The Special Allied Airborne Reconaissance Force (SAARF) was the final multi-national special forces unit to be set up in WWII and perhaps one of the shortest lived. From 1943 onwards the Allies were concerned with what would happen to POWs should Germany be defeated adn it was decided to set POW Contact teams that would be able to parachute into the vicinity of POW camps to observe, report or intercede. To this end SAARF was set up at Wentworth Golf course in March 1945 and the training was carried out by SOE/OSS, (Wentworth had earlier been used as the HQ of 21AG). The new unit was commanded by Brigadier A J Nicholls with Col J E Raymond US Army as his 2IC. Recruits came from British, American, Belgian, French, and Polish Sources. Many of the British came from SOE, the Americans from the OSS and Airborne Divisions, the Poles from the Polish Airborne and Independent Grenadier Coy as well as people who had been trained for Bardsea Missions. The unit was perhaps unique in including female members - again many of them trained SOE/OSS agents. Several Jedburghs were also involved in SAARF. Like the Jeds the basic team was made up of three people, a team leader, team 2ic and a WTO. Parachute training was cattied out at STS 51 with the jumps taking place at Tatton Park and Ringway. Further jumps were done with 38Gp RAF. With the fast Allied advances into Germany it was decided to have 60 teams in an airborne roll and 40 in an air-transportable roll equiped with jeeps and trailers. In effect the jeep equipped teams were those more ofen deployed. The only SAARF airborne mission was to the POW Complex at Altengrabow, codenamed VIOLET six teams were dropped close to Stalag XIA and its satellite camps. The teams included Jedburgh Paul Aussaresses. Phillip Worrell an SOE veteren was the leader of Team ERASER and a French manned team BRIEFCASE under the command of Pierre Cambon, Team PENIB (British) under Major Forshall and Team CASHBOX (US) under Captain J Brown dropped at DZ2, The third DZ had Aussaresses team SEALINGWAX and US team PENCIL led by Capt Warfield of the US Airborne. The teams were carried in three planes of 38 Group which took off from Great Dunmow - Operation VIOLET was I believe the last airborne operation in Europe taking place on the 25 April 1945. Worrall's Team ERASER were captured as were elements of some of the other teams, however Worrall persuaded the German Camp Commandant Oberst Ochemal to co-operate and set up a link to SAARF in UK - on 3rd May an Allied convoy arrived with food and medical teams plus a contingent of reporters. When the Russians arrived in the area on 4th May they vetoed the move west of Polish and Italian POWs and gave the SAARF team 2 hours to prepare to move to the American lines. The French SEALINGWAX Team was captured by the Russians and interrogated and sent to a Russian POW camp from where the team escaped in June. The remainder of SAARFs operations were jeep mounted, and assisted MILGOV in screening prisoners and setting up radio links. SAARF was disbanded on 1 July 1945 having seen the close of WWII in Europe and experienced the start of the cold war in its dealings with the Russians. In addition to their own nations airborne insigna SAARF wore a shoulder title and an arm Flash.
Jedburgh Do you have details of any War Diary references at TNA(PRO) and who did the unit report to/come under in the Order of Battle? Also do you have a full list of the personnel? Regards Andy
SAARF reported directly SHAEF, I have a partial list of personnel, the codename for SAARF was Vicarage HS 6/706 SOE Paris mission; DGER and its liaison with SOE, MI5, MI6, OSS SHAEF; weekly minutes of DGER meetings; JUDEX missions; Devon Committee; Booster project; NORVIC mission; VICARAGE; Jedburgh mission ROSE 1945 HS 6/707 SOE Paris mission; DGER and its liaison with SOE, MI5, MI6, OSS SHAEF; weekly minutes of DGER meetings; JUDEX missions; Devon Committee; Booster project; NORVIC mission; VICARAGE; Jedburgh mission ROSE 1945 HS 6/709 Joint DLSSL/SOE intelligence and planning section (Détachement de liaison des Services spéciaux á Londres); plans to send French agents to Germany; operations MOLESEY and VICARAGE; communications; BBC messages and pigeon operations; methods of sabotage 1944-1945 HS 7/20 Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force: VICARAGE 1945 HS 7/21 Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force: VICARAGE 1945 WO 219/5202 Vicarage Force
Do you have any information on SAARF member JOHN R H THOURON who is seen wearing a kilt in the stand down photograph. Is there a P/F file for him?
