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	Western Desert Campaign - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		During the course of this battle, the Western Desert Force was renamed as XIII Corps.
		In spite of several tactical defeats, the Afrika Korps was forced to retreat and all the territory gained by Rommel was recaptured, with the exception of garrisons at Bardia and Sollum.
		After the Empire of Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, much of the Indian and Australian forces were withdrawn from the Western Desert to their respective homelands, while the 7th Armoured Division was withdrawn and British 7th Armoured Brigade participated in the defense of Burma.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Western_Desert_Campaign (1312 words)

	Western Desert Force - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		The Western Desert Force, during World War II, was a British Commonwealth Army unit stationed in Egypt.
		At the start of the war, the Force consisted of the 7th Armoured Division and the Indian 4th Infantry Division.
		The exploits of this unit earned a parody of Winston Churchill's famous quote, "Never has so much been owed by so many, to so few." So many Italians were captured by the Western Desert Force that it was said, "Never has so much been surrendered by so many, to so few."
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Western_Desert_Force (186 words)

	The Western Frontier Force
		The atmosphere across western Egypt and the desert was one of considerable unrest, and the possibility of internal disturbances a source of great anxiety to General John Maxwell, British commander for Egypt.
		Wallace's force was meanwhile reinforced by the arrival of the 1st New Zealand Rifle Brigade, two Naval 4-inch guns and A Battery of the Honourable Artillery Company.
		Their attack was a "model of desert warfare", leading to the destruction of the enemy force, the capture of its leader Gaafer Pasha and his staff, and the relief of Sidi Barrani.
	www.1914-1918.net /wff.htm (1579 words)

	GI -- World War II Commemoration
		In Libya the Italian garrison was sandwiched between strong French forces in French North Africa and considerable British forces in Egypt; and Italy's other colonies were surrounded by potential enemies on all sides, although the forces arrayed against her were not very formidable in the early stages of the war.
		The Indian division was therefore withdrawn from the Western Desert Force on December 14, and replaced immediately by the Australian 6th Division, but the exchange caused a delay in the resumption of the offensive.
		The Western Desert Force was to defeat the enemy on the frontier and occupy the Bardia-Sallum-Capuzzo-Sidi Azeiz area, then attack the enemy around Tobruk and relieve the port, and finally move on Derna and Mekili.
	www.grolier.com /wwii/wwii_8.html (12575 words)

	Army Air Forces in World War II
		The whole Spitfire and P-40 force of the Western Desert Air Force was now concentrated in an effort to catch these convoys during the fleeting minutes when they could be reached.
		The Tactical Air Force came into its own with the beginning of the phase of the campaign wherein the Allied armies pushed on to Bizerte and Tunis for the kill.
		The Western Desert Air Force and 242 Group were divided by the Medjerda River, with Western Desert on the south and 242 Group on the north.
	www.usaaf.net /ww/vol6/vol6pg25.htm (1264 words)

	Military.com Content
		The Royal Air Force (RAF) was in a slightly better position, with 205 aircraft against the Italian air force's 313 planes.
		General Sir Alan Cunningham (the brother of Admiral Cunningham) was given command of the Western Desert Force, recently redesignated the British Eighth Army.
		Both forces were roughly equal in strength, but General Ritchie had his armored units widely dispersed, while Rommel kept his concentrated.
	www.military.com /Content/MoreContent?file=PRnafrica (2387 words)

	WWII Close Air Support - North Africa
		Counterattacking, French and British forces, as well as II Corps units in the region, took heavy losses, even though commanders concentrated the bulk of the Allied air support resources and ground forces in the central region.
		Allied forces in Tunisia were not as experienced in mobile warfare as the Axis or Allied forces in the Western Desert.
		Anderson had not yet absorbed the doctrine of the Western Desert force; Fredendall had not agreed with some of the points regarding organization, selective mission assignment, and centralized command of air support, as expressed in contemporary War Department publications or in Eisenhower's directive published before the TORCH landings.
	www.usaaf.net /has/jops/kasserine.htm (3347 words)

