The Mammoth Book of Secrets of the SAS & Elite Forces

by Jon E. Lewis

  Note: The box holds about three quarters of a pint of water when full to the holes for the wire.

  Fresh water must be sterilized before drinking using either of the two methods below:

  If water is muddy it should be filtered through a handkerchief, piece of sheeting, or other available material.

  The tablets are the first method of choice.

  a Water purifying tablets

  These are found in the survival kit.

  Add 1 tablet to the polythene bag or lid full of water then wait 10 minutes before using.

  b Boiling

  Heat water until it boils. Boil for as long as is practicable. If stored keep in a clean bag or other clean container.

  SEA WATER IS NOT PURIFIED BY

  BOILING OR PURITAB TABLETS

  When you’re weary, it is all too easy to ignore the basic principles of camouflage. But unless you camouflage your position and do it well, you will be caught!

  A soldier will be extremely respectful towards a pilot seated in the cockpit of an aircraft. Yet that same soldier is fully aware that outside his element a pilot is a different bird indeed. If detailed to search for downed air crew most soldiers, especially those from the more professional units will take the task as a challenge to their skills. If they were at the receiving end of your attack, they will have another good reason for finding you!

  Their task may well be made easier by the attitude of some airmen. Because of his own “elite” status, a pilot might be tempted to underestimate the infantryman. Don’t! Once on the ground you must exercise extreme care if you are to evade your searchers, for you are now treading in their territory – literally.

  Use your common sense when choosing a site for your shelter. Ask yourself, if you were in a search party, where would you look? Don’t hide in caves or choose isolated cover. Pick an unlikely spot that stands a good chance of being overlooked. If possible, try to hide out fairly close to a water source, and go for high rather than low ground.

  Once in position, avoid making tracks. Use the same route in and out. Don’t leave the shelter unless you have to. Keep still and quiet, and stay alert. If you are a smoker, throw away your cigarettes so that you are not tempted. The aroma of burning tobacco can be detected for a considerable distance. Bury all refuse, and when you eventually move out, don’t leave any traces of your stay.

  Moving on

  After two or three days you might consider moving on. Before doing so, bear in mind the “Five Ps”: Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance. Decide where you are going and, if possible, plan on the route. Take only what you need. By now you will have an idea of what is essential. Conceal everything else. As always use your common sense. Move only at night and avoid people, built up areas and roads.

  During your trek across enemy terrain you could be presented with an opportunity to hit at the enemy. You will definitely be in a unique position to observe him at first hand. Remember anything that might be of use to Intelligence. This is assuming that you can pass on that information within a reasonable span of time.

  You may be aware of an escape net operating in the country you are in. If you manage to contact such an organisation, you will, initially, probably be treated with distrust. This is understandable, as such people survive by being extremely cautious. Once contact is made be prepared to be left alone while they observe your reactions. You will probably then be blindfolded before being taken away for questioning.

  If the escape organisation is satisfied by your replies, you can then expect them to help you. Of course, the enemy could impersonate such a group, so never give away classified information, and take care not to implicate anybody else.

  In exceptional circumstances you could be in for a long journey before reaching the safety of a neutral country. You could be shot down in the middle of summer – and find yourself still on the run at the onset of winter. Your trek to freedom could take months, even years. One German paratrooper, captured by the Russians during World War II, took three years to reach his homeland during his escape from Siberia!

  Keep up your spirits

  If the prospects of a long uncomfortable journey, fraught with danger, seems too grim, try to remember why you should continue:

  1 It is easier to evade than to escape.

  2 You will be better clothed and equipped before, rather than after capture.

  3 If captured, you will be moved to a prison camp far away from safety.

  4 An evader is a free man!

  MAINTAINING THE WILL TO SURVIVE

  Knowing that you may have to travel hundreds of miles over a period of months may be a little upsetting; having to survive alone in a strange environment for this period may make dying look like the easy option.

  The determination to survive must be maintained at times by sheer willpower; most of the obstacles you will have to overcome will be mental rather than physical. The factors that make all the difference are:

  1 A sense of responsibility, loyalty to your unit and a sense of duty.

  2 Family and home ties; having something worthwhile to survive for.

  3 Self control; thinking the problem through rather than panicking.

  4 Planning; preparing a plan that makes use of all available resources.

  5 Endurance; pain, discomfort and other unpleasant conditions must be accepted as normal.

  6 Leadership; the strong help the weak.

  7 Knowledge of escape and evasion and survival techniques.

  And if that is not reason enough, bear in mind that according to regulations:

  “Any person . . . shall be guilty of an offence against the appropriate section if . . . he . . . fails to take . . . any reasonable steps to rejoin HM Service which are available to him.”

  In other words it is your duty to survive, to escape to fight again!

