Operation Scorpion (World War Two)
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Operation Scorpion was a proposed operation in World War II by Australia's Z Special Unit.
It was to be the first operation by Z Special Unit. Australian soldiers were to infiltrate the Japanese-controlled port at Rabaul in New Britain. The mission led to a practice raid on Townsville Harbour. The actual mission was called off but elements were used in the famous Operation Jaywick.[1]
The plan was devised by Lieutenant Samuel Warren Carey, a Z Special Unit officer based at Z Experimental Station, Cairns, Queensland who had extensive experience of Papua New Guina. In January 1943 he approached General Thomas Blamey proposing a raid on Rabaul.
The raid would work as follows:
- Use one submarine, with a small group of commandos on board.
- The commandos would be dropped 16 kilometres off Rabaul.
- The commandos would then use their Hoehn military folboats (collapsible kayaks, or folding boats) to travel into the harbour and attach limpet mines to as many enemy ships as possible.
- They would then retreat to a volcano section on Vulcan Island roughly 6 kilometres south of Rabaul, where they would hide out until they could safely rendezvous with the submarine.[2]
Blamey authorised the operation, and issued Carey a letter of authority to perform whatever actions he deemed necessary during the planning of the proposed operation.[1] Training began in March 1943 and involved the selection of the team and intense training.[2]