Part of the Anti-Partisan Operations in Croatia series by H.L. deZeng IV

Dates: July – August 1944. (1)

Objective: see below.

Enemy Forces: Not stated.

Axis Forces: German Luftwaffe and Croatian Air Force aircraft

Conduct of Operations and Results: “Casanova” was probably the strangest of all the anti-Partisan operations in Yugoslavia since it was carried out by aircraft rather than ground forces. It was an operation flown by night reconnaissance aircraft aimed at duping the Partisans into thinking the planes were Allied supply flights originating from Italy. As the Partisans illuminated the drop zone or the landing ground, the Axis aircraft discovered the locations so they could later be bombed or attacked from the ground. The results of this operation are not known, but they are not thought to have amounted to much.

Footnotes
1. NARA WashDC: RG 242 (T-314 roll 1545/844; roll 1546/Anlage Nr. 435; roll 1548).