activity in hospital, Stirling dedicated his time to actual planning – something that he had not done a great deal of before hand. By the end of his hospital stay, Stirling had a very clear idea of what he wanted the regiment to be able to do and the qualities of the men who would fight in it. Using the unorthodox methods that are now associated with the SAS, Stirling did not go through the normal chain of command when putting forward his idea for the new regiment. He managed to get to see the Deputy Commander Middle East, General Ritchie who presented Stirling’s plans to the British commander in North Africa, General Auchinlek. He authorised the use of the SAS almost immediately as he saw that potential it had in an environment like North Africa.

The first unit of the SAS was made up of 66 men from Layforce and it included seven officers. Its official title was L Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade. The title was an effort to confuse the Germans as to the size of the new unit – making it seem larger than it actually was. The very first mission of the SAS was in November, 1941 . The unit was to parachute behind the lines of the German Army in Gazala, North Africa, gather intelligence and harass the Germans where possible. The mission proved to be a failure. Stirling placed too much faith in the capabilities of the men in the unit and gave the go-ahead for them to make a parachute jump in weather than simply did not warrant the risk – high winds and strong rain. Of the 66 men on the mission, only 22 made it back. This was the proof that some needed to prove that ‘private armies’ were a waste and an unnecessary drain on military resources. However, the failure of the mission only spurred on Stirling and Lewes and they learned a great deal from this first outing.

Though the SAS was on a steep learning curve, what was learned from this failed mission, was an apt memorial for those who did not return from it. One of the most obvious lessons Stirling learned was that a parachute drop could be a disaster. Therefore, he turned his attention to his men getting to their objective overland. In this, the SAS joined forces with the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) who were experts in movement behind enemy lines. They would drop off SAS troops at a designated point and then collect them from another set point. Most travelling was at night – though not exclusively. The two units worked very well together, with a devastating impact on the Germans. The major targets for the SAS were German and Italian air bases. Jock Lewes had many qualities, and inventing things was one of them. The Lewes Bomb was a bomb that was small enough to be carried in quantity by an individual but had a big enough explosive charge to destroy a plane. Weighing in at just one pound, the bomb could ignite the fuel in a plane, thus destroying it. The most successful plane ‘buster’ was Paddy Mayne, who destroyed dozens of planes. The Axis powers in North Africa lost many planes as a result of SAS activity.

The actions of the regiment had another impact which is more difficult to quantify. No-one knew where they would attack next and all German forces were on a constant state of alert with the accompanying drain on resources that this entailed. The Germans were literally chasing shadows in the night. The success of the SAS in North Africa provoked Hitler to produce the order ( ‘Kommandodobefehl’ ) that stated that any commandos or special forces men that were captured should be shot and not afforded the protection of the Geneva Convention. The Germans did what they could to stop attacks by the SAS. In response, the regiment changed its approach. They acquired their own transport, which were heavily armed with machine guns and equipped with plenty of supplies. Now they could stay behind enemy lines for days on end and it made it even more difficult for the Germans to predict what they might do next. When working with the LRDG , the SAS would walk to their target after being dropped off by the LRDG. Now, equipped with Jeeps, they drove onto an airbase in complete surprise and created havoc. The ensuing panic meant that the SAS received relatively light casualties themselves.

However, the defeat of the Germans after the Battle of El Alamein , meant that the SAS now had to find a new role for itself after its work in the desert. The regiment turned its attention to Europe. In Western Europe, the SAS was in an entirely different terrain – one it had no experience of fighting in. However, the philosophy of the regiment stayed the same. In Western Europe, they set up bases behind enemy lines, gathered intelligence and, when possible, created havoc before slipping away. In France, four men units frequently worked with the Maquis, the French Resistance. Communication networks (rail lines, bridges etc) became favoured targets and intelligence gathering greatly assisted the D-Day landings in June 1944. Not everything ended in success though. Twenty four SAS men were captured by the Germans. They were tortured before being killed. In the final days of the war, one of the main tasks of the SAS was to hunt the men who committed this atrocity along with SS and Gestapo thugs. Ironically, in the brave new post-war world, there did not seem to be a place for the SAS and it faded away only to be resurrected when its expertise was needed in the Far East against communist insurgents.

