Story by Tom McArdl
The last surviving veteran of a Second World War special forces unit that took on Erwin Rommel has died at 100.
Jack Mann served as a radio operator in the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG), a reconnaissance and raiding unit formed to fight the Nazis in North Africa.
Despite going on to serve in the special forces, the veteran always insisted: “I can’t say I’m a hero. My job was communications, and that’s what I did.”
Mann, who was born to Jewish parents in Cairo, Egypt, joined the British Army straight after leaving school at the age of 17.
Jack Mann (left) served as a radio operator in the Long Range Desert Group in North Africa – Instagram
He was accepted into the Royal Signals in 1942 before transferring to the LRDG as a radio operator.
Mann became part of a unit that put the Afrika Korps, led by “desert fox” Rommel, to the sword.
The Sahara Desert’s sand seas and extensive dunes made it impossible for significant forces to penetrate inland, meaning the LRDG became vital.
The unit’s role was soon expanded to include offensive action as well as gathering intelligence, as they also became relied upon by the Special Air Service (SAS) to transport them to their targets – earning them the nickname “Libyan Desert Taxi Service”.
However, Mann did not remember the terrain fondly. In 2019, he said: “Don’t talk to me about the sand – I’ve had it in the mouth, in the ears, in the eyes, in the nose, everywhere. Terrible. In my food, particularly.”
Mann’s unit became vital in the war
Mann went on to serve as a radio operator in the Special Boat Squadron (SBS) in British-held Mandatory Palestine and the eastern Mediterranean, also supporting the Greek Sacred Squadron.
In 2022, he told of risking capture by German forces when he was invited to dance by a beautiful woman on the island of Serifos.
Damien Lewis, a historian and Mann’s close friend, said: “Jack Mann, legendary surviving member of the LRDG, the SAS, the SBS and SOE has sadly passed away, aged 100.”
Mann also served in the Special Boat Squadron
The SAS Regimental Association hailed his “incredible bravery”, saying: “Jack volunteered to join the Army and thanks to his language skills and experience, he was selected for special operations serving in the LRDG, SAS, Special Boat Service and SOE and went on to carrying out daring missions behind enemy lines across North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.”
Mann once said: “I can’t say I’m a hero. My job was communications, and that’s what I did. But I tell everyone – my children, my grandchildren – never forget, because war is terrible. I know, because I was in it.”
