Of all the units to serve in World War 11 one of the strangest and arguably the bravest was the very top secret, highly trained 'Z Special Unit'. More commonly but also incorrectly referred to as 'Z Force', in fact these were two entirely different units.

All of its missions were cloaked in ultimate secrecy and even though it's been over 50 years since the end of World War II very little is known of its 182 missions.

Z Special Unit recruited men from many branches of the Armed Forces and as well as being most secret it was probably the most 'multi-cultural'. Although most of its members were Australian, there were also British, New Zealanders, Dutch, French, Malays, Canadians, Americans, Indonesians and Chinese - All experts in various subjects to do with clandestine operations.

Of all the missions undertaken by 'Z Special Unit' the most spectacular and well known were the two raids carried out against enemy shipping in Japanese Occupied Singapore Harbour. The first of these, Operation 'Jaywick', 26th September 1943 resulted in 38,000 Tons of enemy shipping sunk. The second - Operation 'Rimau', 11th September 1944 involved the use of small one man submarines. They were compromised before arriving at their destination which resulted in the capture of the raiders and consequently their ceremonial execution (beheading) by the Japanese.

Operation Jaywick - a seemingly suicidal plot to destroy Japanese shipping in Singapore Harbour was one of the most daring raids of World War Two. In September 1943, ten Australian and four British servicemen struck at the heart of the Japanese supply line to New Guinea.

Krait just prior to leaving for Operation Jaywick - At Refuge Bay, NSW.

The heroes of 'Jaywick' travelled 5,000 Miles through enemy infested waters in HMAS Krait, a small fishing boat, to blow Japanese shipping, confidence and moral to pieces. This is the story of the guts and determination of our Diggers and Sailors striking an incredible blow in the bitter struggle against the Japanese. Go to next page for details of Operation Jaywick.