Operation Plunder – crossing the Rhine

Operation Plunder was an amphibious crossing of the Rhine carried out by Allied forces starting from the night of 23–24 March 1945.

Shortly before the crossing, COPP were called on to do reconnaissance of the eastern bank. Nick Hastings, the officer in charge of COPP Depot on Hayling Island, quickly organised things and a team comprising mainly of men from COPP 5 flew from the UK to Germany, carried out the reconnaissance, and then flew back again even before the crossings had started.

The crossings took place over a wide front and precisely where this team did their reconnaissance is currently unknown to me.

Find out more about COPP’s involvement in Operation Plunder:
www.coppsurvey.uk/march-1945/#plunder

This film was originally produced by the Royal Air Force and focused mainly on Operation Varsity, the airborne element of the crossings. I’ve edited it to focus a bit more on the amphibious crossings.

© IWM APY 40