Operation Caravan
| Operation Caravan | |||||||
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| Part of Operation Agreement, during the Second World War | |||||||
 Tutira III of T1 Patrol was driven by Captain Nick Wilder during the attack on Barce's airfield. |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 New Zealand United Kingdom
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 Italy
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| Strength | |||||||
| 47 | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Wounded: 8 Captured: 10 Missing: 2 Senussi of the Libyan Arab Force fate unknown. Vehicles destroyed: - 10 x 30cwt Chevrolets - 4 x Willys Jeeps |
Killed: 4 Wounded:15 Captured: 1 Aircraft destroyed: 16 Aircraft damaged: 7 Also Destroyed/damaged: Motorised Transport, military equipment, buildings (described in text). |
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Operation Caravan was a subsidiary of Operation Agreement under which four simultaneous raids were carried out against important Axis Lines of Communication positions in September 1942.
The operations were against Tobruk (Agreement), Benghazi (Bigamy), Jalo oasis (Nicety) and Barce (Caravan).Caravan was the only successful operation of the group.
As well as aiding in some of the operations, the Long Range Desert Group was to carry out the attack on the Italians at Barce, particularly the airfield there. To reach Barce, the force travelled 1,155 miles (1,859 km). One part of the force attacked the airfield claiming 35 aircraft destroyed, the other attacked the barracks.
In early September 1942 B Squadron which consisted of two LRDG half-patrols under the command of Major John Richard Easonsmith, left their Egyptian base at Faiyum with orders to "Cause the maximum amount of damage and disturbance to the enemy". The destination was Barce, approximately 80 km north-east of Benghazi on the main coast road. This was a major administrative centre of the Italian colonial government of Libya and there was a large airfield on the north-eastern side of the town, which was to be the main target of the operation. G1 patrol, commanded by Captain J. A. L. Timpson, and T1 patrol, led by Captain N. P. Wilder, between them had a total of 47 men in 12 Chevrolet 1533X2 trucks and five jeeps.
They were accompanied by Major Vladimir Peniakoff and his "spies", two Senussi tribesmen who belonged to the Libyan Arab Force. Arrangements had been made for the Senussi to gather information about enemy dispositions from friends living near Barce and report back to Peniakoff an hour or two before the raid.
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