Women of Intelligence: Winning the Second World War with Air Photos

by Halsall, Christine

  The pilots were briefed by the Intelligence Officer before a sortie, and some of them then come to the PI section for additional gen. The PR aircraft were all Spitfires at first, but Mosquitos were coming in before I left in 1942. The usual procedure at St Eval was that when the aircraft landed, the pilot went to the Intelligence Officer to give the information he required. Meanwhile, the films were being processed, which took about an hour, and as soon as the negatives were developed the interpreters started working on them with a stereoscope. The PI report was supposed to be written within two hours of the aircraft landing. The pilots, if they were keen, usually looked in to see the negatives.

  St Eval was regularly bombed and the Photographic Section was eventually moved off the airfield. Ann remarked:

  You felt closer to it in an unusual way when you had been counting the German bombers at their airfield in the morning, and then that night they attacked your station.

  In complete contrast to her work of analysing the movements of the German fleet and being bombed, Ann was flown from St Eval to London for a few days to be photographed in uniform by Cecil Beaton, and featured in a series for Vogue magazine. She was later posted back to Medmenham.

  Eve Holiday was serving at RAF Wick when the German battleship Bismarck was identified.

  Eve Holiday was chosen in January 1941 to go from Wembley with Michael Spender to set up a new PI unit at RAF Wick, an airfield sited on a bleak, treeless plateau on the extreme corner of north-east Scotland. With Norway now under German occupation, the station existed to keep a watch on enemy shipping using the fjords as a base from which they could attack British shipping convoys. Eve recalled:

  When the Germans attacked our airfield, they came in over the sea almost below cliff-top level then swooped upwards to attack the airfield, usually starting with the Officers Mess. There was quite a lot of bombing, and one Heinkel 111 was shot down, the crew landing safely by parachute. For some reason they were brought to the Operations Room, where I happened to be. The Hauptman was brought to our Commanding Officer who was a quiet man. The German did a Heil Hitler to which the CO replied mildly, ‘Good Afternoon’.17

  On 21 May 1941 an urgent phone call was received at RAF Wick from the Admiralty, stating that German ships had been spotted steaming north and must now be off the Norwegian coast. Two PR Spitfires were made ready and took off, one heading for the Oslo area and the other, piloted by 20-year-old Michael Suckling (nicknamed ‘Babe’ because of his youthful looks), covering the Bergen area. Eve was on duty with the senior PI, David Linton, as they watched them take-off for Sumburgh, on the Shetland Islands, where they refuelled to give them just enough range for their mission. As the aircraft would not return for several hours, Eve and Linton settled down to catch up on some routine tasks. Some time before their expected return, however, Eve heard a Spitfire circling and rushed out to meet Suckling who, as he climbed out of the cockpit shouted: ‘I’ve seen them. Two of them!’ When the PIs examined his photographs they identified two German battleships, the Bismarck and the Prinz Eugen, both at anchor in a Norwegian fjord with destroyers and merchant vessels. The photographs also showed that the protective torpedo booms were open, indicating an imminent move. An immediate warning signal was sent to the Admiralty. The ships did sail and an epic naval and air chase ensued that ended with the Bismarck being sunk in the Atlantic Ocean six days later.

  Two months later, ‘Babe’ Suckling failed to return from a PR sortie to La Rochelle. Eve must have remembered the very earnest young pilot whom she had known so recently. At Wick ‘Babe’ had evidently regarded her as extremely aged, and when he heard that she was going on a high-altitude flight with one of the pilots, he came to see her rather worriedly, saying: ‘Have you cleared it with the medical officer? You know it’s not always wise for elderly people to fly at great heights!’ Eve was then under 30 years of age!

