Radio Deception in WW2 - Op Fortitude, etc

Discussion in 'Top Secret' started by BC610E, Jun 7, 2012.

  1. Wills

    Wills Very Senior Member

    Attached Files:

  2. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    WarCollector: Fu.30 Richtgerät fur Funkpeiler -------(A collector !)



    Some of the American Radio sites have SPF as Shortest Path First radio protocols - ?




    Ertel-Werk Munchen

    Umm....! That has a distinct post-WWII feel about it to me and wouldn't seem to relate to equipment used for radio deception - but I'm open to suggestions. :)

    I still live in hopes of finding out if SPF actually means anything or was chosen at random. Notes I have on the Naval CLH seem to say that name was chosen at random, so perhaps SPF is the same. The Royal Signals Museum curator thought "Spoof" was the most likely explanation. CLH seems to be a code name for the Royal Navy Radio Deception Units I mentioned earlier and that I'm looking for photos of.

    Compliments of the season to all on the forum.


    '610E
     
  3. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    Hi All,

    I haven't done any more research into this topic since my last posting but a recent discussion of radio deception by 5 Wireless Group (5WG) on another forum has prompted me to do a bit more work.

    I have the war diaries for 5WG covering their deployment to the Low Countries in autumn of 1944 until their disbandment in '45. Also I have the war diaries of "A" Detachment of 5WG who went to Italy in autumn '44 and appear to have been there until the surrender in May '45. What I haven't been able to find are the diaries for 5WG when they were working up and also actively running radio deception ops in the UK prior to Overlord in June '44.

    Did units only fill out war diaries is they were in conatct with enemy forces, or, in this case, would operations within the UK count as being in contact? I suspect that 5WG pre-June '44 diaries (if they ever existed) have found their way into larger signals-related files at TNA, so I really need someone with more experience to locate them, for which I'm happy to pay.

    Thanks,

    '610
     
  4. Joe Brown

    Joe Brown WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    610.

    We always filled in a War Dairy, whether in operation or not.

    Wish during my long life-time I had done the same, but confess I started and stopped on a number of occasions. Never kept a personal diary during the time I was in N.W Europe, hoping as an Intelligence Officer, to set an example and not provide the enemy - if it fell into their hands - with helpful info!

    Joe
     
  5. urqh

    urqh Senior Member

    You may be interested in the Secret Wireless War by Geoffrey Pidgeon.
     
  6. PsyWar.Org

    PsyWar.Org Archive monkey

    610 have you checked/seen WO 171/2044? I know it is listed as a Section rather than Group but think it worth checking.


    Lee
     
  7. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    Hi Lee,

    No, I don't have that. I'll look in the catalogue and see if there's anything relevant.

    Thanks

    '610
     
  8. PsyWar.Org

    PsyWar.Org Archive monkey

    It's labelled as Royal Signals > Wireless Groups and Sections > 5 Wireless Section, covering January to November 1944. It's a North West Europe diary and not referring to the 5 Special Wireless Section in Burma.
     
  9. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    Thanks urqh, I do have a copy of that excellent book but don't recall anything specific to my search, e.g. 5 Wireless Group and the SPF radio deception equipment. I will do a search through it again.

    '610
     
  10. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    Interesting! Wonder if it's mis-filed. I did come across some stuff for 3 Special Wireless in with the later 5 WG diaries, which I thought might have been in the wrong place, even though it was the right theatre. That period you quote is just what I'm looking for - if it is in fact 5WG. :smile:

    Will contact you off-list.

    Regards,

    '610
     
  11. PsyWar.Org

    PsyWar.Org Archive monkey

    '610 it is reasonably common for war diary to have inaccurate descriptions.
    Was 5 Special Wireless Group established specifically for Overlord? Perhaps that explains why it is in WO 171 rather than say WO 166?
    If this is a new group it could be that the first six months of the diary only has a few lines of entries. But worth checking out nevertheless.
     
  12. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    Hi Lee,

    Yes, 5 WG was set up in '43 primarily to use the SPF equipment for Op. Fortitude. They were involved in the design, development and use of the equipment. I can probably work out where they were from Jan 44 to Oct 44 by using published sources but it would be useful to see those WDs you mention.

    '610
     
  13. PsyWar.Org

    PsyWar.Org Archive monkey

    Pleased to report that WO 171/2044 is the earlier war diary for 5 Wireless Group and not the Section diary as described in the catalogue.
     
  14. BC610E

    BC610E Junior Member

    Just a follow-up to the above; the files Lee had spotted were in fact the war diaries for 5 Wireless Group and cover from the formation of the Group in Jan 1944 to the end of May 1944, when they joined with "179 Fd (Cam) Coy RE" and the upkeep of war diaries became the responsibiity of that outfit. It looks as though 5WG did go over to Normandy on or around D-Day and carried on with radio deception transmissions from France. However, my efforts to find who 179 Fd (Camo) Coy RE were have drawn a blank although there is a mention of such outfits being employed on various tasks in the Trux section of this site. There's some logic in a radio deception unit being joined with another larger formation with camouflaging responsibilities, I suppose.

    Can anyone shed any light on the 179th and possibly point me to their diaries?

    Thanks,

    '610
     

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