Sabotagers behind enemy lines

I know they dropped spies from planes but did they ever drop men to destroy Railroads,Bridges,ect.

Boondock

"if you don't know it, it's new to you"

[mike_baram]

Are you talking about WWI or WWII? In WWII, there was organized resistance behind German lines in France, Norway, etc., and the Allies would parachute saboteurs to work along with the resistance. These men and women established communications, trained resistance fighters, and helped downed flyers get back to England.
I find it hard to imagine parachuting saboteurs during WWI, since a: aviation was still in its infancy, b: nighttime navigation was practically non-existant, and c: occupied territory consisted of regions, not entire countries.

[Vigilant]

But nevertheless, Mike, parachute was the preferred RAF means of dropping spies by 1918. It was safer than a night landing in a field for the pilot. Whether the agents were so keen on it, I doubt.

[mike_baram]

Vigilant,
One question...after they would drop a spy behind enemy lines, wouldn't he have to make his way back and report? No compact radios, and wireless was still in its infancy. I still think it was more effective to send out night patrols, use air reconaissance, etc. than to risk a drop under very unsympathetic conditions.
Mike

[Barrett]

Hey, speaking of unsympathetic conditions for clandestine ops--how 'bout the early Soviet practice of wrapping their agents in hay bales and rolling them out the fuselage door from low level to fall into the snow? The theory was that "an acceptable number" would survive or be able to function.
What do you suppose Jimmy The Greek would give on THOSE odds?

I haven't read anything myself about dropping of saboteurs behind the lines during WWI. I suppose it's possible that spies might have also been responsible for destroying things like bridges, rail junctions, etc. But I'm unaware of it.

Incidentally, I remember reading an amusing story about William Barker, when flying in Italy, being sent on a mission to drop a spy behind Austrian lines. Barker flew one of the giant Caproni triplanes; the spy and his parachute were stored in the bomb container. The spy, however, refused to jump. I've always wondered whether the spy's refusal had anything to do with the fact that the Caproni triplane's bomb container looked like nothing so much as a giant coffin...

[Vigilant]

Mike, the answer is homing pidgeons. I know the RFC experimented very unsuccessfully with dropping them too -- in one experiment they tied 4 pidgeons together with string in the expectation that they would fly in different directions and so gently float down! Needless to say they all strangled themselves. Usually the spy took a basket of them with him. Apart from pidgeons, I think sometimes agents were picked up by plane after a few months so they could report directly. Or they could try and work their way out to Holland.

Conditions for agent insertion were actually quite good for the Allies, because they could use French and Belgians who had fled their homes in the face of the German advance in 1914. Once dropped, they would know the area and would generally have the support of the local population. German spies dropped on the west side of the lines would have had a much harder time going undetected by the military.

[mike_baram]

Vigilant,
I can imagine getting caught with a bunch of birds...
"Ach, ja, Herr Deutsch Soldat, diese are mein pigeons, und I alvays come to der mittle of diese field in der night to feed mein little friends. Und der little capsule on der left leg is a counterweight so dey don't shpin out of control in a right turn."
OK, I accept your explanation. Now, was the chief delicacy of the German army squab??????
VBR,
Mike

[Vigilant]

I don't know if it really happened, but in spy stories the brave secret agent is always being given away by his pigeons coo-ing under his coat!

The question arises: did the Germans have dedicated pigeon interceptor squadrons? Abbreviated to "Pistas" perhaps?? Hang on, wasn't there a cartoon about this?

[mike_baram]

Don't know about interceptor squadrons, but I remember as a kid seeing a movie about knights and all that where the hero sent a message via carrier pigeon, and the bad guy sent a falcon after it....you can write the rest of the script from there (hero gets captured, comical sidekick rescues him, major broadsword duel, arrrrgh!, save female lead, THE END)