Beach Jumpers were U.S. Navy special warfare units, specializing in deception and psychological warfare

Psychological warfare

Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...

.

Beach Jumper volunteers were recruited for "prolonged, hazardous, distant duty for a secret project." Their identities and activities were very highly classified

Classified information

Classified information is sensitive information to which access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of persons. A formal security clearance is required to handle classified documents or access classified data. The clearance process requires a satisfactory background investigation...

, since the slightest leak of information could ruin even brilliant deceptions. Many Beach Jumpers went to their graves without ever revealing, even to their wives and children, what they had done in the Navy.

The U.S. Navy had active Beach Jumper units from 1943–1946 and 1951–1972.

Their early basic mission was "To assist and support the operating forces in the conduct of Tactical Cover and Deception in Naval Warfare." To accomplish it, they learned to simulate very large amphibious landings

Amphibious warfare

Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...

 with very limited forces. Using specialized deception equipment, a few dozen Beach Jumpers could make the enemy believe they were a 70,000-man amphibious landing force, when in fact that force would be elsewhere, usually a great distance away.

The Beach Jumpers were formed in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 after Lieutenant Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.

Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.

Douglas Elton Fairbanks, Jr. KBE was an American actor and a highly decorated naval officer of World War II.-Early life:...

, the Hollywood actor turned naval officer, was assigned to duty with British Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten’s Commando

Commando

In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...

 in England. Fairbanks not only observed the training, planning, and execution of the Commando's raiding parties, diversions, and deception operations, but he trained with the unit and participated in several cross channel harassment raids. It was during these raids that he gained a true appreciation for the military art of deception.

When he returned to the U.S., he presented his idea for a unit of men trained to conduct tactical cover, diversionary and deception missions. Inspired by the success of the British Commando in using sonic deception on raids against the Nazis and Fairbanks' concept of operations, Admiral Ernest J. King, Commander-in-Chief, U. S. Fleet, and Chief of Naval Operations

Chief of Naval Operations

The Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...

, issued a secret letter on 5 March 1943 charging the Vice Chief of Naval Operations

Vice Chief of Naval Operations

The Vice Chief of Naval Operations is the second highest ranking officer in the United States Navy. In the event that the Chief of Naval Operations is absent or is unable to perform his duties, the VCNO assumes the duties and responsibilities of the CNO. The VCNO may also perform other duties...

 with the recruitment of 180 officers and 300 enlisted men for the Beach Jumper program.

The recruits had to meet four general requirements: (1) no seasickness, (2) experience in small boat

Boat

A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...

 handling, (3) enough electrical knowledge to fix a home radio, and (4) at least fundamental knowledge of celestial navigation

Celestial navigation

Celestial navigation, also known as astronavigation, is a position fixing technique that has evolved over several thousand years to help sailors cross oceans without having to rely on estimated calculations, or dead reckoning, to know their position...

. The announcement further stated that "The Navy is requesting volunteers for prolonged, hazardous, distant duty for a secret project."

On 16 March 1943, the volunteers reported to the Amphibious Training Base at Camp Bradford, Virginia and formed Beach Jumper Unit One. The group was trained in small boat handling, seamanship

Seamanship

Seamanship is the art of operating a ship or boat.It involves a knowledge of a variety of topics and development of specialised skills including: navigation and international maritime law; weather, meteorology and forecasting; watchstanding; ship-handling and small boat handling; operation of deck...

, ordnance, gunnery

Naval artillery

Naval artillery, or naval riflery, is artillery mounted on a warship for use in naval warfare. Naval artillery has historically been used to engage either other ships, or targets on land; in the latter role it is currently termed naval gunfire fire support...

, demolition

Demolition

Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use....

, pyrotechnics

Pyrotechnics

Pyrotechnics is the science of using materials capable of undergoing self-contained and self-sustained exothermic chemical reactions for the production of heat, light, gas, smoke and/or sound...

, and meteorology

Meteorology

Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...

