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M & Z Special UnitsPrint Page 
The plaque commemorates the officers and men who died in service or killed in action whike serving with the Australian Independent Companies Commando Squadron M and Z Special units.
M Special Unit, was a joint Allied special reconnaissance unit, part of the Services Reconnaissance Department, in the South West Paciific theatre of World War Two. A joint Australian, New Zealand, Dutch and British military intelligence unit, it saw action in New Guinea and the Solomon Islands between 1943–1945, against the Empire of Japan.
Z Special Unit was a joint Allied special forces unit formed during the Second World War to operate behind Japanese lines in South East Asia. Z Special Unit was assembled from mainly Australian, British, Dutch and New Zealand members but it also recruited fighters of Timorese and Indonesian heritage.
In 1943, in what is regarded by many as the most successful clandestine military operation ever — Operation Jaywick — a team of 14 Z Special Unit commandos paddled into Singapore harbour in kayaks and attached limpet mines to Japanese enemy shipping. The stealthy raiders sank seven ships or 39,000 tonnes before escaping home to Australia undiscovered.
Location
| Address: | Birdwood Avenue, Shrine Reserve, Melbourne, 3000 |
|---|---|
| State: | VIC |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -37.830139 Long: 144.973276 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Plaque |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | Conflict |
| Sub-Theme: | WW2 |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 03-September-1939 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 15-August-1945 |
Dedication
1939 World War II 1945.
In memory of the Officers and men of Australian Independent Companies Commando Squadron
M + Z Special Units
Who gave their lives for their country