David Stirling; Founded Elite British Military Unit - latimes YOU ARE HERE: LAT Home → Collections David Stirling; Founded Elite British Military Unit November 07, 1990 |From Times Staff and Wire Reports LONDON — David Stirling, who founded Britain's elite Special Air Service in World War II, a unit that relied on stealth and skill to kill Germans and, years later, to free hostages, has died, his biographer reported. Stirling was 74 when he died Sunday night in the London Clinic after what Alan Hoe, a former SAS major and Stirling's biographer, described only as a long illness. The SAS, whose motto is "Who Dares Wins," has maintained its reputation for swift, clandestine and effective action. One of its more recent exploits was its assault on the Iranian Embassy in London on May 5, 1980, to end a siege by gunmen holding hostages. Born Archibald David Stirling, the son of a Scottish brigadier general, he joined the Scots Guards at the outbreak of World War II. Six months later he transferred to No. 3 commando group of the Brigade of Guards and went with them to the Middle East.

He persuaded military authorities that "an army within an army" was needed to make swift, secret raids against the enemy. They gave him six officers and 60 enlisted men to try out his theories in the Western Desert. Stirling became known as the "Phantom Major" among the German troops of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps after destroying 250 enemy aircraft and scores of fuel and ammunition dumps in attacks on the enemy rear. His tactics of operating so far behind German lines that his men could virtually walk into their targets--and then "retreating" even farther into enemy territory against all expectations--helped gain him legendary status. In 1943, Stirling was taken prisoner in Tunisia. He escaped, was recaptured and was transferred to Colditz Castle prison camp, where he remained for the rest of the war. Stirling was discharged from the army as a colonel and retained close links with the regiment. He also became head of a series of private armies and security organizations, many in Africa. MORE: SAS - Forum SAS - anyone know how the SAS (Special Air Service) came about, who created it, and when?

May 22nd, 2004 Razor The British SAS is one of the best counter insurgency forces in the world today, however until recently very little was known about the SAS, infact, very few people actually knew there was even such a team!. This is the History of the Special Air Service The concept of the SAS was though of David Sterling, in WWII, 1941, while he was recovering from a parachute accident in hosptal. The idea was to creat a desert raiding force, that worked in teams of 4 or 5 highly trained and motivated soldiers. Stirling received the permission that he required, and took 100 men, most already commondo's, and gave them hard training in endurance and weapons. The newly formed SAS's first mission was in November, 1941, where due to bad weather and other circumstances, only 22 out of 66 soldiers survived. Lessons were learned and adjustments were made to vehicle's and equipment. The second raid took place in December, 1941, with 12 men. This time they were succesfull, and managed to destroy 24 planes, and a fuel depot...

Got that from here: May 22nd, 2004 There you go,my man razor did the talk. May 30th, 2005 When Stirling created his group in 1941, it was called the Long Range Desert Group. It was immortalized on American TV as the Rat Patrol, although in the show, they were Americans rather than Brits, and they were able to blow up German tanks with one or two hits from a .50 calibre machine gun. (artistic license...) In reality, they used their version of the Land Rover, armed them to the teeth, and ranged through the German rear areas attacking targets of opportunity. To say that they were successful is an understatement, and in fact, the modern SAS used exactly the same tactics during the first Gulf war. So the LRDG became the SAS, and slightly later the SBS was also formed. Dean. Quote: Originally Posted by Dean When Stirling created his group in 1941, it was called the Long Range Desert Group.