	Books \| Heroes of the desert
		At that dire moment of the war, one force retrieved the army's battered pride and restored its reputation in the only field that mattered - the battlefield.
		Formed at the nadir of the war in June 1940 after the fall of France, the Eighth Army (or Western Desert Force as it was originally known) was tasked with keeping the Suez canal out of Axis hands.
		Humiliated, the Italians were forced to ask for German aid and Rommel's Afrika Korps arrived in Libya to stiffen their sinews.
	books.guardian.co.uk /print/0,,4837133-110738,00.html (989 words)

	Avalanche Press
		While the 4th Brigade Group was obviously not ready for deployment, the urgency of the situation led to it being designated as a reserve element of the Western Desert Force.
		While the major units of the brigade pulled garrison and defensive construction duties, the 4th Reserve Mechanical Transport Company (RMT) was released to drive transport for the Western Desert Force (including moving units of the Brigade to and from Mersa Matruh).
		As the remaining Italians were attacked or forced to retreat, 4th RMT Company was everywhere, moving fighting units forward or prisoners of war back.
	www.avalanchepress.com /2ndNewZealand2.php (1287 words)

	BBC - WW2 People's War - Western Desert
		We stayed together for another two and a half years in the desert and I couldn’t have wished for a finer bunch of lads to be with.
		The main echelon left Middle Wallop at the end of May en route for the Middle East on the troopship “Duchess of Bedford”, a ship of the Canadian Pacific Fleet and because of the shallowness of the St. Lawrence River her keel was shorter than normal ships.
		The War in the desert was very fluid which meant that the Squadron was constantly on the move.
	www.bbc.co.uk /ww2peopleswar/stories/91/a4446191.shtml (1927 words)

	MagWeb Europa: WWII North Africa: British vs. Italians: 57 Military History and Product Magazines
		Flying in the desert was tough enough, but while the RAF had great experience at "tropicalising" its aircraft to keep out sand particles, the Italians did not.
		The British 7th Armoured Division was its model mobile force, and it was backed up by the 4th Indian Division and the 6'h Australian Division, the elite of both nation's armies.
		This force consisted entirely of 11th Hussars, 2nd Rifle Brigade, C Battery ofthe 4th Royal Horse Artillery, and 106th Battery RHA with is truck mounted 37mm anti-tank guns.
	www.magweb.com /sample/seuropa/seu55daw.htm (9336 words)

	Chapter 1 First months abroad; Bardia
		It was there to receive some desert training, intensify the effort to complete its equipment and prepare to take up defensive roles in the Western Desert and the Nile Delta area.
		It was not seriously resisted on the frontier, and the British Western Desert Force fell back steadily towards Mersa Matruh, which had been fortified as a pivot for defensive operations.
		The leading unit of the assault on the western sector, the 2/1st Battalion of the 16th Australian Infantry Brigade, was in position on the white-taped starting line before 5.30 a.m.
	www.diggerhistory2.info /army/1941/chapter01.htm (5474 words)

	[No title]
		In this region, Western Desert Force invested the defences of Bardia, within which the troops of General Bergonzoli had retired.
		Most of the western side of the perimeter was sited on the flat plateau of the escarpment which extended eastward for distances up to one mile within the enemy defences, and was then broken by rough wadi country to the sea coast.
		It was decided to break through on the western front of the perimeter, on a frontage of approximately 1,000 yards which included Posts 47 and 45.
	personal.myvine.com /~mightaswell/images/Bardia.doc (2514 words)

	Wargames Journal (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-01)
		Compass was initially envisaged as a reconnaissance in force but as was to be characteristic of desert warfare over the next few years its success seemed to snowball.
		Traversing a pathless desert that was considered impassable these units cut the Via Balbia south of Benghazi at Beda Fomm, trapping the remnants of the Italian 10th Army.
		Elements of this force have dug in across the coast road, with the sea to the west and rough terrain to the east.
	www.wargamesjournal.com /wwii/wwii_article_10.asp (1873 words)

