The Deadly Double Raid

"The Deadly Double Raid" is the eleventh episode of the first season of The Rat Patrol. It first aired on November 21, 1966.

Synopsis
The Rat Patrol attack a German column. Then Sergeant Moffitt and Private Pettigrew are separated from their jeep, and after walking around in the desert for a bit, they're captured and taken to a P.O.W. camp. It wasn't happenstance: they wanted to be captured so they could find a British soldier called Craig, break him out and bring him back to Allied headquarters. Craig is believed to have important information about a planned German offensive.

But Craig is nowhere to be found at the P.O.W. camp. Corporal Marston (John Doucette) gives Moffitt and Pettigrew some information about how the camp is run, but he seems to not know anything about Craig.

Moffitt was grazed by a bullet. Dr. Phillips (Robert Palmer), the P.O.W. camp doctor, treats Moffitt right after treating a German. Phillips explains that by the Hippocratic oath he must treat everyone who is ill. Later Moffitt adjusts his bandage and finds the word "Nachtigall" (nightingale) under his dressing, presumably for Operation Nachtigall (nightingale).

Pettigrew feigns illness, Marston claims to be Craig. Just then Troy and Hitchcock suddenly appear out of nowhere. Moffitt decides to break out both Marston and Phillips, they'll have to sort out who's really who later.

They reach a position of relative safety, but their jeep gets stuck in the sand. The Germans might not be too far behind. Moffitt suggests surrender. Troy is aghast, and Pettigrew refuses Moffitt's order to make a white flag. But Troy has an inkling that the white flag is a ploy. Phillips seizes the jeep's machine gun, but Troy shoots his pistol and kills Phillips before he can do anything with the machine gun.

Moffitt explains that he suspected Marston or Phillips of being a German operative intent on giving the Allies disinformation about Operation Nachtigall, but he didn't know which. The German operative would not want to return to the Germans so soon, since that would mean he failed in his mission to prevent Marston from telling the Allies about Operation Nachtigall, so Phillips would try anything to avoid that.

Main cast

 * Christopher George as Sergeant Sam Troy
 * Gary Raymond as Sergeant Jack Moffitt
 * Hans Gudegast as Hauptmann Hans Dietrich (credit only)
 * Lawrence Casey as Private Mark T. Hitchcock
 * Justin Tarr as Private Tully Pettigrew

Supporting cast

 * John Doucette as Corporal Marston
 * Robert Palmer as Dr. Phillips