Raid – serie

An authoritative analysis of how Putin's Russia conquered the Crimea in 2014 using 'grey zone' warfare techniques, blending operations by anonymous special forces with cyber, sabotage, and propaganda. Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 was almost bloodless – fought as much through propaganda, cyberattacks and subversion as by force of arms – but it is crucial for our understanding of both modern warfare and recent Russian history. Ironically, this slick triumph eventually led to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the largest and costliest conventional war in Europe since 1945.This is a fascinating account of the Crimea conquest from a supremely qualified expert on modern Russian forces. Illustrated throughout, it explores how Russia developed its new model of ‘hybrid’ or ‘grey zone’ warfare, and planned and deployed it against Crimea, from the choreographed appearance of ‘spontaneous’ protesters through to the deployment of unbadged Russian elite forces. In this book Mark Galeotti explores the lessons that Russia, Ukraine, and the West took from it – correctly and mistakenly – and how this apparently textbook operation sowed the seeds that would erupt so catastrophically in 2022.

Following months of negotiations after the seizure of the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979, President Jimmy Carter ordered the newly formed Delta Force to conduct a raid into Iran to free the hostages.The raid, Operation Eagle Claw, was risky to say the least. US forces would have to fly into the deserts of Iran on C-130s; marry up with carrier-based RH-53D helicopters; fly to hide sites near Tehran; approach the Embassy via trucks; seize the Embassy and rescue the hostages; board the helicopters descending on Tehran; fly to an airbase captured by more US forces; and then fly out on C-141s and to freedom. Unfortunately, and unsurprisingly given the complexity of the mission, things went wrong from the start and when the mission was called off at the refueling site at Desert One, the resulting collision between aircraft killed eight US personnel. This title tells the full story of this tragic operation, supported by maps, photographs, and specially-commissioned bird’s-eye-views and battlescenes which reveal the complexity and scale of the proposed rescue and the disaster which followed.

A detailed, illustrated analysis of the British Commandos’ audacious attempt to assassinate Rommel in 1941.In November 1941, a small party of British Commandos landed by submarine in Libya, tasked with the assassination of General Erwin Rommel, commander of the German forces in North Africa, who was believed to be staying in a villa near the coast. Three men – Lt-Col Geoffrey Keyes, Capt Robin Campbell and Sgt Jack Terry – stormed the villa, but the German general was nowhere to be found. In the confused fighting Keyes was killed and Campbell wounded; only two raiders would escape, one of whom was Terry. The raid made headlines round the free world, and Keyes was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. Yet in truth the raid had been a glorious failure, a mission bedevilled by bad planning and poor intelligence. Even so, crucial lessons were learned, particularly by the Special Air Service – who carried out their first mission on the same night as the raid on Rommel’s HQ.

On August 17–18, 1942, 211 men of the US Marine Corps’ 2nd Raider Battalion conducted a daring amphibious raid on the Japanese-occupied Makin Island in the South Pacific.This ambitious but flawed operation was intended to divert Japanese reinforcements bound for Guadalcanal, over 1,000 miles to the southwest, in the wake of the US landings there ten days earlier; the Raiders were to destroy the seaplane base and radio station, take prisoners, and collect intelligence. Although yielding limited results, it was to be an invaluable test of the innovative training and tactics employed by the Raiders, and a crucial boost to national morale at this difficult stage in the war.Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork and expert analysis, this gripping account of the fateful Makin Raid tells the whole story, from the plan’s conception to its troubled execution and aftermath.

The year 1755 saw the rivalry between Britain and France in North America escalate into open warfare as both sides sought to overcome the other’s forts and trading posts.Lord Loudoun and the Marquis de Montcalm were sent out to lead their forces and Montcalm was soon tasked with capturing the formidable Anglo-American post at Oswego. As a result of daring use of “wilderness” tactics and siege-warfare techniques, Montcalm’s 3,000-strong force surrounded the forts at Oswego and soon forced the defenders to surrender – an outstanding French success.Featuring specially commissioned full colour artwork, expert analysis, and lively narrative, this engaging study casts light on a daring feat of arms at the height of the French and Indian War.