	History of the Desert Air Force and FAA squadrons WW2
		In support of the offensive were No 28 RAF squadron, 258 wing of four Hurricane and two Tomahawk squadrons, 262 wing of three Tomahawk and two hurricane Squadrons and 80 squadron which was equipped with the first hurri-bombers.
		Beneath its banner was the North West African Allied Tactical Air Force, commanded by the WDAFs Air Marshal Coningham.
		Contained within this were four subordinate formation, one of which was the Desert Air Force as the WDAF had been retitled, under the command of Vice-Marshal Harry Broadhurst.
	www.fleetairarmarchive.net /Squadrons/RAF_DAF_FAA_squadrons.html (452 words)

	The Royal Air Force - History (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-01)
		This Time Line traces the history of aviation and the Royal Air Force in detail during 1940, documenting the major events in the development of flight and the service during this period.
		German forces also occupy Denmark whose forces did not resist the enemy invasion.
		Strength of the force amounts to three squadrons of Wellington bombers, five squadrons of Blenheims, three of Hurricanes and one Gladiator squadron.
	www.raf.mod.uk /history/line1940.html (1736 words)

	32 Regt RA - History
		After the Italians entered the war in June 1940, the Regiment moved up to the Libyan Frontier to join the Western Desert Force where it was engaged in harassing fire against the Italians along the Frontier.
		In December 1940 the Regiment supported the Western Desert Force in the attack on Sidi Barrani.
		In March 1941 the Regiment was withdrawn from the Desert; the RHQ and 25/26 Bty were sent to Greece.
	www.army.mod.uk /32regtra/History.htm (2450 words)

	Air Power (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-01)
		Montgomery's Eighth Army and the Royal Air Force's Western Desert Force had a level of cooperation on the battle field the Allies failed to immolate.
		There are a series of large difficult hills which connect to form an upside down Y. The hills and passes that form the left side of the Y is called the Western Dorsal and the hills on the right is the Eastern Dorsal.
		The Air Force would no longer be used as an appendage to the ground troops but to be seen as an equal partner in joint operations to be used in a rear support.
	history.acusd.edu /gen/st/~bclark/Airpower.html (691 words)

	Past frames
		If also our fighter forces will suffer such casualties the result will be disastrous, we must avoid this: every bomber imbound Agedabia first line fields will be destroyed in the air, every tank and halftrack will be buried in the sand by our srafing and divebombing attacks.
		A wing of fighters sent in support of our geound forces was lost, probably bounced by the enemy before makin contact with our Matildas and halftracks, anyway also if they have not been able to help our armored forces, they fought against overhelming enemy forces, downingmany enemy fighters before falling.
		The vital port of Tobruk has been cut out from the rest of our forces and is now under siege, last time they tried to take this fort they failed with great losses after trying for months, this will happen again.
	users.libero.it /macbusc/id35.htm (1686 words)

	BBC - WW2 People's War - Timeline
		In January 1941, the Allied forces in North Africa swept the Italians all the way from the Western Desert to Cyrenaica, the eastern province of Libya, during Operation Compass.
		Following the recall to Egypt of General Richard O'Connor, commander of the Western Desert Force, Cyrenaica was garrisoned by a small force under Lieutenant General Philip Neame.
		Tobruk was garrisoned by the 9th Australian Division, and was attacked by German and Italian forces on 13 and 15 April.
	bbc.co.uk /ww2peopleswar/timeline/factfiles/nonflash/a1124777.shtml?... (761 words)

	Buy British Campaigns: Western Desert on DVD @ MovieStars (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-01)
		The War in the Western Desert began as a sideshow but steadily escalated into one of the most important campaigns of the second World War, with essential oil supplies and the strategically vital Suez Canal at its heart.
		Now Montgomery took charge of the British 8th Army and the scene was set for a clash of epic proportions between two of the greatest commanders of the Second World War with Rommel eventually being pushed out of North Africa.
		This is the definitive film record of the war in the Western Desert focusing on the battles and campaigns fought by British and Commonwealth forces from 1940 to the fall of Tunis and comprising almost entirely of front line footage recorded by combat cameramen.
	www.moviestars.co.nz /DVDs/1476171.html (431 words)