  The fourth PR airbase, RAF Leuchars near St Andrews, was also on the east coast of Scotland but considerably further south than Wick and consequently a whole day was saved when transferring photographs to Medmenham. The return flight from Wick to the Norwegian fjords was at the extreme extent of a Spitfire’s range, but the Mosquito, introduced at Leuchars in 1941, had a far greater range. The PI Section was set up with the arrival of the new aircraft and Eve Holiday moved there from Wick for a few months. She described Leuchars as:

  Most cosmopolitan – and fun. There was a Dutch squadron there (who thought mostly about food) and a Norwegian squadron, ‘Vikings of the Air’, who would take off in any weather and were quite fearless. The WAAFs used to organise games and amusements which the pilots adored, and there was always a crowd – musical evenings when David Linton played his violin, country dancing, fencing, archery and games. There were drinking parties too of course, and sometimes, when I attended morning briefings, I would notice a yellow faced pilot slipping off for a whiff of oxygen in his cockpit. This was recognised as the best antidote for a hangover.

  Early in 1942, the newly built 42,900-ton German battleship Tirpitz became fully operational and for nearly three years threatened the Allied convoys passing through the Arctic Ocean to and from Murmansk. These convoys carried essential supplies to maintain the Russian ability to fight, and thus it was vital to pinpoint Tirpitz, monitor her movements and ultimately destroy her. It was not an easy task as Tirpitz hid in the Norwegian fjords, well camouflaged against the steep, wooded slopes. Hundreds of PR sorties were flown, each one bringing back up to 1,000 photographs to interpret which provided the most useful and up-to-date intelligence for the Royal Navy and Bomber Command. Tirpitz was prevented from plundering the Arctic convoys but it was late 1944 before she was finally capsized.

  The German battleship Tirpitz was a great threat to Allied shipping. Photographed here vertically from above and at very low level (below) when it was moored and hidden in a Norwegian fjord. Taken on 28 March 1942 by PR pilot Flight Lieutenant Fane.

  Suzie Morrison was posted to RAF Leuchars in July 1942 and for six months followed the movements of Tirpitz:

  Knud Hauch, a Danish engineer who had joined the RAF, was in charge of PI at Leuchars and there were two other WAAFs there with me. Cover of the Tirpitz was flown every day, at least once. The weather, of course, was always a problem: it could prevent photographs being taken at all or else they were obscured by cloud. Despite this we did often see the Tirpitz and reported on the situation.

  I managed to get flights in all sorts of aircraft. I once flew to the Shetland Islands where, at that time, no service women were posted. I was walking around and an airman said to me, ‘How long are you staying?’ and I replied, ‘Twenty minutes!’18

  Several pilots at Leuchars wore the dark-blue uniform of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, having escaped to Britain when their country was invaded. Throughout the war, they piloted flying boats across the North Sea at night to rendezvous with fellow Norwegians in remote fjords and sometimes smuggled them back to Britain. These men would be extensively debriefed to avoid the possibility of bringing an enemy agent into the system who could betray other Norwegians. The PIs briefed pilots on their course for these flights, which were at very low altitudes to avoid being picked up by enemy radar. Information on enemy defences within the narrow confines of a fjord, including the variable height and positions of booms and balloon barrages, was vital to the success of all of these missions.

  Suzie Morrison served at RAF stations Wick and Leuchars in Scotland, monitoring the movements of Tirpitz.

  Some WAAFs enjoyed being in the vanguard of First-Phase PI with the ‘buzz’ that an operational PR airbase provided. Others preferred the diverse subjects presented to Second Phase, building up a huge amount of day-to-day knowledge about the enemy. Third-Phase sections provided an opportunity to concentrate on a specialist subject. The ACIU was a flexible organisation that responded to current need with sections being opened or closed as prevailing operations demanded, and PIs moved from one section to another as required. The WAAF PI who seemed t
o have worked in the greatest number of sections was Sarah Churchill, who joined at least six different teams. This arrangement would almost certainly have had mutual benefit for both Wing Commander Kendall, who organised all PI at Medmenham, and her father, the Prime Minister.

  Notes

  1. Cussons (née Byron), Diana, a lecture on the ‘Work of the Interpreter’ at a seminar on photographic reconnaissance, 10 June 1991, by permission of the RAF Historical Society.