  URBAN EVASION

  Urban evasion, like its rural equivalent, varies according to the climate and wealth of the country you are operating in. For example, a country with strong family or local loyalties or with a restrictive political regime will be harder to move about in than one in which there is a large “floating” population, a high level of personal wealth and public transport and facilities. The important considerations will be the sense of national threat and suspicion that has been generated by war.

  A large Western city can be a very anonymous place. Even to members of ethnic minorities it offers a level of concealment. Citizens will keep to themselves and as long as your manner and appearance do not attract attention you can move fairly freely. Always include a shaving kit in your E & E gear – unshaven men will always attract attention. Trains, entertainment centres etc, can offer protection from the weather by day and sometimes by night; evasion is not helped by standing around.

  Movement by day

  Generally, moves by day are not a good idea, but are sometimes unavoidable. If you have to move by day;

  1 Be confident; look as if you know where you are going, do not loiter and do not appear furtive.

  2 Obtain some unobtrusive clothing and try to assume a definite identity; e.g. steal a donkey jacket and carry a spade.

  3 Keep clean, and shave if possible.

  4 If you can get hold of a bike you are doing well, but assess the risk before you steal it. Use public transport if you are completely confident that you know how the system works.

  5 Keep away from stations and bus terminals.

  6 Rivers are an excellent escape route, but the larger ones will be watched.

  7 Watch out for children and dogs. Children are not bound by grown-up conventions of social behaviour, and when they see something peculiar they will point it out loudly.

  Checkpoints

  If you have to pass through an area covered by a checkpoint, imitate the silhouette of the enemy sentries as far as possible, especially headgear, which is a common recognition feature. Learn at least one phrase in the local language along the lines of “Don’t shoot you idiot, it’s me!” – and make su
re it is fluent.

  MOVEMENT BY NIGHT

  Virtually all evasive moves should be made at night. Do not be over confident; remember the enemy has night vision devices. You will always have to compromise between choosing the easiest route and not going where the enemy expect. Remember:

  1 Learn the route.

  2 Unless you have foolproof documentation and the right clothes, never move on roads.

  3 Never cross bridges; use improvized rafts or swim.

  Weapons

  You will have a good chance of bluffing your way out of a stop and search check if you have the right document and kit and know the language. In this case, do not blow your chances by carrying a weapon. If you have no chance of bluffing then consider carrying a weapon; silenced firearms are ideal, but otherwise choose something that is concealable or not in itself harmful e.g. a screwdriver or chisel. Silenced firearms are ideal, but realistically a meat skewer is more the sort of thing you can hide in your kit.

  Capture

  If you are caught in civilian clothes you will not be able to claim protection as a PoW; you will probably be treated as a spy and eventually killed.

  Slumming it

  One way of surviving is by becoming a vagrant. This is not as easy as it may sound. In many cities there is a well-developed underworld of vagrants and drop-outs and your arrival among them will not go unnoticed. The vagrants may include informers or drug addicts, who are an easy target for pressure by the police or enemy security forces.

  If you can degenerate to a low enough level you will become an unlikely suspect. You may have problems with your health and in protecting yourself against bad weather if you adopt this technique.

  Foraging for food is easy in a wealthy environment as long as you are prepared to examine the contents of café and restaurant dustbins. This type of odd behaviour will also add to your cover as a vagrant.

  Dustbins are an excellent source of food and useful kit. Use the lid to sort through the stuff or lay it out on some paper so that you do not make a mess. If you take things away you must fill the bin with newspaper and try to leave the top layer undisturbed; people notice how full their dustbins are.

  The vagrant approach to urban evasion depends on the society in which you are on the run. A European vagrant could be the object of great interest in some African or Far Eastern cities, and this would not assist your attempts at concealment. But in North America and all of Western Europe you could easily pass as a victim of war or civil disturbance. In this environment you can effectively pretend to be insane.

  Deep Cover

  Food can be a problem, depending on how you intend to work. If you go into deep cover and remain concealed in a “safe house”, you will depend on your hosts. There may be problems where food is rationed or controlled.

  Within the house you will, as in an OP, need a look-out position and, most importantly, a place to hide. Many modern houses are built to well known specifications; a search team will perhaps have plans, they will at least have a good knowledge of the type of house. Older houses, on the other hand may have common roof space that allows you to move from house to house in a run of terraced buildings. Flats that have been converted from larger buildings offer good hiding places, but may be less sound-proof.

  The ideal hiding place should be small so that its presence does not detract from the space or comfort of the house. However it should not be so small that prolonged occupation becomes uncomfortable. Water and a bucket for waste matter are the basic priorities and good ventilation is essential. A bench or seat is welcome.

  The walls of the hide should be thick enough not to sound hollow. Various types of sound insulation can be added to the inside to give the impression of a solid structure. Lay in a store of simple foods that will not deteriorate over time and which have basic wrappings.