	Compare Prices and Read Reviews on World at War - Volume 8: Desert - The War in North Africa at Epinions.com
		In June of 1940, as Adolf Hitler’s victorious armies were concluding their campaign in France, Italy’s Duce Benito Mussolini entered the war on Germany’s side.
		It was a craven and opportunistic move on the Fascist dictator’s side, prompted by his Axis partner’s swift gains in Poland in 1939 and in Western Europe in the spring of 1940.
		Hitler, who was planning the invasion of the Soviet Union, couldn’t stand idly by while the British were trouncing his Axis partner, so he sent Gen. Erwin Rommel and a small but powerful contingent to North Africa.
	www.epinions.com /content_218753568388 (597 words)

	H Broadhurst_P
		Whilst in the Desert he managed to commandeer a captured Fiesler Storch communications aircraft, which painted in British markings, he used for touring the units under his command.
		With the build up of forces for Overlord, he was selected as one of the Group Commanders for the newly formed 2 Tactical Air Force.
		On the return journey, he was attacked by a force of 6 Messerschmitt 109s but, by brilliant tactics, Group Captain Broadhurst fought them off and, it is believed, destroyed 2 of them before the engagement was terminated some 15 miles north of Gravelines.
	www.rafweb.org /Biographies/Broadhurst.htm (2356 words)

	Royal Australian Navy Gun Plot Scrap Iron Flotilla Libya
		Town after town was blasted, transport, both German and Italian, was smashed as it moved in long convoys along the desert road, and advancing British and Australian troops attacked from behind a comforting barrage of fire from naval guns whose calibre ranged from 4-inch to 15-inch.
		Beyond Derna the desert gives way to more fertile country and the tall palm-trees and attractive white buildings of the colonization settlements reminded the Australians of scenes in the tropics at the eastern end of the Mediterranean.
		This squadron comprised the destroyers, gunboats and monitors responsible for supporting the Western Desert land forces, and the work it carried out was to become increasingly important and increasingly hazardous during the next few months.
	www.gunplot.net /matapan/scrapironflott10.html (5671 words)

	Operation Compass & Wavell's 30,000 SPECIAL EDITION of Critical Hit Magazine
		Despite catching them slightly out of position (facing SW instead of NW), the Italians had direct artillery support at their disposal and were unaware of the defeat of the 1st and 2nd Blackshirt Divisions to the north and northwest.
		The desert is very cold at night at this time of year - adding to discourage unnecessary outside ventures - and it was still dark when the artillery barrage began.
		Among this force was the Babini Armored Brigade.
	www.criticalhit.com /BedaFomm.html (4862 words)

	CHAPTER 4 The Second Libyan Campaign and After (November 1941 – June 1942) \| NZETC (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-01)
		As part of this force the New Zealand Division, reformed and re-equipped, crossed the border into Libya on 19 November ready to play a full part for the first time in desert warfare.
		While the campaign had been raging in the Western Desert, those captured in Greece and Crete had been making the best of their first winter in Germany.
		The last months of 1941 saw the Royal Air Force bombing German-occupied ports and bases on the Atlantic coast; and in 1942 the stepping up of the bombing offensive on Germany's communications and factories was carried out.
	www.nzetc.org /tm/scholarly/tei-WH2Pris-c4.html (16252 words)

	Lt Gen William W. Momyer (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-01)
		In 1941 he was Assistant Military Attach‚ for Air in Cairo, Egypt, and was also technical advisor to the RAF in equipping the first squadron in the Western Desert Air Force with P-40s.
		He was an Army Air Force liaison officer aboard the carrier Essex during the second Philippine campaign.
		In 1944 he became Chief of the Combined Operations of the Army Air Forces Board and then became Deputy Chief of Staff, Plans, Tactical Air Command in 1946.
	www.aetc.randolph.af.mil /ho/cc_bios/momyer.htm (519 words)

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