On May 2, 2011 a ten-year manhunt drew to a deadly end as the men of the US Naval Special Warfare Development Group (a.k.a. SEAL Team Six) closed in on their prey, Osama Bin Laden, the mastermind of the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001.Flown from Afghanistan by Army Special Operations Command’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) and evading detection by the Pakistani military, two US helicopters flew towards the compound where they believed Bin Laden to be. Forty minutes later one helicopter had crashed and five people were dead, including the al-Qaeda leader.In this book the story of the raid is told, from start to finish, using specially commissioned full-colour artwork, photographs, and maps. The operation, codenamed Neptune Spear, is expertly analyzed and the events are told in a concise and clear account of its build-up, execution, and aftermath, demonstrating the skill and courage of the men who carried it out.

Specially commissioned artwork, archive photographs and expert analysis combine to tell the absorbing story of the SAS’s legendary raid on Sidi Haneish at the height of World War II.The night of July 26, 1942 saw one of the most audacious raids of World War II, just as the outcome of that conflict hung in the balance. In North Africa, a convoy of 18 Allied jeeps carrying Special Air Service personnel appeared out of the early-morning darkness and drove onto the Axis landing strip at Sidi Haneish in the Egyptian desert. Within the space of a few savage minutes 18 Axis aircraft were ablaze; a dozen more were damaged and scores of guards lay dead or wounded. The men responsible for the raid then vanished into the night as swiftly as they had arrived, prompting the Germans to dub the enemy leader, David Stirling, 'The Phantom Major'. Featuring full-colour artwork, gripping narrative and incisive analysis, this engaging study recounts the origins, planning, execution and aftermath of the daring raid that made the name of the SAS at the height of World War II.

In December 1943 Monte La Difensa was part of the formidable German defences overlooking the Allies’ planned route to Rome via Monte Cassino.In the First Special Service Force’s first combat in the Mediterranean theater, the Force would employ its special training in mountain and winter warfare to scale the peak, capture it, and then hold it against the inevitable German counterattacks. Astonishing their superiors, the First Special Service Force succeeded in the face of seemingly impossible odds, but suffered a 77 percent casualty rate. Their victory, founded on their aggressive doctrine and extensive training in a variety of combat techniques, would prove instrumental in the postwar development of special forces.Employing full-colour artwork, archive photographs, and first-hand accounts from participants, the author examines the origins, execution, and aftermath of the FSSF’s spectacular success at Monte La Difensa amid the savage winter conditions of December 1943.

At the outset of World War II, Scapa Flow was supposed to be the safe home base of the British Navy – nothing could penetrate the defences of this bastion.So how, in the dead of night, was Gunther Prien's U-47 able to slip through the line of protective warships to sink the mighty Royal Oak? This book provides the answer with an account of one of the most daring naval raids in history. Drawing on up-to-date underwater archaeological research, this study explains how Prien and his crew navigated the North Sea and Kirk Sound to land a devastating blow to the British.It reveals the level of disrepair that Scapa Flow had fallen into, and delves into the conspiracy theories surrounding the event, including an alleged cover-up by the then First Sea Lord, Winston Churchill.

In May 1941, the Norwegian Section of SOE received a dossier warning of the dangers of a hydroelectric fertiliser plant in Norway.Vemork produced heavy water, an essential part of making plutonium for nuclear weapons. When the Germans overran Norway the entire stock had been smuggled out of the country, but the plant was intact and soon producing heavy water again, destined for the German nuclear programme.Despite the difficulties of getting to and operating in such a remote, hostile area, SOE decided it had to destroy the plant. Six ski-borne commandos had the task of slipping past 300 heavily armed guards and passing through a ravine the Germans thought impassable.Fully illustrated with stunning, specially-commissioned artwork, this is the thrilling story of the daring Norwegian-led SOE raid that prevented Hitler from building an atomic bomb.