. The unit was assigned ten 63-foot double-hulled plywood Air-Sea Rescue Boats (ASR), each to be manned by an officer and a six-man crew. The boats were equipped with twin 50 caliber machine guns, 3.5 inch window rockets, smoke pots and generators, and floating time delay explosive packs. They also carried the unit’s specialized deception equipment: the multi-component "heater," consisting of a wire recorder; 5-phase amplifier, and 1000 watt, 12 horn speaker; and ZKM and MK-6 Naval balloons to which strips of radar reflective window

Chaff (radar countermeasure)

Chaff, originally called Window by the British, and Düppel by the Second World War era German Luftwaffe , is a radar countermeasure in which aircraft or other targets spread a cloud of small, thin pieces of aluminium, metallized glass fibre or plastic, which either appears as a cluster of secondary...

 had been attached. The latter could be towed behind the boats to enhance their radar cross-section. Later, the Beach Jumpers acquired various jamming transmitters such as the APT-2 (Carpet); APQ-2 (Rug); AN/APT-3 (Mandrel); AN/SPT-4; AM-14/APT; AM-18/APT; and AN/SPT-1 (DINA).

The Beach Jumpers got their name because of their ability to quickly hit the beach and confuse the enemy with harassment and deception operations. During a high level conference, someone stated that the purpose of the Beach Jumpers’ work was "to scare the be-jesus out of the enemy." The term "BJ factor" was used thereafter in their planning, and is said to have inspired the cover name Beach Jumpers.

Beach Jumpers saw much action in WWII. Their first operation was in Operation HUSKY, the Allied invasion of Sicily

Allied invasion of Sicily

The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major World War II campaign, in which the Allies took Sicily from the Axis . It was a large scale amphibious and airborne operation, followed by six weeks of land combat. It launched the Italian Campaign.Husky began on the night of...

. On the night of 10 July 1943, Beach Jumper Unit ONE was ordered to conduct a diversion off Cape San Marco, 100 miles west of the HUSKY landing area. The first attempt was recalled due to hazardous seas. On D+1, the weather was better and the operation began at 2200 hours. At 3,000 yards off shore, three of the ASRs prepared their heaters, one ASR proceeded a thousand yards ahead and began to lay smoke. As the sound boats prepared to make their run parallel to the beach, a searchlight from Cape San Marco illuminated the area, accompanied by small arms and artillery fire. At 0230 the sound boats were ordered to secure their heaters and approach the beach, which they did, firing guns and rockets. All boats retired on a course back to their home port at Pantelleria

Pantelleria

Pantelleria , the ancient Cossyra, is an Italian island in the Strait of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of Sicily and just east of the Tunisian coast. Administratively Pantelleria is a comune belonging to the Sicilian province of Trapani...

, Sicily.

To keep the Germans’ attention, the unit was ordered to conduct another operation on the night of 12 July 1943, using all available craft. This time the shore batteries were completely alerted. The Germans were convinced that a landing was about to take place. Salvos of six inch and smaller guns were thrown at the boats. The operation was a success and no casualties were sustained.

Operation HUSKY accomplished complete surprise due to the uncertainty created in the minds of some German Commanders by the diversions and deception operations. BJU-1 was responsible for an entire German Reserve Division being held in place, as the German Command was unsure where the actual landing would take place.

Beach Jumpers continued to work successfully in the Mediterranean through the summer of 1944. Beach Jumper operations in the Pacific were less rewarding, but at least one diversion proved effective, allowing the 34th Regimental Combat team and the 38th and 11th Airborne Divisions to land with little or no opposition.

Shortly after the end of WWII, all Beach Jumper Units were deactivated.

They were reactivated in 1951, in spite of the objections of those who questioned the worth of a deception unit in these more sophisticated times. A Beach Jumper unit was given a chance to prove its worth when an important training exercise was being planned. The Beach Jumpers knew that Fleet communications from the Force Commander to ships at sea were relayed through radio Washington. Pretending to be the Force Commander, they sent an official message, via Radio Washington, ordering every ship’s Commanding Officer to report aboard the flagship the next morning to discuss terminating the exercise. The next morning at least half of the ships’ Commanding officers were aboard the flagship in a state of mounting confusion and anger. There were no more doubts about the worth of the Beach Jumper program.

