A fine Airborne drop at El Gamil Airfield General Service Medal 1918-1962, EIIR Dei.Grat bust, 2 Clasps: Cyprus and Near East awarded to Private E. Clarke, 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment who saw service in Cyprus during the EOKA Emergency before taking part in the airborne drop on El Gamil airfield – the last operational airborne drop which took place during the Suez Crisis which involved six hundred men of 3 Para. This was the first and last operational jump since the Second World War, The drop was conducted under fire and the aim of the assault was the reduction of Egyptian coastal defences before the amphibious landings occurred.
General Service Medal 1918-1962, EIIR Dei.Grat bust, 2 Clasps: Cyprus and Near East; (23249870 PTE. E. CLARKE. PARA.) loose-mounted for wear.
Condition: Nearly Extremely Fine
Edward Barnes Clarke was born in 1937 and enlisted on 5th September 1955 seeing service as a Private (No. 23249870) in the 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, and having completed course 415 at Abingdon which took place at Abingdon between 13th February 1956 to the 8th March 1956, he would then be posted to the Airborne Forces at Aldershot.
Clarke would then go on to see service in Cyprus when the Battalion was posted there from 15th May 1956. Whilst out in Cyprus, 3 Para was moved at short notice in response to the Suez Crisis.
With entitlement to the Near East clasp Clarke would have taken part in the surprise parachute assault onto El Gamil airfield on 5th November 1956, which involved six hundred men of 3 Para. This was the first and last operation jump since the Second World War with 1 Para and 2 Para later arriving by boat. The drop was conducted under Fire and Assault and reduction of Egyptian coastal defences before the amphibious landings cost 3 Para four killed and 3 officers and 29 men wounded.
The Red Devils – The story of the British Airborne Forces, covers the events at El Gamil in more detail:
‘The drop itself was a double one, part British and part French. The former were to land on El Gamil airfield at 0715 hours on November 5 and secure it for future use; that done; their orders were to clear the area between the airfield and the town of Port Said, seal off the native quarter and link up with the RM Commandos – who would have by then come ashore – and, finally, to capture and demolish the bridge to the west of the airfield. The French, on the other hand, accompanied by part of the 1st (Guards) Independent Company, were to drop south of Port Said and to the east of the canal, seal off the southern approaches to the town, and capture the bridges that linked the town with the two roads south. Thereafter, they were to set off as hard as they could go and secure the canal itself. They were to drop from their own aircraft.
The RAF could muster at this time only enough Hastings and Valettas to lift 668 men – 3 Para, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel P.E. Crook – seven jeeps, four trailers, six 106mm anti-tank guns and 176 supply containers. The initial odds were expected to be five to one against the parachute force, and the task force would still be a day’s steaming away.
At 0415 hours the first aircraft taxied out on to the Nicosia runway. The drop began over El Gamil on time, and in ten minutes, despite some flak and casualties in the air, the whole force was on the ground , bar one or two containers and a very few men. Two trailers ‘candled’ in, but in spite of the very heavy loads the men were carrying, there was only one parachuting injury. The Egyptians reacted promptly and vigorously with 120mm guns, mobile Russian-built, multi-barrelled rocket launchers, small arms, and machine gun and mortar fire, but it was not as dangerous as it sounded, luckily. The black spots which had suddenly appeared on the Tac/R photographs just before the force took off, and which had been thought to be mines, turned out to be nothing more threatening than 40-gallon oil drums distributed to prevent aircraft landing, and presented no problem.
A parachute soldier, on landing, other than the initial DZ clearing force, is faced with an uncomfortable dilemma if he is being shot at. He is burdened with a considerable weight of weapons and equipment on his person and in the containers that drop with him. To unload these takes a short time, but, once unloaded, their contents have to be carried to the RV. With all this to shift the last thing he can do is run, and therefore the first few minutes after a drop often have a curious, slow-motion air about them at a time when everyone concerned might be expected to be moving at full speed. This forces leisureliness particularly impressed the French liaison officer, Francois Collet, who dropped with the 3rd Battalion at El Gamil. The only thing which caused them to move fast, he observed, was the mystical rallying-cry ‘Char Up!’ and then he said, he was almost trampled in the rush. Collet’s call sign was ‘ici Robert’ and since he was tough and likeable, as well as being a commander in the French Navy and a member of the Legion d’Honneur, ‘Ici Robert’ became a catchphrase among the ‘Toms.’