It was immortalized on American TV as the Rat Patrol, although in the show, they were Americans rather than Brits, and they were able to blow up German tanks with one or two hits from a .50 calibre machine gun. (artistic license...) In reality, they used their version of the Land Rover, armed them to the teeth, and ranged through the German rear areas attacking targets of opportunity. To say that they were successful is an understatement, and in fact, the modern SAS used exactly the same tactics during the first Gulf war. So the LRDG became the SAS, and slightly later the SBS was also formed. Dean. I dont think it is entirely correct to say that the SAS grew out of the LRDG the SAS developed separately to the LRDG and then in 1941 joined forces with the LRDG providing transport for SAS missions. The SAS origins: Quote: World War II The SAS was founded by then Lieutenant David Stirling during World War II. It was originally created to conduct raids and sabotage far behind enemy lines in the desert, and operated in conjunction with the existing Long Range Desert Group.

Stirling (formerly of No.8 Commando) looked for recruits with rugged individualism and initiative and recruited specialists from Layforce and other units. The name "Special Air Service" was already in use as a deception. Their first mission, parachuting behind enemy lines in support of General Sir Claude Auchinleck's attack in November 1941, was a disaster. Only 22 out of 62 troopers reached the rendezvous. Stirling still managed to organise another attack against the German airfields at Aqedabia, Site and Agheila, this time transported by the LRDG. They destroyed 61 enemy aircraft without a single casualty. 1st SAS earned regimental status and Stirling's brother Bill began to organise a second regiment, 2 SAS. During the desert war the SAS performed many successful and daring long range insertion missions and destroyed aircraft and fuel depots. Their success contributed towards Hitler issuing his Kommandobefehl order to execute all captured Commandos. When the Germans stepped up security, the SAS switched to hit-and-run tactics. They used jeeps armed with Vickers K machine guns and used tracer ammunition to ignite fuel and aircraft. They took part in Operation Torch.

David Stirling was captured by the Italians in January 1943 and he spent the rest of the war as a prisoner of war in Colditz Castle. His brother Bill Stirling and 'Paddy' Blair Mayne took command of the SAS. The SAS were used in the invasion of Italy. At the toe of Italy they took the first prisoners of the campaign before heading deeper into Italy. At one point four groups were active deep behind enemy lines laying waste to airfields, attacking convoys and derailing trains. Towards the end of the campaign Italian guerrillas and escaped Russian prisoners were enlisted into an "Allied SAS Battalion" which struck at Kesselring's main lines of communications. In 1945 Major Farran made one of the most effective raids of the war. His force raided the German Fifth Corps headquarters burning the buildings to the ground and killing the General and some of his staff. Prior to the Normandy Invasion, SAS men were inserted into France as 4-man teams to help maquisards of the French Resistance. In a reversal of their by now customary tactics, they often travelled during the day, when Allied fighter bombers drove enemy traffic off the roads and then ambushed enemy troops moving in convoy under the cover of darkness.

In Operation Houndsmith, 144 SAS men parachuted with jeeps and supplies into Dijon, France. During and after D-Day they continued their raids against fuel depots, communications centres and railways. They did suffer casualtiesï¿½at one stage the Germans executed 24 SAS soldiers and a US Army Air Force pilot. At the end of the war, the SAS hunted down SS and Gestapo officers. By that time the SAS had been expanded to five regiments, including two French and one Belgian. David Stirling - History Learning Site David Stirling Citation: C N Trueman "David Stirling" historylearningsite.co.uk. The History Learning Site, 25 May 2015. 16 Aug 2016. David Stirling was the founder of the Special Air Service (SAS) one of the most famous special forces of World War Two . David Stirling was born in Scotland on November 15th, 1915 and he died on November 4th 1990. Both Stirling and the SAS have gone into folklore with regards to what they achieved between 1941 and 1945 .

