The men who built that unfinished shelter, and kicked out those fires, were still alive

The men who built that unfinished shelter, and kicked out those fires, were still alive

A half-built lean-to, warm food left on cold cookers, and cigarette cartons scattered in the dirt - the men who fled that camp did so in seconds and, according to the records, were still alive when they ran. What caused twenty-five commandos to vanish into hostile seas and leave such clear signs of sudden flight, and why did that detail not change what followed?

In this episode, we follow the chain of events from a successful raid a year earlier to the planning, departure and unfolding of Operation Rimau, asking how ambition, new technology and changed patrols combined to produce disaster. Was the sea the same as the one they crossed a year before, and could the plan still work?

Person: Ivan Lyon Event: Operation Rimau Date: September 11, 1944 (departure) and July 7, 1945 (executions) Location: Merapas and Singapore Harbour Vessel: Mustika (captured junk with no engine)

- 25 men departed Australia aboard HMS Porpoise in the early hours of September 11, 1944. - The plan aimed to sink 30 ships and damage 30 more - 60 vessels total. - 15 one-man semi-submersibles called Sleeping Beauties were carried in the Porpoise's hold. - Three Malay fishermen spotted the commandos on Merapas the day after Porpoise surfaced on September 23, 1944. - Survivors captured were beheaded on July 7, 1945; their execution reportedly took guards more than 30 minutes and sometimes required two or three blows.

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