I am looking for the technical details on the failed attempt to guide RAF bombers in 1942 by the SOE Out Distance Group on the Škoda Plzeň Works, which was a Czech armament factory, using a beacon transmitter.
On 28 March 1942 the SOE Out Distance group was parachuted into the Protektorat. It comprised three operators, Lt Opalka, WO Curda and Cpl Kolarik. The group is believed to have brought a clandestine beacon transmitter, which was a forerunner of the Eureka transponder used in conjunction with the Rebecca system installed on an aircraft. The idea was to place the beacon within the Škoda Plzeň Works so that the RAF bombers could find the factory easily by homing in on the signal originating from the beacon.
Unfortunately, Kolarik lost his forged documents upon landing, and the Gestapo started to trace him. In consequence, he committed suicide and the equipment of the group was taken over by the Germans. Later, Curda betrayed the group, which led to the tragic fate of the team that assassinated Reichsprotektor and the RSHA Chief Reinhard Heydrich.
My questions are:
On 28 March 1942 the SOE Out Distance group was parachuted into the Protektorat. It comprised three operators, Lt Opalka, WO Curda and Cpl Kolarik. The group is believed to have brought a clandestine beacon transmitter, which was a forerunner of the Eureka transponder used in conjunction with the Rebecca system installed on an aircraft. The idea was to place the beacon within the Škoda Plzeň Works so that the RAF bombers could find the factory easily by homing in on the signal originating from the beacon.
Unfortunately, Kolarik lost his forged documents upon landing, and the Gestapo started to trace him. In consequence, he committed suicide and the equipment of the group was taken over by the Germans. Later, Curda betrayed the group, which led to the tragic fate of the team that assassinated Reichsprotektor and the RSHA Chief Reinhard Heydrich.
My questions are:
- What kind of beacon was brought by the Out Distance Group? Was is an early Eureka? Or something different?
- What type of bombers equipped with the receivers able to pick up the signals from the above mentioned beacon were supposed to participate in the raid? The Halifax? Or Stirling?
- Was the attack on Škoda Plzeň scheduled for April or May 1942 by the RAF?