Challenge #32

24 October 2026

These are the ten questions from War Dossier daily challenge #32, of 24 October 2026, with the correct answer and an explanation for each. Today's challenge is a different one and it is free to play.

The dossier entry: Isla de Betio

Tiny island at the southwest corner of Tarawa atoll. Its airstrip made it the heart of the American objective and the setting of the operation's bloodiest fighting.

Challenge answers

1 / 10

What piece of infrastructure, key to Betio's military value, can be seen in this image?

• Its airstrip
• A submarine port
• A large dam
• A railway line

The airfield, laid out along the island, was the main reason for Betio's strategic value.

2 / 10

In what kinds of theatres did the forces of the Empire and Commonwealth operate together during the war?

• Africa, the Middle East, Europe and South-East Asia
• Only in the defence of the British Isles
• Only in naval operations in the North Atlantic
• Exclusively in occupation duties after 1945

Joint campaigns spanned several continents, from the North African desert to Burma.

3 / 10

In what year was the French village of Oradour-sur-Glane destroyed?

• 1944
• 1943
• 1942
• 1945

The destruction of the village took place in June 1944, just days after the Normandy landings.

4 / 10

Which of these Allied vehicles combined front wheels with rear tracks, unlike the others which ran fully on wheels or fully on tracks?

• The M3 half-track
• The Universal Carrier
• The Staghound armoured car
• The Sherman DD

Only the M3 half-track mixed a front wheeled axle with a tracked rear running gear.

5 / 10

Which other Allied army, besides the American one, relieved troops on Vella Lavella weeks after the landing?

• New Zealand's
• The Soviet Union's
• Free France's
• The Netherlands'

Troops of the New Zealand 3rd Division relieved American forces on the island in September 1943.

6 / 10

What was the Bombe trying to determine by automatically testing different combinations?

• The daily Enigma settings: rotors, positions, and plugboard wiring
• The geographic location of the radio transmitter
• The radio frequency being used
• The language the message was written in

Starting from a 'crib' (a probable piece of plaintext), the Bombe used logical contradiction to rule out thousands of impossible combinations of rotors, their starting positions, and plugboard connections, leaving only a few to check by hand.

7 / 10

What was the approximate width of the gap opened in the Johor Causeway after its demolition?

• About 21 metres
• Nearly 200 metres
• Barely 2 metres
• More than a kilometre

The second charge blew a gap of about 21 metres (70 feet) in the causeway.

8 / 10

What happened to a large part of these prisoners after their capture?

• Many died in captivity due to the harsh conditions of the camps
• They were all released immediately
• Most joined the German army voluntarily
• They were repatriated to the USSR within weeks

The extreme conditions of the improvised camps in the German rear caused numerous deaths.

9 / 10

Which Soviet division led the final assault on the Reichstag on 29 and 30 April 1945?

• The 150th Idritsa Rifle Division
• The 1st Guards Division
• The 62nd Stalingrad Rifle Division
• The 316th Rifle Division (Panfilov's)

The 150th Idritsa Rifle Division, part of the 3rd Shock Army, led the final assault.

10 / 10

What stood out about Erich Hartmann's way of fighting?

• He never lost a wingman
• He attacked only at night
• He fought without loading ammunition
• He never flew alone

Despite his many engagements, he never lost a pilot flying as his wingman.