In September 1943, under the cover of darkness, six British 'midget' submarines crept into the heart of enemy territory, penetrating a heavily guarded Norwegian fjord in an attempt to eliminate the threat of the powerful German battleship, the Tirpitz.Numerous previous attempts to attack the ship from both air and sea had failed, and this mission was carefully strategized, and undertaken by skilled operatives who had undergone extensive training in an isolated sea loch. Though five of the six X-Craft submarines were either lost or captured, two crews had just enough time to lay their explosive charges, which detonated after they were forced to the surface, putting the Tirpitz out of action for a crucial six-month period. Masterminded from a top-secret naval headquarters on the east coast of Scotland, Operation Source has been memorialised as one of the most daring naval raids of World War II.This up-to-date study tells the complete story of this epic operation in unparalleled detail, supported by full-colour illustrations and contemporary photography.

He masterminded the most devastating surprise attack against the United States in its history. He was a marked man in the war that followed.A key intelligence breakthrough enabled the military to pinpoint his location. An elite team was assembled and charged not with his capture and subsequent trial but with his execution. Osama bin Laden? No – this was Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Combined Fleet during World War II. This detailed study analyses the origins, implementation, and outcomes of Operation Vengeance, the long-range fighter interception of Admiral Yamamoto’s transport aircraft that sent him to his death on 18th April, 1943. Author Si Sheppard examines every angle of the operation in detail, including the role of intelligence work in pinpointing the time and location of Yamamoto’s flight, the chain of command at the highest level of the US political and military establishment who ordered the attack, and the technical limitations that had to be overcome in planning and conducting the raid.It also provides a close study of the aerial combat involved in completing the mission, offering a holistic exploration of the operation which avenged Pearl Harbor.

Storm-333, the operation to seize Kabul and assassinate Afghan leader Hafizullah Amin, was at once a textbook success and the start of a terrible blunder.It heralded the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, an operation intended to be a short, largely symbolic show of force, yet which quickly devolved into a gritty ten-year counter-insurgency that Moscow was never able to win. Nonetheless, Storm-333 was a striking success, and despite initial concerns that it would be an impossible achievement, it saw a relative handful of Soviet special forces drawn from the KGB and the military seize the heavily defended presidential palace, neutralise the city’s communications and defences, and open Kabul to occupation. The lessons learned then are still valid today, and have been incorporated into modern Russian military practice, visible most recently in the seizure of Crimea in 2014.Written by a recognised expert on the Soviet security forces, drawing extensively on Russian sources, and fully illustrated with commissioned artwork, this is the most detailed and compelling study of this fascinating operation available in English.

The Vikings’ siege of Paris in 885–86 was a turning point in the history of both Paris and France.In 885, a year after Charles the Fat was crowned King of the Franks, Danish Vikings sailed up the Seine demanding tribute. The Franks’ refusal prompted the Vikings to lay siege to Paris, which was initially defended by only 200 men under Odo, Count of Paris, and seemingly in a poor state to defend against the Viking warriors in their fleet of hundreds of longships. The Vikings attempted to break the Parisian defenders, but the city itself still held out.When Charles’ army arrived to lift the siege, Charles then allowed the Vikings to sail upstream against the revolting Burgundians. Outraged at this betrayal, when Charles died in 888, the people of the of the Île de France elected Odo as their king. The resistance of Paris therefore marked the end of the Carolingian line and the birth of a new kingdom.This fully illustrated volume, accompanied with maps and strategic diagrams tells the full story of the Vikings' expedition to conquer medieval Paris, highlighting a key moment in the history of France and its foundation as a nation.

A fascinating and detailed analysis of the Kriegsmarine’s Atlantic raids in the early war, ideal for readers interested in Germany’s World War II naval operations.At the outbreak of World War II the German Kriegsmarine still had a relatively small U-boat arm. To reach Britain's convoy routes in the North Atlantic, these boats had to pass around the top of the British Isles - a long and dangerous voyage to their "hunting grounds". Then, the fall of France, Denmark and Norway in early 1940 dramatically altered the strategic situation. The Atlantic was now far easier to reach, and to escape from.Featuring coverage of the armoured cruiser Deutschland, battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau and cruisers Admiral Scheer and Admiral Hipper, this book by acclaimed naval expert Angus Konstam examines the efficacy and risk of German naval operations in the Atlantic, from Operation Berlin to the Bismarck.

