"But Spain is Neutral isn't it?"

6 December 1942

Before we crossed into Spanish Morocco at St Martin du Prey, we made sure we had removed all signs of us being U.S. servicemen. We had outer Arab garb which effectively altered our appearance, at least from a distance. We had the suits and identity papers to pass ourselves off as travelling French businessmen once we arrived in Melilla. The Sten guns and explosives we brought as weapons were readily concealed underneath out Arab Garb.

We noted right after crossing the river that there were vehicle tracks in the field on the Spanish side of the rifle. Tracked vehicle tracks. This indicated that there has been a response to the American presence on the side of the river we came from, but we never encountered these vehicles.

We were able to make our way to Melilla without being detected, or accosted. Although once there we did see the “Gardia Seville”, we made a point of it to avoid them. PVT Karas made good use of his French here, as did Dubois and Despaux, although we had some concern about the variety of the accents.

We were able to find our contact, Senior Rodriguez. He looked just as COL Murphy had described. A short, fat man with a wide brimmed black hat. We relayed our passcode, “The Eagle Waits for No Tide”, and received what details “The Short Fat Man” could offer us.

Rodriguez could supply a boat to deposit us on, and remove us from the seaward side. Otherwise there was only one road and approach toward the lighthouse.

We knew we had to destroy the German meteorogical station and equipment located inside the lighthouse, yet had a mandate not to destroy the lighthouse structure itself. That left Meister’s suggestion of just blowing up the building off the table.

We needed more information about the layout of the place. McKee, posing as French businessmen, would go right up to the lighthouse in daylight, knock on the door, and see if they could get a look at the inside.

Meister, and Crowinshield would reconnoiter all around the outside of the structure. I (Lewis) would watch the approach road and be prepared to divert the “Gardia Seville” if they came along. Colonel Murphy had made it very clear we should stay out of their hands, and keep from being caught.

7 December 1942

We found that the Tres Forcas Lighthouse was a brick 60’ tall round tower rising out of a 40’ x 18’ brick building. It was way out on a barren and rocky point, with the Mediterranean on three sides. There was a stone patio on the seaward side, opposite from the approach road. This patio was raised about eight feet from ground level, and the only easy access was from a door from the lighthouse.

There were no signs of any electrification. No wires of any kind leading to the lighthouse. I was pleased by this as it meant that there could be no phone, and hence, no easy way to summon the police, or any others who might interfere.

McKee, was indeed able to get into and see some part of the interior of the lighthouse. Apparently, it was manned by two elderly Spanish Moroccan’s Ferdinand and Isabella. Mckee saw no signs of any Germans, but he was not allowed access to much of the building. He did manage to get “lost”, and find a storage room with some kind of scientific equipment. This verified that this was still a valid target as far as I was concerned. He left the lighthouse and returned to the rest of the squad.

We waited until darkness, and then took a closer look. There were indeed German Soldiers there, as one appeared smoking a cigarette on the patio. We waited and watched as another went to use the outhouse.

We formed a plan and decided to conduct the raid in darkness. There would be two teams. Lewis and Greeley would wait by the outhouse and silently take out the next German to use it.

Meister and Crowinshield, with McKee covering them would try to find a way to slip inside. Once there, they would remain concealed until Greeley and I could get over to the Patio wall. I would try to climb up it and then lower a rope so Greeley could join me.

We agreed on a time so Greeley and I could try to slip into the building from the patio and at the same time Meister, Crowinshield and McKee could be prepared to attack from the inside. If one team got into trouble, hopefully the other team could get them out of it.

Greeley and I (Lewis) staked out the outhouse and waited to silently take out the first German to appear there that night. He showed up at about 2300 hours, and we were able to take him by surprise and render him unconscious quietly.

As it turned out Meister and Crowinshield were able to get onto the patio and without a rope. They found an antenna arrangement there. climbed up and over the wall on the seaward side of the lighthouse, and crossed the stone patio, past an antennae arrangement to a door.

McKee watched the front of the approach to the lighthouse, and then joined the rest of the squad at the seaward side, at the pre-determined time.

Meister and Crowinshield sneaked up to the slightly open door of the lighthouse which opened into what was a radio room.

The radio operator in the room off the open patio on the seaward side was caught by surprise by Crowinshield, and rendered unconscious before he could raise the alarm. Meister and Crowinshield, together with McKee, bagged the three sleeping Germans in the next room also.

Crowinshield also bagged a luger with magazines and holster in this room. He picked it up off a table next to a sleeping German, and nudged him awake with it, then held him at bay. There were six Germans in all, including the other guard, which we roughed up a bit trying to get what information we could. There were no Germans above the rank of Corporal there. None of them were able to get a message off.

We saw antennae, radio equipment, and canisters which turned out to be batteries, as well as scientific equipment we couldn’t understand.

Crowinshield was absolutely delighted to have captured the German radio equipment, and partially dismantled it and took the crystals out of it.

We gathered all the German equipment together, on the seaward side out away from the lighthouse. We remembered that COL Murphy had instructed us NOT to damage the lighthouse, as it was a historic landmark... McKee and I wired the equipment with the explosives set with a timer while Greeley stood watch.

Meister and Crowinshield took the German prisoners around to the opposite (landward) side of the lighthouse. We did not want the prisoners to see what we were doing, nor witness our method of escape by sea.

I instructed Meister to tie the prisoners up securely and to tell them not to move for at least two hours after they heard an explosion.

Our squad reunited on the coast out at the tip of the peninsula, and we were able to witness the explosion and complete destruction of the German equipment, just as we had planned.

Our “contact” met us with a boat, just big enough for us, right on schedule. He took us along the coast, to a small fishing settlement near Melilla, where we were met by Senior Rodriguez again.

We were smuggled back out of Morocco in another small boat without being detected. We had to return everything that COL Murphy had given us to use on the mission. Crowinshield retained his loot, and I think some of the foreign currency we had been given.

I was relieved and glad when we got back all our own gear, and were safely heading back toward Oran, and our own unit.