Qualla: Battle of Elephant Point https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:36 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/w/4/u/m/battle-of-elephant-point-wp/hero-small.webp Qualla: Battle of Elephant Point https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point Battle of Elephant Point: Introduction https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point/ Photo credit Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Public domain. Major Jack Newland's battalion did not officially exist. Cobbled together from two Gurkha parachute units in the middle of a divisional reorganization, with many officers on leave and one battalion about to transfer elsewhere, the composite force assembled in early April 1945 for a single mission: jump into the mouth of the Rangoon River and destroy a Japanese artillery battery at a point called Elephant Point. If they failed, the amphibious fleet sailing upriver to liberate Burma's capital could not pass. The monsoon was coming, and Rangoon had to fall before the rains made land operations impossible. Lord Mountbatten had set the deadline: the city must be in Allied hands by 5 May.

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Image: Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit | Public domain

]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/w/4/u/m/battle-of-elephant-point-wp/w4um-battle-of-elephant-point-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Battle of Elephant Point: Operation Dracula's Knife Edge https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point/ Photo credit Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Public domain. By March 1945, the battles of Meiktila and Mandalay were winding down, and Allied commanders turned their attention south. At a conference in Monywa, Admiral Lord Mountbatten and General William Slim agreed that Rangoon must be taken before the monsoon season -- expected by June ...

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Image: Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit | Public domain

]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/w/4/u/m/battle-of-elephant-point-wp/w4um-battle-of-elephant-point-operation-draculas-knife-edge.mp3 0:06 2 full Battle of Elephant Point: A Battalion Stitched from Pieces https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point/ Photo credit Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Public domain. The 44th Indian Airborne Division received the assignment, but it had no intact unit available. Officers were scattered on leave, and the 3rd Gurkha Parachute Battalion was in the process of transferring to another brigade. Headquarters improvised. A composite battalion was forme...

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Image: Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit | Public domain

]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/w/4/u/m/battle-of-elephant-point-wp/w4um-battle-of-elephant-point-a-battalion-stitched-from-pieces.mp3 0:06 3 full Battle of Elephant Point: Orange Umbrellas and Friendly Bombs https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point/ Photo credit Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Public domain. At 02:30 on 1 May, a lone C-47 carrying a twenty-man pathfinder team lifted off for Rangoon. The rest of the battalion followed thirty minutes later in thirty-eight Dakotas, jumping over the drop zone at 05:45. The landing went smoothly -- with one exception that nearly unraveled...

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Image: Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit | Public domain

]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/w/4/u/m/battle-of-elephant-point-wp/w4um-battle-of-elephant-point-orange-umbrellas-and-friendly-bombs.mp3 0:06 4 full Battle of Elephant Point: High Tides and Liberation https://qualla.com/battle-of-elephant-point/ Photo credit Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Public domain. After securing Elephant Point, the battalion dug in and waited. A relief force landed at nearby Thaunggon at 15:30, followed by a supply drop. In another tragic miscommunication, Gurkha sentries accidentally fired on the surgical team accompanying the relief force, wounding four ...

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Image: Wackett F (Sgt) No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit | Public domain

]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/w/4/u/m/battle-of-elephant-point-wp/w4um-battle-of-elephant-point-high-tides-and-liberation.mp3 0:06 5 full