Quote:
Originally Posted by Nick Beale
A little misleading perhaps. ULTRA is simply a security classification for decrypts of machine ciphers. In Europe that meant the Enigma machine (in its various models) and the Lorenz Geheimschreiber teleprinter. In the files we are discussing those are the only sources, so far as I know. The Lorenz was used at the higher command levels, whereas just about every ship, army or Luftwaffe unit had its own Enigma.
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Hello Nick,
Quite right about ULTRA, but not about HW5 so perhaps I could have been a bit more clear. HW5 is the collection of daily intel reports
based on high grade machine decrypts but not confined to that source: many of the excerpts from decrypted messages are then backed up with comments which incorporate information from different sources.
They were a bit careful in describing this series:
"
Description: This series contains summaries produced by the Government Code and Cypher School, of German Air Force, Army and some Navy reports on a wide range of subjects including operational, administrative and logistics matters, obtained by the interception and decryption of signalled communications.
There are also reports issued by the German Intelligence Service and from agents, the German Y Service (Signals Interception and Interpretation Service) and, occasionally, reports from the Italian services (including the Italian Y Service). Some files relate to the German V weapons (flying bombs or guided missiles) programme; others relate to Luftwaffe use of navigational beams to guide bombing raids."
No confusion intended, I believe there is a popular belief that these reports are entirely Enigma traffic and, as you point out, they are not. I simply want to emphasise that the reports are based on decrypted machine traffic but includes data from across the board.
Bruce