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• The Suez Canal Raid

• Landing in Port Said

Landing in Port Said

The Joint Experimental Helicopter Unit (JEHU) and 845 Naval Air Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm supported 45 Commando on their airlift.

They had a total of 14 Whirlwind Mark II and six Sycamore Mark XIV helicopters for the lift. Only limited practices could take place however, due to security concerns.

40 and 42 Commando sailed on the 28 October in headquarters ship HMS Meon, eight Landing Ship Tanks (LST) and nine Landing Craft Tanks (LCT).

45 Commando were left behind to set sail on the 2 November in the faster carriers. While aboard the light fleet carriers HMS Ocean and HMS Theseus the troops performed embarkation drills so that they could move through the ships and onto the helicopters as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

LST at Suez. Photograph of Tank Landing Ship at Suez November 1956. (RNM)

At first light on 6 November 40 and 42 Commando stormed the beaches using World War Two LCMs (Landing Craft Mechanised) and secured the beachhead in preparation for the landings.

The helicopters made their sorties from HMS Ocean and HMS Theseus and approached the landing zone (LZ) in waves. They were overloaded with men and equipment, many sitting on ammunition and stores and dangling their legs outside the craft while travelling towards their destination.

The helicopters would circle the LZ in a group before breaking off to quickly land their troops in an effort to deflect the barrage of sniper fire hailed at them.

The helicopters landed a total of 425 men and 23 tons of stores and ammunition in 89 minutes.

After all the Commando units had landed, each had their own route through the city searching buildings for Egyptian and securing the areas. Above is a photograph with annotations showing the routes taken by each unit after landing.

Aerial picture of Port Said highlighting the routes that the Commandos took in the Suez raid once landed. (RMM)

Following intense international pressure on the British government military leaders pulled the Commandos out a week later with all the British troops leaving Egypt by the 22 December 1956.

Although from a military point of view the raid was a success, from a political standpoint, the raid was a disaster and damaged British ties with the US, the UN and France, who were not consulted on the British decision to pull out of the area.

Photograph showing X Troop 45 Commando patrolling as they advance through Port Said. X Troop guarded the rear of the advance into the centre of Port Said. You can see the destruction of their patrol area that has taken place already. (RMM)