Using Ultra to research the Luftwaffe

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by AndreasB

Question, what's the AIR equivalent to DEFE3?

Andreas

The AIR series is RAF and Air Ministry files - they didn't deal with the issue of deciphered material. Is that what you meant or did I misunderstand?

[AndreasB]

No, you got it. Given that DEFE3 is primarily navy-related material, I was wondering if there is a series of primarily air-related material as well in the RAF and Air Ministry files? I have looked at HW1, which is very helpful but has obvious shortcomings, and HW5, which at least for the period I'm interested in (1941/42 Mediterranean) contains a lot of material, but is best described as a mess.

All the best

Andreas

[Larry deZeng]

Steve C. wrote in part:

I put a query to the PRO last year about the possibility of digitising HW5. This is their response:

Thank you for your enquiry regarding the Government Code and Cypher School: German Section: Reports of German Army and Air Force High Grade Machine Decrypts in The National Archives catalogue reference HW 5.

At present we have no plans to digitise this series and make it available online, but it is a series worthy of investigation, not least because it is fascinating and because it highlights the extraordinary work carried out by the intelligence service during World War II.

Thank you Steve and Bruce D. for clearing this up. I guess we can't expect the archives to digitize everything - not even in good economic times when funds are more readily available. BNA has already done a great service by digitizing DEFE 3 and the community of World War II historians should be grateful for that. Still, a disappointment for those of us who are captivated by the nitty-gritty details of it all from the German side.

L.

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by AndreasB

No, you got it. Given that DEFE3 is primarily navy-related material, I was wondering if there is a series of primarily air-related material as well in the RAF and Air Ministry files?

Andreas

I hadn't thought that DEFE3 is primarily naval, there are "main series" files (Luftwaffe/Heer with message serials BT, HP, VL. KO etc.) and others which are purely naval (with message serials like ZTPGM).

I hadn't really thought of HW5 as a mess, either although I haven't looked at the years you mention. It's much easier to use than DEFE3 and in 1944-45 the Mediterranean material is easy enough to find.

[Nick Beale]

Some news about Bletchley Park's plans to put their archive online: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/11...chives_online/

When I contacted BP back in April they told me "the project is still in its infancy."

[Marc-André Haldimann]

Thanks for the information, Nick!

Bright futures expects us! Looking forward for hang them on my screen

Cheers
Marc

[Nick Beale]

There's some new ULTRA-related material amongst 2014's first updates to the Ghost Bombers website:

• The HW 11 file series which contains several volumes of Air and Military Official Histories written by the Government Code & Cipher School; and
• The code groups introduced into German signals late in the war to denote numbers, dates and times.

[John Manrho]

Can anyone help me with a scan of ULTRA report XL6844 of 18.8.1944?

Regards,

John.

[Nick Beale]

I didn't have that one but I just found you can view the individual messages in the DEFE3 series files on the National Archives website. The file is DEFE3/121.

After a failed attempt earlier (I think I was using the "skip forward" button instead of advance "advance one frame"), I've found it: see the attachment.

[Nick Beale]

FYI, there's a documentary on Bletchley Park's Gordon Welchman on BBC 2 tonight at 9.00 pm" "Code-breaking's forgotten genius."

(Only "forgotten" by people who've never read a book about Ultra, but that's TV for you!)