UK military operation names

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US operation names
German code names
Technology code names

The UK, like most countries refers to military operations with code names. This serves both to protect information about the intended aim and to provide a convenient method of referring to the operation.

Churchill directed that "Operations in which large numbers of men may lose their lives ought not to be described by codenames which imply a boastful and over-confident sentiment such as "Triumphant", or conversely, which are calculated to invest the plan with an air of despondency". He added that they ought not to be frivolous, nor should they be ordinary words, such as 'smooth' or 'flood' that might cause confusion, nor the names of living people.

The American military also began naming its military operations during World War II. In 1942, the US Joint Chiefs of Staff approved an index of code words that are randomly assigned for each operation. The first word refers to the operation's region - e.g., "Desert" for the Middle East - and the second often connotes some kind of resolve.

Here are a few significant UK and allied examples you may remember, or not.

Name Date Description
OP DYNAMO 26th May - 3rd Jun 1940 Rescue of British, French and other Allied forces during the fighting that led to the fall of France - the "Miracle of Dunkirk".
OP COMPASS 9th Dec 1940 British counter-attack at Sidi Barrani as part of the Western Desert campaign. OP COMPASS was the prelude to the Italians being chased out of Egypt and then out of eastern Libya as well.
OP CRUSADER Nov 1943 British and Commonwealth 8th Army's offensive during the Western Desert campaign.
OP SUPERCHARGE 1st Nov1942 Montgomery's (successful) plan for the second battle of El Alamein.
OP MINCEMEAT 30th Apr 1943 British deception operation that planted plans for a fictional imminent invasion of Greece, thus drawing attention from Allied plans to invade Sicily . Recorded in the novel "The Man Who Never Was", by E Montagu.
OP CHASTISE 17th May 1943 RAF attack on the Ruhr dams, conducted by 617 Squadron using the UPKEEP depth charge, or "bouncing bomb".
OP HUSKY 10th Jul 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily, protected by deception provided by OP MINCEMEAT.
OP OVERLORD 6th Jun 1944

Overall codename for the Allied invasion of north-west Europe.

The extensive buildup of troops and supplies required to support OVERLOAD began in April of 1942 and was known as OP BOLERO.
OP BODYGUARD  

The overall effort to deceive the Germans was known as Operation Bodyguard, and consisted of ten smaller operations including:

  • Operation Fortitude North, the Skye operation, which created the illusion of a British Fourth Army preparing to invade Norway
  • Operation Fortitude South, the creation of a fictitious First US Army Group (FUSAG) in order to deceive German intelligence into concluding that the Allies would cross at Pas-de- Calais instead of Normandy
  • Operation Graffham
  • Operation Royal Flush
  • Operation Zeppelin - a sham attack in the Balkans by British and American forces encamped in northern Africa in order to induce the Germans to maintain a large defensive presence in the Balkans to prevent reinforcements into northern France.

Deception operations played a big part in the success of OVERLORD, including the use of two 'ghost' fleets, OP TAXABLE to Le Havre and OP GLIMMER to Boulogne. Each was implemented using WINDOW dropped from orbiting aircraft in order to fool German coastal surveillance radars.
OP TITANIC   Ten SAS men executed OP TITANIC which simulated a major airborne landing which distracted a German regiment way from OMAHA beach.
OP NEPTUNE 6th-30th Jun 1944

Assault phase and associated operations of OP OVERLORD, the Allied Normandy Landings. Naval assault forces attacked five beaches named GOLD, JUNO and SWORD (British and Canadian), OMAHA and UTAH (US).

Troops from the UK 6th Airborne Division, and the US 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions were landed on the flanks of the beaches before the naval assaults went in.
OP MARKET-GARDEN 17th Sept1944 Allied operation intended to outflank the German "West Wall" establishing a bridgehead across the lower Rhine river at the Dutch Town of Arnhem.
  • MARKET was the use of airborne troops to seize bridges across eight water barriers
  • GARDEN was the advance of 30 Corps across them.
OP THUNDERCLAP Feb1945 British bombing campaign against Berlin and population centres in eastern Germany, including Magdeburg, Chemnitz and most famously Dresden.
OP MUSKETEER 5th Nov 1956 UK and French Airborne invasion of Port Said during the Suez Crisis.
OP MOTORMAN 31st Jul 1972 UK operation against IRA terrorists. British troops dismantled barricades to re-establish free access to the no-go areas in the Bogside, Brandywell and Creggan areas of Londonderry.
OP NIMROD 5th May 1980 SAS Assault at the Iranian Embassy, Princes Gate London.
OP CORPORATE 1982 UK re-capture of the Falkland Islands from Argentine Forces.
OP BLACK BUCK 1982 RAF bombing of Port Stanley airfield during the Falklands War. Conducted by Vulcan B.1 bombers. This was the longest range bombing mission in RAF history.
OP FLAVIUS 6th Mar 1988

SAS operation against IRA terrorists in Gibraltar. Resulted in three dead terrorists and much political fallout.
OP GRANBY 1990 UK contribution to US led coalition that expelled Iraqi armed forces from Kuwait. The overall mission was codenamed as follows:
  • Desert Shield - deployment to defend Saudi Arabia from Saddam Hussein
  • Desert Storm - Air Offensive
  • Desert Sabre - Land Offensive of 100 hours (previously Desert Sword)
  • Deset Fox - 1998 operation to strike targets WMD targets in Iraq
OP PALLISER 2000

UK joint operation to support evacuation of British nationals from Sierra Leone spearheaded by 1 PARA. The operation later expanded into general intervention and support to GoSL.
OP BARRAS Sept 2000 UK rescue assault of 6 British military hostages (RIR) from West Side Boys in Sierra Leone conducted by troops from 1 PARA, SAS and SBS
OP CONDOR May 2002 Major British-led operation in southeastern Afghanistan. The operation began on 17 May 2002 when a patrol of the Australian SAS was ambushed. The British 45 Commando then flew in to destroy the guerilla force that had exposed itself.
OP TELIC March 2003 UK contribution to US-led coalition which invaded Iraq.