David Stirling Stirling, the son of a brigadier general, was educated at Ampleforth College. After this, he went to Trinity College, Cambridge University, for a year. However, his heart was set on a life of adventure and activity – not on academic learning. When World War Two broke out in September 1939 , he was training for a climb up the then unconquered Mount Everest. However, when war was declared, Stirling joined the Scots Guards Supplementary Reserve of Officers. One year later he joined ‘Layforce’, the nickname for 8 Commando. Here he was in a military unit that promised to fulfil all that he wanted – action. Stirling and ‘Layforce’ then came up against those who held both high military office and traditional views on how wars should be fought. When ‘Layforce’ arrived in North Africa for its first operational tour, it was all but disbanded. There were those who saw what units such as ‘Layforce’ did as being underhand and not ‘British’. Stirling begged to differ. Despite the despondency over 8 Commando, Stirling was convinced that a highly trained unit could operate behind enemy lines with a devastating impact.

He joined with Jock Lewes, who held similar views, to form the nucleus of what was the become the SAS . While in training, Stirling suffered an injury from a parachuting accident that was to keep him in hospital for two months. It was during this time of enforced rest, that Stirling was able to devote the necessary time to actually planning what the SAS would do. Without such planning, he would not be able to sell the new unit to the British military powers in North Africa . In a traditional military setting, officers had been told that if they had a point to make, they had to go through the proper channels – which could be very time consuming as it meant going to your next superior officer who might then take your idea up to the next one and so on. Stirling went straight to the second most important British officer in North Africa – General Ritchie. Stirling sold his idea to Ritchie who took the idea to his commander – General Auchinlek. By being unorthodox – so important to the way the SAS worked in the North African desert – Stirling got the support of both men.

Stirling gathered around him 66 men from ‘Layforce’ and they, as the new Special Air Service, trained to operate behind enemy lines. The first mission of the SAS was a disaster. Stirling was over-confident about his men’s ability to parachute in adverse weather. They jumped in high winds and driving rain. Some of the men were dropped well away from the drop zone. Only 22 of the 66 men returned to base. Rather than get depressed over lost comrades, Stirling believed that the best honour he could pay to these men was to learn from al the mistakes made in the raid. The most important decision made by Stirling was that any insertion into enemy territory would be best done by going overland – not by parachute drop. It was as a result of this decision that the SAS initially teamed up with the Long Range Desert Group founded by Ralph Bagnold . Eventually the SAS acquired their own Jeeps that they equipped with twin Vickers K machine guns. Stirling used these vehicles to devastating effect on raids on German air bases. Such was the success of the SAS, that Hitler issued his infamous ‘Kommandobefehl’ order – that any Special Forces man captured by the Germans would be summarily shot.

David Stirling’s participation in World War Two ended in 1943 in what can only be described as an anti-climax. Captured by the Germans, he was imprisoned in Colditz Castle where he spent the rest of the war. David Stirling has been called “the most under-decorated soldier of the war”. Nicknamed the “Phantom Major” by those who knew him, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his work in World War Two. He was knighted in 1990 and died in the same year. The Special Air Service (SAS) Originals | Defense Media Network The Special Air Service (SAS) Originals Daring to Win By Gordon Stevens - November 21, 2012 A close-up of a heavily armed patrol of ‘L’ Detachment SAS in their Jeeps, just back from a three month patrol. The crews of the jeeps are all wearing ‘Arab-style’ headdress, as copied from the Long Range Desert Group, Jan. 18, 1943. Imperial War Museum photo Sharing Options: “… I have always felt uneasy in being known as the founder of the [SAS] Regiment.

…” –Sir David Stirling, June 30, 1984 The Time: The night of Nov. 16-17, 1941. The Place: The Western Desert of North Africa in World War II. The Force: 65 picked and trained men. The Mission: Parachute behind German lines and destroy enemy aircraft on airfields, which will threaten an Allied counteroffensive, code-named Operation Crusader , due to launch in just two days. The Facts: It’s their first mission. The unit, the Special Air Service (SAS), is revolutionary and brand new . Their leader, then-Capt. David Stirling, is considered by his own superiors to be a maverick. And to top it all off, the military bureaucracy of Middle East Headquarters (ME HQ) wants them to fail. Before the SAS can take off, a massive storm blows up and the 65 men are given the option of pulling out. They face a difficult dilemma: Cancel the drop and their own high command will kill off the unit before it has run its first mission. Or jump into the storm, and chances are that many of them won’t survive. They decide to go and jump.

