| Enclosure: 13 to Kriegstagebuch I Ship 33 | ||
The Radio traffic with the sinking of the English steamer |
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"BRITISH COMMANDER on 27.8.1940. |
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| After sighting a dimmed vessel, a combat circuit was carried out at 03.10 hours in the radio rooms. When the steamer was requested to stop at 04.22 hour, it sent an emergency report initiated by QQQQ at 04.25 hours. He used a tube transmitter. We immediately tried radio interference to make his report unreceivable. During the transmission the steamer went from 500 to 570 kHz, we followed with the interference transmitter, but the steamer managed to repeat its message in the meantime. At 03.29 hours the steamer sent: "QQQQ de GJEV now vessel shelling us 01.29 GMT + " Immediately applied the radio interference again. Radio Jacobs Natal/ZSD repeated following the report, which was also received by other coastal stations. At 03.48 hours the following reports was heard very loudly: "QQQQ de BRITISH COMMANDER/GJVK position 29.37 s 45.50east vessel shelling us." Jacobs Natal Radio repeated immediately after receiving the report and sent: "QQQQ GJVK position 29.37 s 45.40 east vessel shelling us de zsd (Jacobs Natal) 01.29 +" There now followed a continuous repetition of the emergency report by all stations. In the meantime ZTE/Bearing station Port Elisabeth Aerogonio gave the following bearing results: QTE 75 o 75 second class." to Jacobs Natal/ZSD + . The steamer BRITISH COMMANDO was called by Natal Radio several times. Thereupon sent the following report: "Cancel QQQQ 01.25 de GJVK +" Then it was suddenly quiet for the next 2 minutes on 600 meters. Then ZSD GJVK started calling again and asking for an answer. The unrest of the radio stations continued until around 06.00 hours and then traffic returned to normal. | ||
| During the following day, Jacobs Natal frequently called warships and gave radio messages (numerals). Significantly more radio messages were also sent using the Merchant Navy Code. The emergency calls of the steamer "BRITISH COMMANDER" were also broadcast up to 48 hours later at Program Times on 600 meters and shortwave (long-range) by: | ||
| Portishhead, Jacobs Natal Radio | ||
| Walvisbay, Slangkop Radio, Mauricius, | ||
| Takoradi, Monbassa, Algoabay. | ||
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Click the flag to view the above page from the original German KTB |
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| The following were repeated particularly frequently from the radio messages sent: On 36 meters: from ZSD gb6 0346 m/27 Nr 546 ood wou gr 54 and on 600 meters and 36 meters: From S.N.O. Simenstown an gbms6 1800/27 gr 76. It is accepted that these radio messages denote reports of the BRITISH COMMANDER. Because the encoding key just changed, it was not possible to evaluate the Radio Messages. | ||
| The radio interference was carried out with the 200-watt Debeg transmitter S 356 S and the long wave 200-watt S 45 244. With one transmitter a number of radio messages A 2 (modulation) were sent, with the other transmitter a character radio message A 1 (tonless) was sent. It was pure radio interference with no alternating traffic. Two tube transmitters were used because when the DOMINGO DE LARRINANA was seized on July 31, 1940, the radio interference had been carried out with quenched-spark transmitters and this was known to the enemy. Since it was to be expected that the radio operator would try to avoid the interfering radio when sending the emergency message, 2 transmitters were manned, one remained at 600 meters and the other followed accordingly. No value was placed on concealment, but only tried to mutilate the QQ report of the enemy ship and create unrest on the wavelength. | ||
| On 30 August 1940, the Mauritius radio station called the steamer "BRITISH COMMANDER" twice, namely at 1931 and 20:24, this time with his secret call sign "MDGI", while at the time of the capture on 27 August 27th. was associated with the open name. From this it can be seen that the sending of the "Cancel message" left the enemy B.-Dienst in the dark about the sinking of the BRITISH COMMANDER and that the probability is still expected that he may have escaped destruction. Had the hostile B.-Dienst recognized our report as a false report, they would have been able to continue calling the BRITISH COMMANDER to deceive us, but then not with the secret call sigh, but with an open name that was already in use. Since the steamer was on its way to the Persian Gulf, the Mauritius radio station was assigned to this traffic. | ||
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Excerpt of the Radio Log |
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27.8.1940 |
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