North Africa, Sicily & Italy
On the morning of November 29, 530 paratroopers took off in
44 transport planes bound for Oudna, Tunisia. With no time for
reconnaissance, Frost had to select a landing zone from the air. He
found a clear patch near the abandoned Oudna aireld, which the
battalion secured after landing, though seven paratroopers were
wounded, one fatally. A platoon remained to guard the wounded
while the rest set out toward Oudna at midnight. With only a few
mule carts for transport, the battalion resembled, in one soldier’s
words, “a f***ing travelling circus rather than a parachute battalion.”
By late morning on November 30, the battalion reached a vantage point
over the aireld—only to nd it deserted. German tanks, ghter planes,
and Stuka dive-bombers soon counter-attacked, but the paratroopers
held their ground. At dusk, Frost withdrew to a more defensible position,
awaiting British First Army units. Dawn on December 1 brought
news that the Allied advance toward Tunis had been postponed.
A German armoured column soon appeared. Frost attempted an
ambush, but it was triggered prematurely when enemy forces surprised
a group lling water bottles, inicting only one casualty. Despite being
understrength and low on ammunition, the battalion drove off the column
with mortar re. The brief respite ended when tanks and armoured
cars, ying British signals, approached from another direction. Frost’s
reconnaissance revealed they were Germans in captured vehicles.
When demanded to surrender, he refused, destroyed their radios and
mortars, and began a westward withdrawal toward Allied lines, some
fty miles away.
Frost’s men took up higher ground on a ridge, only to face repeated
attacks from German armour and infantry with heavy mortars. Their
salvation came when German aircraft mistakenly struck their own
forces, destroying tanks and inicting heavy casualties. With roughly
150 casualties, Frost ordered another westward retreat, leaving the
wounded behind under a small guard. Each company attempted to
reach the village of Massicault, though many stragglers were captured
during the night.