U-505 was the first enemy warship the US Navy captured at sea since 1812. This is a new account of how Captain Gallery planned and executed the raid on his own initiative, and how his success almost endangered the war against the U-boats.On June 4, 1944 a US Navy antisubmarine task group in the Atlantic captured an enemy U-boat on the high seas. It was not the first time the Allies had taken a German U-boat as a prize, but the capture of U-505 was different. Captain Gallery and his Task Group 22.3 devised a risky plan to capture scuttled U-boats.This book analyses in detail Gallery’s dangerous strategy, using contemporary sources to explore why he thought the reward was worth the risk: instead of attempting to sink the next U-boat that surfaced among them, a destroyer escort would send off its whaleboat. Everyone else was to smother the U-boat with light gunfire to encourage its crew to abandon quickly.Unaware that the Allies had already cracked the German’s codes and the capture of a U-boat could endanger that secret, Gallery hoped to capture the vessel’s codes and coding equipment to read U-boat message traffic. The plan culminated in the capture of U-505 in early June, which nearly caused the exposure of the Bletchley Park codebreaking secret.Featuring contemporary photographs, specially commissioned artwork and 3D maps, this book is a fascinating exploration of one of the most controversial and dangerous raids, which could have changed the outcome of World War II as we know it.

The spectacular story of the prison break staged by an elite group of Allied pilots, who flew a daring low-level mission to blow holes in the walls of Amiens jail and free French Resistance prisoners.With D-Day looming, early 1944 was a time of massive intelligence activity across northern France, and many résistants were being captured and imprisoned by the Germans. Among the jails full of French agents was Amiens, where hundreds awaited likely execution for their activities.To repay their debt of honour, MI6 requested an air raid with a seemingly impossible brief: to simultaneously blow holes in the prison walls, free as many men and women as possible while minimizing casualties, and kill German guards in their quarters. The crews would have to fly their bomb-run at an altitude of just 20ft. Despite the huge difficulties, the RAF decided that the low-level specialists of No. 140 Wing had a chance of success.With the aid of first-hand accounts, explanatory 3D diagrams and dramatic original artwork, the eminent historian Robert Lyman explains how one of the most difficult and spectacular air raids of World War II was pulled off, and debunks some of the myths over why the raid was ordered in the first place.

A superbly illustrated account of one of the key milestones in the development of modern US Special Operations Forces, the hugely complex POW rescue at Son Tay. On November 21, 1970, a meticulously prepared force of US Special Forces in HH-53 helicopters, supported by more than a hundred combat aircraft, raided the POW camp at Son Tay, North Vietnam, just 23 miles west of Hanoi, seeking 61 American prisoners. Having trained for months in secret, and utilizing the best troops and air crews possible, the raiders executed the mission flawlessly. No Americans were killed and only two aircraft were downed, with the raiders killing several dozen North Vietnamese. It was the epitome of joint commando operations and regarded as an unheralded success. Except, the prisoners were missing. The raiders had come up empty handed. Illustrated with original artwork and maps, and drawing on both declassified documents and new interviews with participants, in this book diplomat and historian Justin Williamson explains the significance of this highly complex commando mission, deep inside enemy territory. A joint Army-Air Force assault, with the Navy flying diversionary missions, the Son Tay raid was the first operation to be conducted under the direct command of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and ranks among the most important moments in the development of modern US Special Operations Forces.

Dramatically illustrated, this is an expert account of America’s biggest surface battle since World War II, when the US Navy took on Iran’s navy and air force in open combat. Operation Praying Mantis was the culmination of the 1980s Tanker Wars in the Persian Gulf between the US and Iran. This one-day naval battle was a rare full-scale clash between modern warships, and the only occasion since World War II in which the US Navy sank a major surface combatant.In this book, Professor Si Sheppard draws upon his academic research to provide a thorough briefing on the background to the battle. For more than a year, Operation Earnest Will had protected Kuwaiti oil tankers from Iranian missile and mine attacks in the largest naval convoy operation since World War II, while helicopters of the 160th SOAR and SEAL fast boats fought a cat-and-mouse campaign against Iran’s minelayers in Operation Prime Chance. However, when the USS Samuel B. Roberts was nearly sunk by an Iranian mine, the US Navy planned an open offensive against Iran’s military installations. With dramatic new artwork, maps, and photos, this book offers a blow-by-blow account of how Praying Mantis unfolded, how Iran responded with its surface fleet, Boghammar speedboats, airpower and Silkworm missiles, and how in the ensuing battle the US Navy prevailed, sinking one frigate, crippling another, and decimating Iran’s naval forces in the Persian Gulf.

