Services Reconnaissance Department (SRD), also known as Special Operations Australia (SOA) and previously known as Inter-Allied Services Department (ISD), was an Australian

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...

and

special reconnaissance Special reconnaissance (SR) is conducted by small units, such as a recon team, made up of highly trained military personnel, usually from special forces units and/or military intelligence organizations. Special reconnaissance teams operate behind ...

unit, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Foundation

Authorised by Prime Minister

John Curtin John Curtin (8 January 1885 – 5 July 1945) was an Australian politician who served as the 14th prime minister of Australia from 1941 until his death in 1945. He held office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), having been most ...

in March 1942, following the outbreak of war with Japan, the Inter-Allied Services Department was formed on 17 April 1942, having been given approval by General

Thomas Blamey Field marshal (Australia), Field Marshal Sir Thomas Albert Blamey (24 January 1884 – 27 May 1951) was an Australian general of the First World War, First and Second World Wars. He is the only Australian to attain the rank of field marshal. Bl ...

. Modelled initially on the British

Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

(SOE), it was organised initially by SOE

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer, Lieutenant Colonel G. Egerton Mott. For security reasons it was named ISD and its existence was to be only known by the Prime Minister and the High Command.

Operations

On 6 July 1942, the Allied Intelligence Bureau (AIB) was formed to co-ordinate the operations of ISD and other similar organisations; AIB became fully functional in December 1942. ISD was officially known within AIB as "Section A". In June 1942, an ISD raiding/commando unit was organised, named Z Special Unit. Between February and April 1943, ISD was officially disbanded and replaced by a new body, Special Operations Australia (SOA). The cover name Services Reconnaissance Department (SRD) was given to SOA. in May 1943. It was decided that a covert reconnaissance and field intelligence unit, M Special Unit, would be formed under the auspices of SOA to complement the raiding activities of Z Special Unit. SOA oversaw intelligence-gathering, reconnaissance and raiding missions in Japanese-occupied areas of

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

, the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

(Indonesia),

Portuguese Timor Portuguese Timor () was a Portuguese colony on the territory of present-day East Timor from 1702 until 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies. The first Europeans to arrive in the regio ...

(East Timor), the

Malayan Peninsula The Malay Peninsula is located in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area contains Peninsular Malaysia, Southern Tha ...

British Borneo British Borneo comprised the four northern parts of the island of Borneo, which are now the country of Brunei, two Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak, and the Malaysian federal territory of Labuan. During the British colonial rule before Wor ...

and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

Notes

References

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Foundation

Operations

See also

Notes

References

Further reading