 Operation Biting , also known as the Bruneval Raid , was the codename for a raid by Combined Operations in 1942 . Their objective was a German Würzburg radar installation at Bruneval in France . Due to the extensive coastal defences erected by the Germans to protect the array , it was thought a commando raid from the sea would incur heavy losses , and give the garrison sufficient time for the radar equipment to be destroyed . It was therefore decided that an airborne assault followed by sea @-@ borne evacuation would be the ideal way to surprise the garrison and seize the technology intact . 
