View from our hotel room in Schwanden, Switzerland 2013
Here are some of the pictures recently added to the Europe photo gallery. Schwanden, in Switzerland, was a superb discovery as the hotel was in the countryside but at a very reasonable distance from a big city like Bernes. This is an HDR picture, as the contrasts were just too important between the shadows under the balcony and the natural light of the sky. The Schwanden picture represents in fact five shots each taken with a different exposure. Photomatix is the software used to mix together all the pictures. Have a good visit in the photo galleries!
This book is about the daily operations and lifestyle of the people who worked at decoding German messages in Bletchley Park, England, during the Second World War. The reader quickly realizes the incredible impact of the shadow workers on major battles like the Battle of England, El Alamein or eventually the D-Day. Moreover, it allows the reader to enter the Park’s installations to witness the rigor and professionalism of the men and women who worked day and night, through high tension and exhaustion, to accomplish their duties.
The Secret Life of Bletchley Park
Their efforts to obtain results bordered with obsession. Even while sleeping, brains were at work. A major breakthrough happened after a researcher woke up in the middle of the night with a long awaited solution. Naturally, names like Alan Turing, John Herivel or Dillwyn Knox are repeated on a regular basis. But they are just a few in a crowd who played an essential role.
Bletchley Park was highly efficient for many reasons:
1. A wise combination of employees with diversified training and capabilities. A wide cross-section of abilities and general culture were sought after. Women and men working at decoding were gifted with a highly superior intelligence and focusing capacity. Multiple fields of knowledge were required: there were experts in mathematics as much as in history, classical letters or linguistic. Dillwyn Knox, one of the Bletchley stars, was himself an expert in old papyrus. The combination of intelligence resulted in important innovation.
2. The ability to keep a secret: the employees were scrupulously screened and could not walk in any other buildings than the one that they were assigned for their work. If there had been a mole in one of the buildings, that person would not have been able to have a physical access to other buildings to try to acquire secret information. A common goal and a deep understanding about the importance of their sole objective helped the staff to deal with fatigue and keep the unavoidable personal conflicts under control. The discretion about the operations at Bletchley was even maintained by the employees after the war was officially over.
3. A special treatment for the code breakers: even if Bletchley Park was officially created for military purposes, there was no strict military regime implemented: [my translation] “Throughout the years and centuries, we observe that British intelligence is partly a military affair, but is mostly managed by talented civilians”. The code breakers needed a special treatment: [my translation] “It was deemed very important that the “experts” benefitted from enough space and liberty so that their brilliant thinking could be used at its full potential”. They did not have to deal with restrictions and discipline applied to other employees. This objective to avoid useless pressure on highly skilled employees has been repeated in successful international companies aimed at innovation.
4. Collaboration between countries: it is important to mention the essential collaboration between Poland, England and France at gathering results aimed at cracking the Enigma code. Up to the moment that France was defeated, all the found solutions were shared. Besides, Polish cryptanalysts where the first to decipher the codes on the first version of the Enigma machine, results that were shared with the two other countries.
5. The importance of the chance factor in the success of the operations: the chance factor would eventually play a key role in the ability for Bletchley Park to maintain its operations for a prolonged period. In spite of the intense German bombings, very little damage was inflicted to the buildings where the code breakers were working: [my translation] “We owe it to a miracle that only two bombs fell on Bletchley Park […]. Moreover, another bomb fell near the site where Knox and Lever were working, but it never exploded”. Furthermore, two other bombs fell on the Park, also without exploding.
There were nonetheless obstacles to efficient operations. These included the existence of useless levels of administration: primary information starts to be transformed as soon as it is passed to another level for interpretation. The more levels there are, the more the message is transformed. Some people become masters at protecting their own status and job and eventually become superfluous. Because of their higher status, they are harder to dislodge. This situation could not be avoided at Bletchley Park: [my translation] “Our working place is actually overcrowded by intelligence officers who mishandle our results and make no efforts to double check their arbitrary correction”.
A book passage that particularly touched me was the story of three British sailors who swam up to a slowly sinking U-Boat, the U-559, and helped protect and bring back a four rotor Enigma machine (the most complex version) as well as all the Stark keys used with the machine. The two sailors who entered the U-Boat drowned as they had insufficient time to get out on time. The third sailor, who had stayed outside, was able to bring back all the secret material (wisely placed in a sealed bag) to his ship. To get a hold of this Enigma machine and all its keys would be deemed of capital importance to help neutralize the German forces on the oceans.
I conclude with a quote from Mavis Batey which resumes quite well the state of mind of the people who worked at Bletchley Park: [my translation] “You do things or not, but if you don’t act, nobody will do it at your place”.
Bilingual readers who appreciate real life stories about the sea will love: “On l’appelait Bugaled Breizh”. This is the story of a trawler that sinks with all crew and equipment, while fishing in the Cornouailles region. Experienced sailors were on board and the weather was fair. Other trawlers were present in the area and their captains were maintaining contact with each other by radio. Suddenly, the Bugaled Breizh’s captain mayday call was received. Just a few words, not even enough time to complete his sentence.
Yann Queffélec – On l’appelait Bugaled Breizh
We soon discover that the trawlers were not alone in the area. There were alsonuclear submarines on an exercise in shallow waters. And there is a possibility that a submarine from an uninvited country could have also been watching the manoeuvers, well protected in the obscurity and silence.
The book raises the possibility that a fast moving submarine could have been entangled in the Bugaled Breizh’s fishing net, thus destabilizing the trawler and sinking it, without giving the captain any time to react. As for keeping the truth hidden about the accident,it is believed that if the facts were openly revealed to the general public, it would create strong political tensions due to admitting that an undetectedsubmarine was closely watching the military exercise. The book enumerates possible reasons explaining the presence of the foreign submarine in the area.
Theenquiry, or shall I say inquiries, have been stalled for over ten years now. But as questions have been asked over the years to a vast network of interested parties, a better idea of what could have been the causes behind that drama has emerged.
This is a really interesting book, signed by the reknowned writer Yann Queffélec (Goncourt prize 1985 for Les Noces barbares) also helped by Pascal Bodéré, a journalist known as one of the best connaisseur of the Bugaled Breizh affair.
1978. During my first trip to Europe , I am lucky enough to capture this picture of Concorde at Charles de Gaulle Airport , France, from the window of the Air Canada Boeing B-747 that flew us over the Atlantic. The arrival was punctuated by a missed approach due to adverse weather conditions.
1980. I fulfill my dream to fly a plane and sign-up for a private pilot course in St- Jean -sur- Richelieu. My first solo flight , which means without an instructor, takes place on a Grumman Cheetah (C-GVXO) on a sunny day. The landing is smooth and I can’t believe I will finally be able to fly unaccompanied. A dream come true !
As the private pilot course continues, a change in aircraft model is required to practice incipient spins because the Cheetah does not meet the criterias required by flight schools. If we would find ourselves in a complete spin during the exercise, it would take too long to correct. So a Cessna C-150 (C-GGNK) will be used . The transition is strange as students have to suddenly enter a whole new aircraft for this exercise only. Feelings and views are completely different.
Cessna C150 C-GGNK en 1980 à St-Jean-sur-Richelieu.
All instructors do not have the same luck, one of them and his student eventually experience a real engine failure during take-off on their Cessna C-150. Fortunately, no one is killed or injured . However , the damage is considerable. The photo below shows what is left of the plane.
A Cessna C-150 following an engine failure at take-off. St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, 1981.
(Next story: Accidental night flying…without night rating).