  2. Bogarde, Dirk, Snakes and Ladders (Chatto & Windus, 1978).

  3. Colles, Dorothy, IWM papers.

  4. Scott, Hazel, Peace and War, p.49.

  5. Churchill, Sarah, Keep on Dancing, p.62.

  6. Powys-Lybbe, Ursula, The Eye of Intelligence (William Kimber, 1983). Reprinted by permission of the author’s family.

  7. Duncan (née Cameron), Jane, extract from her wartime diary, quoted in My Friend Monica (Millrace, 2011), p.261 Reprinted by permission of the author’s family.

  8. Scott, Hazel, Peace and War, pp.50–1.

  9. Komrower (née Eadon), Shirley, audio recording for the Medmenham Collection, 2001.

  10. Paper on attributes of photographic interpreters, 1945 (Medmenham Collection).

  11. Powys-Lybbe, Ursula, The Eye of Intelligence, p.14.

  12. Sowry (née Adams), Jeanne, memoirs.

  13. Hick (née Johnston-Smith), Elizabeth, audio recording for the Medmenham Collection in 2002 and conversation with the author in 2010–11.

  14. Reid, Helena, letter, 2002 (Medmenham Collection).

  15. Grierson, Mary ‘Bunny’, papers on 1 PRU, 1946 (Medmenham Collection).

  16. Rendall (née McKnight-Kauffer), Ann, interview with Constance Babington Smith, 1956/7 (Medmenham Collection).

  17. Holiday, Eve, interview with Constance Babington Smith, 1956/7 (Medmenham Collection).

  18. Morgan (née Morrison), Suzie, audio recording for the Medmenham Collection in 2002 and conversation with the author, 2010–11.

  POSSIBLE, PROBABLE

  On a summer’s day the sunlight streams through the tall windows of the ‘Versailles Room’ of Danesfield House Hotel, lighting up the decorated plasterwork on the delicate coloured walls, the high ceiling and the chandeliers. Stepping outside on to the terrace one sees the stone balustrade and steps with the topiary garden below and the specimen trees standing in the parkland. The lawn slopes down to the cliff edge and below is a sweeping curve of the river; it must be one of the most beautiful views of the Thames valley.

  In the Second World War, the plasterwork was boarded over, the chandeliers removed and the largest room in the house was known as ‘Second-Phase’ or ‘Z’ Section. It was to this section that all air photographs came for inspection after the immediate tactical reports had been made by the First-Phase PIs on reconnaissance bases. Tables were positioned around the room, each with the individual PI’s stereoscope, slide rule and anglepoise lamp. Box files and reference books stood on shelves, charts of enemy equipment were pinned to the walls and photographs were everywhere. The room was never empty, for the occupants worked 12-hour shifts every day of each year, and as one group finished their shift, another took its place. The view through the latticed windows was much the same as it is today, if the lines of temporary huts could be ignored and allowance is made for the dug-up garden.

  Anyone taking a break from work to admire the view of the river from the terrace would have been in uniform – the air force, navy or army, or the women’s services of WAAF, WRNS or ATS. Nationality flashes on the shoulder of some uniforms showed that their wearers came from Canada, Australia and other Dominion or Empire countries – Joan Vyvyan Slade wore a flash with ‘NIGERIA’ on her tunic.

  Later on many wore the uniform of the American services – the United States Army Air Force (USAAF) or the Women’s Army Corps (WAC). The occupied countries of Europe were represented too, including officers from Norway, Czechoslovakia, Poland and the Free French. It was in the Second-Phase Section that the international and joint service character of RAF Medmenham was most in evidence.

  Among the WAAFs were two Jeans from Australia. Jean Starling had travelled to England from her home in Canberra in early 1939 and was working in London when war was declared. She enlisted in the WAAF soon afterwards and worked in Second-Phase interpretation at Wembley and Medmenham.1 Jean Youle, from Melbourne, also joined the WAAF early in the war and first served as a telephone operator at RAF Hornchurch in Essex. This was one of the sector airfields of RAF Fighter Command that defended London and south-east England throughout the Battle of Britain. The airfield was located in what was known as ‘bomb alley’ and the station was frequently attacked throughout the summer of 1940, with particularly heavy raids on 24 and 31 August.

  Joan Vyvyan Slade at work; the run of photographs on the wall is called a mosaic.

