ENIGMA related site

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by PlaneKrazy

Three rotor Enigma was also used by German railways, Luftwaffwe base commands, SS Klien Kampfverbande units (mini subs in Adriatic etc) and Heereswaffen (army unit) commands in the field. These codes were frequently read. For example Luftwaffe units reported losses and personnel transfers or received orders by Enigma. The waters are muddied because there was also alternate means of communication not requiring radio transmissions, such as telephonic messages or telegrams.

Having spent much of my spare time for the last 17 years reviewing tens of thousands of ENIGMA decrypts and also Allied Luftwaffe-related SIGINT from the MTO, I've acquired a certain familiarity with the above (except the Reichsbahn stuff)! The "main series" Luftwaffe material also embraces mission intentions and results, periodic strength returns, unit dispositions, movements of aircraft, pilot availability etc. etc. etc. All you need is time and persistence... these messages are an invaluable aid to reconstructing Luftwaffe actvities.

I've also read a lot of books on ENIGMA (finding Hugh Sebag-Montefiore's probably the best overall) but none has said that much about TypeX and they are all hung up on U-boats, I guess because the Luftwaffe traffic once broken into was read fairly promptly and consistently, so the story lacks drama.