The first authoritative, illustrated account of Russia’s high-risk strike on Ukraine’s capital, the centerpiece of its failed 2022 invasion plan.In 2022, Vladimir Putin was convinced he could seize Kyiv, install a puppet government, and close his fist on Ukraine in a matter of weeks, with minimal fighting. In this book, Dr Mark Galeotti, a world expert on Russian military history, explains how Russia’s lightning conquest was conceived and planned, and how it was defeated.He explains how Russia’s commanders did not expect to go to war and were forced to invade under-prepared, and how they nonetheless made a concerted attempt to seize Hostomel Airport and from there take the capital, with mercenaries detailed to hunt down the government. But Ukrainian military and civilian resistance thwarted the attack and within a month, the Russians were already on the retreat, leaving behind the smoking remains of the 40-mile invasion column outside Kyiv.Drawing extensively on Russian and Ukrainian sources including interviews with soldiers involved in the operation, and fully illustrated with photographs, original artwork and maps, this is the most detailed and compelling study of this operation available in English. It is the story of a strike whose defeat signalled both the shattering of Putin’s expectations of an easy victory, and the start of the reorientation of the war towards the south-east.

Fully illustrated, this is the first study of how the Brandenburgers – Germany’s covert special forces – seized the bridges that led into France in 1940, in their biggest campaign to date.Formed from elements of various unorthodox units and militia groups that took part in the invasion of Poland, by mid-1940 the Brandenburgers were established as the Wehrmacht’s specialists in operating behind enemy lines. With several separate battle groups set tasks that could determine the success of the whole campaign, the invasions of France, Belgium, and the Netherlands would be the Brandenburgers' debut as a key part of the German war machine.The bold strategy of Fall Gelb and Fall Rot depended on seizing major river bridges in Belgium and the southern Netherlands, without which the Germans’ rapid advance would stall. Researcher and historian Lawrence Paterson examines the overlooked story of how the Brandenburgers were organized and tasked to seize dozens of these bridges and other key targets, relying both on deception and fighting skills. It was a role which proved their worth in major operations and prompted their expansion afterwards into a full regiment.Illustrated with archive photos and specially commissioned artwork and maps, this book examines and assesses the course of every assault – not all of which were successful, and which often turned into savage battles – as the Brandenburgers fought to open the road to France.

The Gunfight at the OK Corral on 26 October 1881 is one of the most enduring stories of the Old West.It led to a series of violent incidents that culminated in the Vendetta Ride, in which Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and several other gunslingers went after their rivals the Cowboys. Like most tales of the Wild West, the facts are buried under layers of myth, and the line between good guys and bad guys is blurry. This is the story of Wyatt Earp, leader of the so-called “good guys”, who was charged with stealing horses in the Indian Territory in 1870 and jumped bail. Becoming a buffalo hunter and gambler, he got into several scrapes and earned a reputation as a gunfighter.Alongside illustrations, this book explores these scrapes and gives a clear overview of the subject, ideal for fans of the "Wild West".

In April 1713 the War of the Spanish Succession came to an end.During the conflict hundreds of privateers – licenced pirates – preyed on enemy shipping throughout the Caribbean. These privateers now found themselves out of a job, and many turned to piracy. One of theme was Edward Teach – more popularly known as “Blackbeard”. He joined the pirates in New Providence (now Nassau) in the Bahamas, and by early 1717 he had become a pirate captain. From then on he caused havoc off the North American seaboard, in the West Indies and off Honduras, before appearing off Charleston, South Carolina in May 1718.This step-by-step account explores Blackbeard's week-long blockade of this major port, an act that made him the most notorious pirate of his day.

On March 4, 2002, a team of SEALs was choppered onto a hostile Afghan mountain peak as part of Operation Anaconda.The largest operation by US forces since Vietnam, it was intended to bring to battle foreign al-Qaeda fighters who had fled after the overthrow of the Taliban and the battle of Tora Bora. But when their special ops Chinook was hit by RPGs, it marked the beginning of the SEALs’ epic day-long battle for survival, which involved Coalition special forces, gunships and Predators in a 17-hour firefight against the al-Qaeda guerrillas.This is an in-depth study of the battle of Takur Ghar, one of the SEALs’ and Rangers’ most dramatic operations in Afghanistan.