  The London Gazette records awards made to personnel of all three services. In 1941 the following announcement was published:

  Air Ministry, 10th January 1941

  ROYAL AIR FORCE

  The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the undermentioned awards in

  recognition of gallant conduct:-

  Awarded the Military Medal

  881906 Acting Sergeant Jean Mary YOULE – Women’s Auxiliary Air Force.

  In August 1940, Sergeant Youle was on duty in a Station telephone exchange when the Station was attacked and bombed by five enemy aircraft. Part of the building containing the telephone exchange suffered a direct hit and other bombs fell in very close proximity. The telephone staff were subjected to a heavy rain of debris and splinters and to the noise of the concussion of exploding bombs. It was solely due to the cool bravery of, and superb example set by Sergeant Youle, that the telephone operators carried on with their task with calmness and complete efficiency at a most dangerous time for them. She has at all times set an excellent example of coolness and efficiency to all.2

  Jean Youle was commissioned on 20 January 1942, trained as a PI and posted to RAF Medmenham where she worked in Second Phase.

  The function of the Second-Phase Section was to report fully and immediately on enemy activity, on a day-to-day basis, with the Command that ordered the sortie receiving their report within 24 hours of the flight. The most comprehensive and detailed record of all enemy activities from the North Cape of Norway to the Spanish frontier and throughout all the occupied countries of Europe was compiled at Medmenham and constantly updated. The PIs saw every aspect of the German war effort and provided essential intelligence for Allied strategic planning. Diana Byron described a typical day in Second Phase:

  If the day was fine and all the pilots were flying with all cameras whirring, then by 8pm a massive amount of material would be delivered to us. Then it was heads down for 12 hours.

  The Duty Intelligence Officer (DIO) gave out the piles of photographs and the first thing was to find out where you were looking at. Next you went to find previous cover of the whole amount of photographs, if possible. Then you compared the new with the old with your mind working overtime, studying photographs, finding out what had been built, what had gone. Were there more or less of anything? We were always comparing.

  We all had our pet places that we loved to know about. We followed airfields and also shipping from north Norway, the Baltic, down the European coast, through France and into the Mediterranean as far as Genoa. It was a hefty lot to learn and we got to know the areas intimately and could see from the next cover how much had come and how much had gone. What had happened to the ‘Hipper’? Was she still under nets? Was the ‘Gneisenau’ all right or had they actually broken the gates at St Nazaire?

  It was the most wonderful thing to be ‘in’, to be really ‘in’ the war, but somehow it didn’t seem like war, at least not to me as I was doing something that simply fascinated me – finding out about the movements of another nation’s Navy, Army and Air Force.

  Jean Youle, from Australia, was awarded the Military Medal in 1940.

  It really was as
tonishing just how much detail one could get out of photographs. We followed the elite of the German Navy and that was really so difficult. I am no mathematician but we were told to find out not only where they were but also to pinpoint them to an exact location. It sometimes took hours to do this if all you had on the photograph was a rocky speck on one side and a huge German warship on the other. You had to give exactly where it was and if you had no indication from the pilot’s trace, it was very time consuming, but we always managed very well, I think. We had a table for working out the speed of the ships.

  You came off duty mentally as well as physically exhausted, to life in a world that didn’t really exist because, at that time, you were still living amid things that were going on over the other side, and not at home – a very unusual circumstance. All our reports had to be concise, brief, accurate and in good clear English – and they had to be ready to send on within 24 hours. On cloudy days, when photography was impossible, we caught up and finished off any jobs we had left over.3

  With twenty or more interpreters on duty at any one time, the Section was divided into many smaller sub-sections each assigned to one subject. This flexible organisation allowed additional sub-sections to be opened at very short notice if a new subject of concern arose. Throughout the war, shipping was reported on with as much detail as possible, including a daily watch kept on the whereabouts and movements of the Tirpitz. Other capital ships were continuously monitored in port or underway, as they were a perpetual threat to Allied convoys. Records of enemy merchant ships and blockade runners were also kept on a regular, but less frequent, basis as a change in their pattern of movement could be a sign of a future operation. If the normal pattern of activity anywhere changed, the photographic cover flown could be rapidly increased and continued until the reason for the change was established.