SIGINT (COMINT+ELINT) systems and successes in WWII

This is a very difficult topic to chase in open literature, and even in operational reports the source of much intelligence information and the supporting organizations are clouded.

Who has any information about operations on either side where intercept of communications or radar signals and their exploitation for tactical or strategic purposes was accomplished and useful?

The German heavy cruiser PRINZ EIGEN was conducting a fire support mission in November 1944 off Swörbe in the Baltic, and had to be very alert to viscious Soviet air attack. The 'Buffel Truppe' on baord, the sigint intercept tem with Russian linguists, intercepted Soviet air comms and advised Admiral Thiele that attacks were coming. The weather officer on board mentioned that his observations suggested there was a fog bank just to the west. The curious admiral moved his sqaudron west, soon became enveloped in the fog, and the intercept operators soon reported that the Soviet aircraft yelling that they could not find a target, and that they were soon recalled. Soon thereafter that afternoon PRINZ EUGEN was again shelling Soviet positions on the beach.

There are several more well known incidents:

The Americans' breaking the Japanese code JN-25 and the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway; then later the shoot down of Admiral Yamamoto's plane.

The British read the German Navy Enigma traffic to the U-booten, and the Germans read a good part of the Royal Navy traffic as well. The entire Battle of the Atlantic was a back and forth in the SIGINT world.

The German raider Atlantis captured some critical Britsh code materials, and inter alia, was able to read the BAMS code (British & Allied Merchant Shipping) with ease.

Deception and such at Normandy.

HFDF was an increasingly useful technical tool, though complex and demanding to operate, and DF stations appeared in many odd locations. Knowing the net configurations helps some in understanding the utility of DF operations. In 1941 the US/UK HFDF net in the Pacific included Hawaii, Adak, Kodiak, Bainbridge Island, San Diego, Corregidor, Samoa, Singapore. Later there were many more. It the Atlantic, too, this was crucial, and presented the greatest danger to the U-booten, since any signal they made was likely to be picked up by several stations and their position plotted.

U. S. TENTH Fleet? Bletchley Park? There was a Japanese intercept site at Ominato, another at Kwajelein. The Kriegsmarine had several such stations around the Baltic...Danzig, Elbing, Pillau, Libau, Reval, Bornholm, Schwinemünde, etc.

Does anyone have others stories they have found? Add bits and pieces to the whole?

Lou

 

I have lots of information on that subject. Do you have specific cases you are interested in? For example the USAAF and USN both had patrol aircraft flying ELINT missions as early as mid 1942 in Europe, the Mediterrainian and, Pacific. The USN used PBY and B-24 aircraft in the Pacific to map Japanese radar stations throughout the war. The USAAF had several modified B-17 in the Med flying similar missions to find and map German and Italian radar etc.
Before Normandy the Allies made a very concerted effort to map the position of every German radar in that part of France and beyond. Interestingly, this was made easier after the Bruneval raid where British commandos landed in France attacked and took a German Würtzburg radar station, disassembled the radar and, then escaped by sea. The Germans afterwards started ringing their radar stations with barbed wire entanglements, installed bunkers and trenches for defense and, unwittingly made them much more visible from the air.

 

A previous career of mine and still an interest. I live close to Malvern and Defford in UK. I'm
forever finding little snippets. Tons of elint and sigint stuff round here in ww2. Drop me a line
if of interest. A lot of the old bases used in ww2 are still around. Many still in use...Or just
buzzing away quietly.

 

Some German info I found recently on my research jigsaw..

http://fykse.dnsalias.com/radio/dok/german_sigint.pdf