In the storm, the men are separated from their gear and explosives, and don’t even reach the targeted enemy airfields. Of the 65, just 21 make it out, across the desert, to the rendezvous (RV) point for the trip back to their base camp. This should be the end of the story. In fact, it’s the beginning of the story of a modern military revolution: The birth of modern special operations forces. And to understand what happens next, it’s necessary to know what has gone before. Because the 21 men who jumped into that storm, and somehow survived to fight on, are the founding members of the British SAS. Within their small, insular community they are today known as “The Originals,” and this is their story. Foundations David Stirling, left, and Jock Lewes rest in the shade cast by a truck of the Long Range Desert Group, planning an operation in the desert behind the lines. Photo courtesy of Special Air Service Regimental Association History records that a young Scots Guards officer, David Stirling, founded the SAS in late 1941. Stirling was born into the Scottish aristocracy (his father was a general) in 1915.

The indications from his early life weren’t promising. Stirling was sent down from Cambridge University for drinking and gambling. He then spent two years in Paris studying art, then trained in the Alps and American Rockies as a mountain climber. His aim – to be first man to climb Mount Everest. When war with Germany broke out in 1939, Stirling joined the Scots Guards. In 1941, he went to the Middle East with “Layforce,” a commando force led by Robert Laycock. By late that year, Rommel’s Afrika Korps had driven the British back to the Egyptian border and were threatening the Suez Canal and Arabian oil fields. And in the eyes of aggressive young men like Stirling, the vast potential of British commando units to disrupt the Afrika Korps was being squandered by their own leaders. In a 1985 interview, Stirling remembered what it was like. “They didn’t want to risk having casualties and therefore unless the weather, or all the other requirements for any operation or undertaking, was absolutely right, they wouldn’t let us go,” he said.

“So we were involved in a series of postponements and cancellations.” Nevertheless, the experience of commando operations was already sowing an idea in Stirling’s head. “It got around thinking regarding how one could carry out the role at a hundredth of the cost,” he said. “In fact, it made it inevitable to come up with a proposition along the lines of SAS.” “Gentleman” Jim Almonds. Photo courtesy of Special Air Service Regimental Association The idea became a hard proposal as a result of a near-fatal parachute-training jump. Stirling’s chute caught on the tail of the aircraft and was torn open before he could cut loose. He landed badly. His legs were temporarily paralyzed and he was hospitalized. Stirling used the time to develop and write a paper on the proposal born from his own commando experience, which he referred to as “Hard Principles.” Others would refine them, but today they are the essence of modern SOF doctrine, what the military now calls unconventional warfare.

As Stirling explained, “One entire commando, 600 men or so, probably couldn’t succeed in tackling more than perhaps two landing grounds on the same night, and more than three-quarters of the force would be taken up with defending those who were actually operating. We preferred for every sub unit of four to five men to tackle a full target area on their own, and if they failed, it was more than compensated by the fact that with 60 men we could attack, theoretically, probably up to 20 targets on the same night.” Stirling’s targets would also be different. His new unit would be small and capable, operating deep behind the lines. Their missions, strategic in nature, would involve attacking key points such as enemy airfields, supply dumps, and ports – what Col. John Warden, (USAF, Ret.) would later refer to as “centers of gravity.” Politically astute, Stirling linked his proposal to create his new unit to an actual Allied plan: Operation Crusader, which would attempt to relieve the besieged port of Tobruk .

