Spring 1941. The British Army is losing the war against Germanyand the Axis powers, fighting for control of North Africa.Toldto stand down after yet another failed operation, LieutenantDavid Stirling, an eccentric young officer serving with 8Commando, finds himself increasingly frustrated with themilitary authorities and their handling of current strategy.It's a frustration also shared by Lt John ‘Jock' Lewes, whois fighting under heavy bombardment in the besieged city ofTobruk, and Lt Robert Blair ‘Paddy' Mayne, currently‘detained' in a military prison. But Lewes has an idea he'skeen to discuss – and it involves parachutes…Lewes thinksRommel has made a mistake. He has moved too fast and his supplyline is too long, leaving coastal airfields vulnerable toattack. Lewes shares with Stirling his idea of parachutingunits of men into the desert, attacking enemy forces not fromthe sea, where an attack is expected, but from the sea ofsand - the desert - where they have the advantage of surprise.There's just one problem. They need to prove that the principleof a parachute drop in the desert is a sound one before themission can be approved. With typical bravado and ingenuity,the pair set about jump training and securing a plane for theirfirst attempt at parachuting into the mighty sea of sand. Whenthe jump unexpectedly goes wrong, is their plan about to fallat the first hurdle?