Through the late 1950s and into the early 1960s as the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

 evolved into the "Counterinsurgency Era," Beach Jumper expertise in the area of manipulative and imitative deception and electronic warfare

Electronic warfare

Electronic warfare refers to any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults via the spectrum. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of, and ensure friendly...

 (EW) was employed in revolutionary new ways, both during scheduled fleet exercises and on actual operations. Additionally, they acquired a new secondary mission: "To plan and execute Psychological Operations in support of commands to which assigned."

Several Beach Jumper teams were active in the Vietnam War

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

, responsible for tactical deception and for employing psychological operations (PSYOPS), which was also their unclassified cover activity. They operated from several naval platforms including the USS Iwo Jima (LPH-2)

USS Iwo Jima (LPH-2)

USS Iwo Jima was the lead ship of her class and type—the first ship to be designed and built from the keel up as an amphibious assault ship. She carried helicopters and a detachment of embarked Marines for use in the Navy's "vertical envelopment" concept of amphibious operations...

 and USS Tripoli (LPH-10)

USS Tripoli (LPH-10)

USS Tripoli , an , was laid down on 15 June 1964 at Pascagoula, Mississippi, by the Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation; launched on 31 July 1965; sponsored by Mrs. Jane Cates, the wife of General Clifton B. Cates, former Commandant of the Marine Corps; and commissioned on 6 August 1966 at the...

. Their primary mission was to assist and support the operating forces in the conduct of Tactical Cover and Deception. They conducted monitoring, tape preparation and Soviet Signal Intelligence SIGINT

SIGINT

Signals intelligence is intelligence-gathering by interception of signals, whether between people , whether involving electronic signals not directly used in communication , or combinations of the two...

 trawler

Naval trawler

A naval trawler is a vessel built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes. Naval trawlers were widely used during the First and Second world wars. Fishing trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust boats designed to work...

 jamming missions from destroyers. Some of the men became paratroopers, possibly to add credibility to the Beach Jumper cover name.
Other Beach Jumpers operated under the cover name "Yankee Station Special Surveillance Unit," aboard fleet tugs such as the USS Cocopa (ATF-101)

USS Cocopa (ATF-101)

USS Cocopa was an Abnaki class fleet ocean tug that served on active duty with the U.S. Navy from 1944 to 1978, seeing action in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. After thirty-four years of service, she was sold to the Mexican Navy, where she continues in service to this day...

. Their mission was to deceive and jam Soviet Signal Intelligence (SIGINT) and Electronics Intelligence (ELINT) trawlers that were monitoring U.S. Naval operations in the Gulf of Tonkin

Gulf of Tonkin

The Gulf of Tonkin is an arm of the South China Sea, lying off the coast of northeastern Vietnam.-Etymology:The name Tonkin, written "東京" in Hán tự and Đông Kinh in romanised Vietnamese, means "Eastern Capital", and is the former toponym for Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam...

. This group conducted counter SIGINT trawler activities which included random jamming

Radio jamming

Radio jamming is the transmission of radio signals that disrupt communications by decreasing the signal to noise ratio. Unintentional jamming occurs when an operator transmits on a busy frequency without first checking whether it is in use, or without being able to hear stations using the frequency...

with noises that even included bagpipe recordings.

The Beach Jumper name was retired in 1972, and the Beach Jumper mission was assigned to Fleet Composite Operational Readiness Group ONE (FLTCORGRU ONE). In 1986, Fleet Tactical Deception Group Pacific (FLTDECGRUPAC) and Fleet Tactical Deception Group Atlantic (FLTDECGRULANT) were formed, with the mission of "Assisting Commanders in the planning and conduct of tactical military deception operations."

Former Beach Jumpers are eligible to join the U.S. Navy Beach Jumpers Association and to be Associate Members of the UDT-SEAL Association.

External links

• Rare Declassified WWII Film Footage from 1943 showing Beach Jumper Deception Equipment including Dummy Boats, Dummy Landing Craft and Miniature Decoy Paratroopers! Film was shot by the OSS.
• Beach Jumper Boats Video
• U.S. Navy Beach Jumpers Association
• The UDT-SEAL Association
• The Naval Special Warfare Foundation