‘A’ Company quickly captured the control building and tower, and silenced a pill-box with rockets, killing two and capturing nine of its occupants, ‘B’ Company, which landed on top of the Egyptian positions, cleared the coastguard building and the eastern end of the airfield, while the mortars engaged enemy positions behind the sewage farm. Fifteen minutes after ‘P’ Hour, the first Fleet Air Arm strikes came in.
Within half hour the airfield was in British hands. ‘B’ Company, with 5 Platoon in the lead and supported by a medium machine gun (MMG) section, now set about clearing the area of the sewage farm.
A 106mm anti-tank gun demolished a house that was being used as an observation post.
No.4 platoon pushed forward through the thick reeds on the right-hand edge of the sewage farm, clearing snipers, and then came under heavy fire from the cemetery. No.6 Platoon advanced to the left-hand edge of the farm, and the two platoons contained the Egyptians while plans were made for ‘C’ Company to attack the cemetery. Meanwhile, by 0915 hours – only four hours after the landings – the airfield was ready for use.
At 1028 hours an air strike of Naval Sea Venoms and Sea Hawks was launched on the cemetery; and two minutes later ‘C’ Company attacked, supported by mortars and MMGs. They were extremely successful, and after fighting at close quarters around the tombstones through to the far end, were able to call for accurate air strikes on the large blocks of flats facing them, which was being used as an observation post. The battle continued into the afternoon and ammunition, particularly for the 3-inch mortars, was running short. It was decided to pull them back and hold firm in the sewage firm for the night; a counter-attack could not be ruled out.
During this time, Major Stevens, commanding ‘B’ Company, had been twice wounded, in the hand and then in the leg. He bound up the first himself, and it was not until his shattered leg made it impossible for him to continue in command, that he agreed to be evacuated. He would subsequently be awarded the Military Cross.
As the second lift was arriving, the French dropped another battalion at Fort Fuad. Soon afterwards, on the invitation of the Military commander of Port Said, Brigadier M.A.H. ‘Tubby’ Butler and the Brigade Major left to arrange a cease fire; but Cairo intervened and negotiations broke down. At least it meant that the night was relatively quiet, though the morning of the 6th opened with a lone MIG fighter strafing at low level.
The amphibious assault force was now about to land on the beaches at Port Said, and as the landing-craft ran on to the shore, MMGs from 3 Para gave covering fire along the beaches. At 0510 hours ‘C’ Company re-occupied the cemetery without opposition, and moved forward to attack and capture the coastguard barracks and some flats that were occupied by snipers. Then a patrol sealed off the native quarter. Throughout the morning, in spite of reports of another cease fire, desultory mortaring and shelling continued. It was clear that the Egyptians were prepared to fight in the native quarter; and after the hospital was captured, a four man patrol entered the maze of narrow streets to try and link with 45 RM Commando. They soon ran into rockets and sniper fire, and all four of them were wounded. They were extricated under fire by Captain Malcolm Elliott, of the 23rd Parachute Field Ambulance, who happened to be in the area looking for an anaesthetic machine. He was later awarded an MC. One of the battalion’s anti-tank guns was then brought up and effectively silenced the opposition. In the process it demolished half of the shanty-town, which then caught fire. After this, the parachute soldiers and 45 Commando succeeded in linking up, though sniping continued throughout the day.
At 2359 hours on November 6 a general ceasefire was ordered; thereafter the 3rd Battalion spent a few days patrolling the town, clearing and rounding up scattered Egyptian Forces, and supervising the flow of refugees who were leaving Port Said from the felucca harbour. The 3rd Battalion’s casualties were four killed and 36 wounded.
The 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment came ashore during the afternoon of November 6 near the de Lesseps statue in Port Said, and moved through the town and down the causeway to the south. There was no opposition, but plenty of evidence of the accuracy of the airstrikes by naval aircraft. The battalion halted for the night at El Cap, and dug in. Defensive positions were improved on the following day; the Egyptians were digging in a few hundred yards down the road. The 2nd Battalion dealt with sporadic sniping south of El Cap during November 8 and 9, and on the second night ‘A’ Company of the 3rd Battalion occupied El Tina, between he 2nd and Port Said.
World opinion, and pressure from friends and enemies alike now caused the British and French governments to call a halt, and eventually withdraw their troops. El Cap marked the limit of the advance. When the 1st Battalion landed, they moved west along the coast and dug in. A week after their arrival in Egypt, the parachute troops embarked in MV New Australia and returned to Cyprus. Operation ‘Musketeer’ was over.
He would be transferred to the Reserve on 13th August 1958 and finally discharged at Exeter on 4th September 1962
