Story of the Krait: Tigers and Snakes, The

A gripping special of intrigue, heroism and tragedy … more powerful than fiction because it actually happened.

The Story of the Krait: Tigers and Snakes is the story of Z force and its men. It is the story of Operation Jaywick, a mission that should never have succeeded. It is also the story of a follow-up mission that went tragically wrong.

Until now, little was known about the men of Z Force. They were sworn to secrecy. Z Special Unit, as they were known, would never speak of their experiences, not even to each other. The Story of the Krait: Tigers and Snakes takes you on the two missions to experience the intrigue, danger and emotions of men at war.

Fourteen men and a tiny ex-Japanese fishing boat – the Krait – set out from Exmouth Gulf to the islands south of Singapore. Reaching their destination, they transfer to tiny canoes and, armed with limpet mines, proceed to destroy 40,000 tons of Japanese shipping before returning through Japanese-infested waters to Australia.

The second mission, Rimau, took place almost exactly one year later and with many of the original men. Their objective, much the same as the first mission, was to enter Singapore Harbour and sink as much as they could. With their target in sight, something went horribly wrong – not one man survived. Why?

Hear from some of the survivors of Operation Jaywick and find out why men volunteer for missions where violent death is an everyday occurrence.

Running time: 45 minutes