RAF - SOE in France 1940-45 Information Please

December 8, 2003

No 9 I need your help AGAIN!

Could you please explain what "Nickel Sorties" were?
I understand they dropped leaflets, but what was written in the leaflets?

I just KNOW you will have the answer!!

Cheers
Shirley

 

Er - I hope I'm not intruding here ! ( )

'Nickelling' was the dropping of propaganda leaflets over Germany and Occupied Europe and was carried out throughout the duration of the war. You can see two such leaflets at ; -

http://www.revolver66.freeserve.co.uk/pic_leaflet_1.jpg

http://www.revolver66.freeserve.co.uk/pic_leaflet_3.jpg

This task was often given to crews in training to give them experience of flying over enemy-held territory. For other crews, especially in Bomber Command, the duty was much derided.

The comments of Sir Arthur Harris himself, in his memoir 'Bomber Offensive' , perhaps sum this up ; -

'My personal view is that the only thing achieved was largely to supply the Continent's requirements of toilet paper for the five long years of war' ( 1947 edn., p.36 )
'I was entirely uninterested in the whole thing ; I have consistently regarded such methods of warfare as wholly ridiculous and a complete waste of time' ( ibid, p.116 ).

 

There you are Shirley. More than I could have told you and you didn't even see my lips move!

No.9

 

December 8, 2003

Hi Martin:
Thank you so much for your speedy and interesting reply. Now I know.

And, thank you No 9, also.

Cheers
Shirley

 

Something I found on Nancy Wake...

http://www.rsa.org.nz/review/art2006december/article_3.htm

 

What a facrinating & usefull discussion thread. I cant offer a website, but 'Between Silk & Cyanide' by Marks was a interesting read on SOE. Marks was a cryptanalyst trained for Bletchly Park(Ultra & all that), but instead sent to SOE to assist in training agents in encoding messages and to "break" messages they had botched the encryption of (a very common problem). Although I have no idea of the veracity of Marks account his memorys of the various agents and leaders of SOE looks to be a very usefull look at SOE from the inside to supplement other sources.