SALU-West 1.9.43 Explanation
Below is a transcription of a document found in HW13/101[1]
It has been decided to change the pro-forma used for the SALU-WEST daily reports, with the object of producing a more critical document in which the sources are clearly shown.
The following are the principles according to which the Salu-west report will in future be compiled.
Distribution:
| Copy | |
| 1, 2 | DDI3 (AI3b) |
| 3 | DDI4 (G/C. Cadell) |
| 4 | 3A, Miss Hensley, Mr F. L. Lucas |
| 5 | Head of Naval Section |
| 6 | Professor Boase |
| 7,8 | Mr. P.G. Lucas |
1. Subject
Each daily Salu-West report. is a summary of all available information concerning offensive operations in the area of Luftflotte 3 and Luftflotte 5 (Gibraltar to Archangel), and of defensive operations by aircraft of bomber recce and coastal units. Offensive fighter operations are included defensive fighter operations e.g. interception patrols, escort etc) are not.
2. Sources
The attempt has been made to use every possible source regardless of its kind, limited always by the proportion of the results derived to the labour necessary for the exploitation of the source.
The following sources are regularly exhausted:
| Source | Type | Notes |
| Enemy | 1.Intercept (Y) | (a) Air to Ground W/T (HF and MF)
(b) Air to Ground R/T (c) point to point in AUKA and other codes |
| 2. Special Intelligence | (a) CX/MSS
(b) Z (c) Miscellaneous others | |
| 3. Captured material | (a) Remains of aircraft
(b) POW statements (c) documents | |
| 4. Public announcements | (a) Communiqué
(b) News broadcasts etc. | |
| British | 1. RDF tracings | |
| 2. Location of bombs | (a) Form Y (Fighter)
(b) Key points (Ministry of Home Security) (c) Home Security Intelligence Summary. | |
| 3. Reports by ships of shadowing aircraft and attacks compiled by Admiralty from ship’s signals. | ||
| 4. Encounters with enemy aircraft | (a) Form Y (Fighter)
(b) Form Orange (Coastal) | |
| 5. Miscellaneous reports | (from British post abroad etc) |
3. Presentation
(a) Information concerning each operations falls naturally into three categories, viz:
| Enemy Reports | i) Enemy intentions
ii) Execution of intentionsas reported by the enemy |
| British Reports | (iii) Reports from British sources referring to the same events as (ii) |
Owing to the nature of the information available, a form of presentation corresponding exactly to this categorisation would be inconvenient, and the following form, adapted from these principles, is used:
(b) The sum of the day's G.A.F. operations is divided in the first place under the various missions undertaken and not under units. One or more units operating with the same or closely associated missions is considered to be one operation.
(c) The operations are arranged in geographical order from south to north.
(d) For ease of reference the type of operation will be shown by abbreviations in the top right hand corner of the page. A list of abbreviations is given ion Appendix II.
(e) Information is divided according to source into Enemy and British. The page is divided down the middle into two symmetrical parts, Enemy on the left ond British on the right. Categories (i) and (ii) in paragraph (a) above are reported on the left, category (iii) on the right.
(f) Information concerning each operation is divided according to type of reference into five paragraphs:
1) Mission (tactical intention of the operation), or failing this a general description of the operation.
2) Units and aircraft employed, time and place of take-off and landing.
3) Geographical movements of the aircraft, divided under Enemy into intended course, being the course the pilot was instructed to fly, and made positions, being a selection of positions from the course on which the pilot thought he was flying; these two corresponde to categories (i) and (ii) above.
Under British appear positions or courses derived from recognition by visual or technica means of the actual aircraft; this corresponds to category (iii)
4) Results: under Enemy, German reports about the bombs dropped or reconnaissance results; under British corresponding reports of where the bombs fell or the reconnaissance targets flown over.
5) Encounters with British aircraft, damage, losses, fighter warnings and accidents in general.
(g) Materiel is presented in the form in which it appears in the source from which it is derived, or in the case of sources, the reading of which demands technical knowledge, in a form as close as possible to the original without raising technical difficulties. Sources are stated.
4. Grading of information for reliability
Each entry is graded into one of three classes
Information falls into two categories: that which is directly stated (and is therefore transcribed as nearly as is convenient verbatim into the Salu (West) report); and that which is arrived at by deduction. Direct statements are graded by Roman numerals (I, II, III), deductions by Arabic numerals (1,2,3), I/1 means reliable, II/2 probably and III/3 possible. Roman Grading indicates that a document that bears the same wording as appears in the Salu or its close equivalent can be produced; Arabic grading that evidence but not a concrete statement is available.
5. Critical Explanation
Each Salu (West) daily report constitutes a critical reproduction of the information derived from operations that took place on that day, collated by juxtaposition on the paper.
Information that could appear under some headings, but is not derived from an event on that day is not included (thus a/c type is only entered if the a/c was actually stated by German sources on that day to be of a given type, or if it was seen and identified by British observers.) In cases where information not derived from the day's operations is necessary to the lucidity of the report {e.g the base of the unit), this is included in double brackets.
A monthly summary of operational tendencies arranged under areas and units will be published. Special subjects are treated in special reports, if the occasion arises.
6. Circulation and Security
Salu reports are only circulated to recipients of CX/MSS reports, and should receive the same degree of security.
Appendix ISALU – WEST Pro-forma
| Date
Operation No. |
Type of
Op | |||||
| Subject No. | Information from | Enemy sources | R | Information from | British sources | R |
| Source | Text | Source | Text | |||
| 1 | Mission: German intention (as given by POW, MSS etc or reconstructed from events) or General description of operation. | G
R A D E |
G
R A D E | |||
| 2 | Unit: ((Base))
A/c: (number) Markings: Type: W/T: (Times of W/T activity) Up: (Time and place) Down: (Time and place) |
A/c Type:
|
||||
| 3 | Intended course.
Made positions. (Entries in this paragraph are made positions unless otherwise stated). |
RDF tracings described. Positions from other British sources. | ||||
| 4 | Results: list of reconnaissance reports made by aircraft. Claims concerning bombs. | Recce targets flown over.
Location of bombs |
||||
| 5. | Encounters with British A/c, damage, losses, accidents | Encounters between British and German A/c. |
APPENDIX II
Types of Operation
| Code | Description |
| DB | Day Bombing |
| NB | Night Bombing |
| JB | Fighter Bombing (Jabo) |
| ML | Minelaying |
| R | Reconnaissance |
| WR | Weather reconnaissance |
| SR | Shipping reconnaissance |
| ASR | Armed shipping reconnaissance |
| PR | Photo reconnaissance |
| Z | Zenit |
| BAS | Bombing attack on shipping |
| TAS | A/C torpedo attack on shipping |
| FH | Fühlunghalter (shadower) |
| FS | Fighter sweep |
| DFP | Day fighter patrol |
| NFP | Night fighter patrol |
| SP | Security patrol |
| AU | Anti-submarine patrol |
| CE | Close escort |
| TF | Training flight |
| EX | Experimental or Investigation flight |
Go to HW13
References
- ↑ HW13/101 via Remi Traconelli