An in-depth analysis of Operation Valkyrie – the plot to kill Hitler.Although far from a typical raid, the 20 July Plot – Operation Valkyrie – was still a daring and audacious attack undertaken by a small, very brave, group of determined individuals.Hitler was badly shaken by the blast and, despite the fact that numerous other attempts had been made on the Führer’s life since he came to power, the July 20 Plot has achieved an almost mythic status.Fully illustrated, this is the real story of the July 20 Plot that inspired Tom Cruise's Valkyrie.

In early May 1940, the fortress of Eben Emael was a potent sentinel over the Belgian–Dutch borderlands.The fortress covered 75 hectares on the surface, had 5km of tunnels underground and was studded with bunkers, gun turrets and casemates. Add a garrison of 1,200 men and the natural protection of 60m-high canal walls, and Eben Emael gave the impression of near-impregnability. Yet on 10 May just 78 elite airborne soldiers managed to defeat this fortress in an operation of unprecedented tactical skill. Deployed by glider onto the very top of the fortifications, they utilized elite training, fast movement and specialist explosives to destroy many of the gun positions and trap much of the garrison within the fortress. Simultaneously, three other assault detachments conducted high-risk glider operations to capture critical bridges over the Albert Canal.By the end of 11 May, following the arrival of German infantry reinforcements, Eben Emael was in German hands. This Eben Emael RAID title tells the complete, fascinating story of this unique action.

In the summer of 1942, following the invasion of Russia the previous year, Hitler’s ‘Brandenburger’ commando units undertook a daring operation deep inside Soviet-held territory.Disguised as members of Stalin’s NKVD, the secret police dreaded by most Soviet citizens and soldiers, the Brandenburgers passed unsuspected past the Red Army’s checkpoints, before launching their surprise operation to seize the vital Soviet oil facilities around Maikop – delivering them intact into Nazi hands.Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork, this expert assessment of the Maikop operation casts new light on German special-forces operations on the Eastern Front.

The American Revolution was deadlocked in the north, and in 1778, the focus of the conflict shifted south. Following his decisive 1780 victory at Charleston, Cornwallis launched a campaign through the Carolinas that was designed to expel American Continental and militia forces from the south. The subsequent patriot victory at King’s Mountain forced Cornwallis to withdraw into South Carolina in what was one of the turning points in the Revolutionary War. To the southeast, Francis Marion enacted a series of successful hit-and-run operations. Cornwallis responded to this string of raids by assigning Banastre Tarleton to capture or kill the rebel guerrilla commander. What followed was an unsuccessful pursuit of the elusive Marion, in which Tarleton practiced a scorched-earth policy that ultimately disillusioned Loyalist sympathizers and hurt the British cause in the Carolinas.This book highlights the unique style of southern frontier warfare during the Revolutionary War, and how its combatants were supplied, organized, and operated. The series of actions between August and November 1780 illustrate Marion’s unconventional efforts to hinder their enemy’s war effort in the south- earning him his Swamp Fox moniker- and Tarleton’s equally irregular efforts to counter it.

In the early hours of D-Day, 1944, a group from the US Army 2nd Rangers Battalion were sent on one of the legendary raids of World War II.The mission was to scale the cliffs overlooking Omaha beach and assault the German coastal artillery at Pointe-du-Hoc. It was thought that only a raid could ensure that the guns would remain silent during the D-Day landings. But allied intelligence was wrong.After climbing the cliffs under aggressive German fire and securing the battery site, the Rangers discovered that the guns themselves were no longer there. It was only due to the heroic actions of the Rangers involved that the guns were located in firing positions facing Utah beach and destroyed before they could be used.In the first of Osprey's thrilling Raid series, this act of audacious daring is brought to life, complete with illustrated artwork, maps and rare German accounts. Taking a more critical look at the story, Steven Zaloga analyses every detail, from the intelligence failings to the boldness of the Rangers' in the face of such odds.