In November 1942 the British First Army, with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Parachute Battalions (1st Parachute Brigade) attached, invaded French Morocco and Algeria (Operation Torch). The British airborne operations in North Africa started on 12 November, when the 3rd Battalion carried out the first battalion sized parachute drop, on Bone airfield between Algiers and Tunis. The remainder of the brigade arrived by sea the next day. On 15 November, the 1st Battalion were ordered to parachute and capture a vital road junction at Béja west of Tunis. The battalion captured both Béja and Mateur after an attack on a German armoured column and an Italian tank position. The 2nd Battalion, now commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John Frost, carried out a parachute drop on Depienne Airfield south of Tunis. The airfield had been abandoned, so they marched to capture Oudna Airfield. There, they were supposed to have been relieved by advancing British forces, but they had been held up by unexpected German resistance. Frost contacted First Army, only to be informed that, as they were trapped behind the lines, they had been written off. The battalion headed for the British lines, but lost 266 men under constant German attack by the time they reached safety at Medjez el Bab.