  When you have prepared the inside you should practise a “crash-move” – getting into the hide from “a standing start” from somewhere else in the house or flat. When you are under cover, the householder will have to remove any trace of your presence in the building. This can include extra food, and plates, books and magazines, clothing of the wrong size or sex and even the extra toothbrush or towel in the bathroom.

  This type of concealment assumes that your evasion is assisted by relatively well-paid people with a circle of reliable contacts. Such people do not normally have a traditional fear of authority but nor do they have the skills of deception and concealment.

  The grey man

  The mid-way approach to evasion is to adopt the “grey man” technique. Here you aim to have as anonymous an appearance as possible. Clothing should be neutral and your behaviour will have to be that of a “solid citizen” – such people do not sit around in public parks or search through dustbins; they are on their way to or from work.

  But this can be very tiring, and you will need a good command of the local language. The advantage is that unlike the vagrant you are less vulnerable to assault by other vagrants or bored members of the enemy police force. Your travel through the country is less likely to be questioned, but – and this is critical – you will need the right paperwork, work permits, identity cards, even documents for travel in restricted areas such as the border and you must also have money.

  It may be that you can make the transition from deep cover to a grey man role. During your time in cover you will be able to learn some language and local knowledge before venturing out.

  Seasonal advantages

  Though evasion and escape can be easier in the country in spring, summer and early autumn, the city can have attractions in the winter. The major disadvantage is that contact with enemy citizens or even occupying powers is inevitable, and this can compromise you.

  JUNGLE EVASION

  Evasion in an environment such as tropical jungle, savannah grassland or deep temperate forest can be a case of survival rather than evasion. Enemy hunters may find searching for you or your group as difficult as locating the proverbial needle in the haystack. But your movements may be predicted by shrewd hunters and they can place ambushes or stop lines on features.

  You will probably have a compass and basic survival kit and even if you escape from a PoW camp or convoy you need a sense of direction, particularly if moving by night. Hunters will try to put stops between you and friendly forces or an open border or sea coast. They will also look at the easy routes, for instance tracks or river lines. Roads and railways are often covered by transport police or civil security forces.

  Security vs speed

  You will be faced by a trade-off between security and speed. Movement by day is faster, and in deep jungle movement by night is almost impossible. But grassland should be covered at night since helicopters or fixed wing aircraft can cover large areas very easily by day.

  Jungle varies between primary and secondary, and though the high canopy of trees in primary may obscure the horizon and make navigation difficult, it is excellent cover from the air, and the going on the ground is easy. However it does not adequately conceal you from enemy troops.

  Secondary jungle gives excellent cover, but is very hard going on foot and can house dangerous plants and animals. But among these threats to life and health there will be edible plants and scope to make animal traps – you have to wait for the trap to be sprung, and it may be found by local people who will report its presence to the enemy.

  Finding water

  Water can be collected from plants or as rainfall, but avoid streams unless you have sterilising tablets in a survival kit. There are a vast number of killing or incapacitating organisms in rivers.

  Savannah and bush have water holes and do give you a better chance to kill game, but remember that you will have to cook it. Cooking takes time, requires a fire and the trade-off of the nutrition of the meat against time and vulnerability is a decision that you or your team will have to make on the ground. Dried or smoked meat is one way of making the most of game that you may have killed.

  Talking to t
he locals

  You may be obliged to enter a village, perhaps because you need urgent help or simply through bad navigation. Most villages have dogs and dogs bark. This will warn the locals that there is a stranger about. Avoid crossing rivers downstream of the village; there may be sewers as well as the “launderette”. Remember that infection can enter your body through your skin as well as you mouth.

  You will be an object of great interest to the locals, but not necessarily an object of hostility. Your colour, clothing and equipment will be observed.

  APPROACHING THE LOCAL PEOPLE

  As an evader, getting the local population on your side is of paramount importance. If you are going to approach a village a thorough recce is essential. Before going in, decide whether you stand a reasonable chance of winning if you do have to fight. If you come to the conclusion they would easily kill you, do not risk provoking them; stash your rifle where it can be retrieved later.

  When you approach the village, do so openly so that they have plenty of warning and will not be forced into a snap decision, such as killing you. Take off your helmet, and bin anything that makes you look like a spaceman. They are less likely to kill you if you look vaguely like them.

  GROUND AIR EMERGENCY CODE

  If friendly forces are going to be looking for you, all means of communication are important, so do not assume the radio will work. This signalling system will work wherever you have air superiority; hilltop village sites are usually clear enough to set this up.

  NOTE: leave a space of about three metres between each element where possible

  1 Require doctor, serious injury

  2 Require medical supplies

  3 Unable to proceed

  4 Require food and water

  5 Require firearms and ammunition

  6 Require map and compass