133rd (Parachute) Field Ambulance involved in was Operation Slapstick, a landing at the port of Taranto during the Allied invasion of Italy in September 1943. Slapstick was in part a deception operation, to divert German forces away from the main Allied landings at Salerno (Operation Avalanche), which would be taking place on the same day and also an attempt to seize intact the ports of Taranto and Brindisi. The main advantage of Tranato was its large port. Positioned on the eastern side of the country, together with the expected capture of Naples in the west by the Americans, it would give the Allies two
Operation Flagpole (World War II) force supported it. As a result of the meetings, Clark secured the agreement of the French. On October 24, Clark's mission returned to "Seraph" after some inadvertent delays, and later met a seaplane that flew them back to Gibraltar, arriving back in London on October 25. Operation Flagpole was followed by Operation Kingpin, in which Général Giraud, code-named "Kingpin", was released from French "Zone libre" confinement and brought to Gibraltar . Operation Flagpole (World War II) Operation Flagpole was part of the run-up to Operation Torch, the planned Allied invasion of North Africa during World War II. It involved arranging