His concept was that his new unit, broken into small teams, would parachute behind Axis lines and destroy enemy aircraft on their airfields to keep them from influencing the coming battle. Still in his hospital bed, Stirling even found a name for his revolutionary new unit: The Special Air Service. Stirling recalled, “It came mainly from the fact that I was anxious to get full cooperation of a very ingenious individual called Dudley Clarke.” Clarke, one of the masters of World War II deception, had been conspicuously dropping dummy parachutists, mimicking training exercises, so that word would get back to Rommel that the Allies had a sizable parachute force. The name of his decoy force was the Special Air Service, which Stirling promptly appropriated, probably to confuse enemies on both sides. Sadly, Stirling already had an excess of opponents on the Allied side. Pat Riley. Photo courtesy of Special Air Service Regimental Association “There was an enormous residue of staff officers from the First World War who didn’t fight, who set the spirit of the administration,” he said. “And it was ludicrously swollen, unnecessarily big, and wholly obstructive to anything that would look like a new idea. There was no way you could put it in, except to the commander in chief.

Never at ME HQ. They were layer upon layer of fossilized shit.” Stirling’s answer was to sell his idea directly to Gen. Neil Ritchie, deputy chief of British forces in the Middle East. Still on crutches, he took a cab to ME HQ, jumped the perimeter fence, and amazingly, made it to Ritchie’s office and a meeting with the general. Incredibly, Ritchie agreed to read Stirling’s paper. “About halfway through, he really got quite engrossed in it and had forgotten the rather irregular way it had been presented,” Stirling recalled. “And when he’d finished the paper, he said: ‘This is something we can use, this paper looks [to have] real promise.’ … And that was the beginning of the SAS.” Immediately, Stirling was promoted to captain and authorized to raise a force of 65 officers and men. As might be imagined, the men Stirling recruited were as eclectic and unconventional as him. They included: Paddy Mayne.

Photo courtesy of Special Air Service Regimental Association •Blair “Paddy” Mayne – An Irish and British Lions rugby international star player, he was in prison awaiting a court martial for knocking out his commanding officer when Stirling recruited him. •Pat Riley – An Irish-American, he had to deliberately make his background unclear on his papers to join the British army. •“Gentleman” Jim Almonds – A former policeman, caught poaching while in training. •Johnny Cooper – Too young to join up, Cooper got in by bribing a recruiting sergeant. •Reg Seekings – “Fiddled” his name onto a special duties list for commando training without his commanding officer knowing. •Bob Bennett – A cheeky Cockney, always in trouble while in the Scots Guards for volunteering for hazardous duty assignments. •Dave Kershaw – A hardened socialist who fought against Franco in the Spanish Civil War, he still got on well with the aristocratic Stirling. With his men selected, Stirling set about forming them into a unit of action. This included running a competition to design the unit’s own badge and motto. The badge winner was what is now famous as the winged dagger.

The front-runner for the SAS’s motto was initially, “Descend to Defend.” However, in a nod to his own unconventional persona, Stirling changed it to, “Who Dares Wins.” All this, of course, was unofficial. To make it acceptable to ME HQ, Stirling resorted to an old military custom – if a general saluted the badge, he authorized it. Bob Bennett. Photo courtesy of Special Air Service Regimental Association “And that was done by tracking Gen. Auchinleck [the Middle East commander in chief] when he came down to do an inspection,” Stirling said. “I was standing at one side to him and, at the end of the demonstration that we laid on for him, as he was coming up to the salute, I turned to him and he saluted the badge, so that was it.” But Stirling’s battle with the ME HQ bureaucracy wasn’t over; supplies, training, and equipment were held up and threatened to exclude the SAS from Operation Crusader. Stirling’s reaction was simple. The infant SAS needed a base camp – so it stole one. The unit needed its members to receive parachute training – it organized its own.

They also needed a special bomb to destroy aircraft, which would both ignite and explode, and was small enough that one man could carry up to 20 of the devices. The new unit’s de-facto second-in-command, Jock Lewes, created the solution. He created a 1-pound charge of C2 plastic explosive (Nobel 808), aluminum and thermite, and motor oil, ignited by a 30-second No. 10-time pencil wrapped in gun cotton: The Lewes bomb. The entire package was wrapped in a canvas pouch or ration sack, coated in grease, and then thrown into a cockpit or into a wing/fuselage joint.

Question: Which military force was founded by David Stirling?
Answer: The SAS