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PERATION ULTRA, THE CRACKING OF THE CYPHERS PRODUCED BY GERMANY’S O ELECTRONIC CODING MACHINE CALLED ENIGMA, WAS PROBABLY THE GREATEST ALLIED SECRET OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR. IT WAS IMPERATIVE THAT THE GERMANS NEVER DISCOVERED, OR EVEN SUSPECTED, THAT IT WAS BEING DONE OTHERWISE ALL WOULD BE LOST, BUT EARLY IN 1943 IT SEEMED THAT WAS EXACTLY WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN.

STORY ALAN HEBDEN ART REZZONICO COVER JANEK MATYSIAK

4 IN JANUARY 1943 A LONG RANGE DESERT GROUP PATROL MADE ITS MUDDY WAY THROUGH THE RAINSWEPT HILLS OF SOUTHERN TUNISIA. FOR CAPTAIN BOB DRAPER AND LIEUTENANT ANDY COATES, THE CONDITIONS WERE FAR REMOVED FROM WHAT THEY HAD BEEN ACCUSTOMED TO. HECK, SKIPPER, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE BLUE SKY AND HOT SUN OF THE DESERT?

THAT’S ALL BEHIND US NOW, ANDY. TUNISIA IN MIDWINTER’S ABOUT AS CHILLY AND WET AS MANCHESTER.

AS IF THE WEATHER WASN’T BAD ENOUGH THE MISSION ON WHICH THEY’D BEEN SENT SEEMED TO MAKE LITTLE SENSE EITHER.

WHAT ARE WE DOING OUT HERE ANYWAY? THE GERMANS PULLED BACK NORTH OVER A WEEK AGO. THERE PROBABLY AREN’T ANY OF THEM WITHIN FIFTY MILES OF HERE.

ORDERS FROM CORPS HEADQUARTERS FOR US TO MAKE A SWEEP OF THE SOUTHERN FLANK OF THE HILLS BETWEEN HERE AND THE COAST. AS THEY’RE SIGNED PERSONALLY BY LIEUTENANT-GENERAL HADLEY WE’D BETTER FOLLOW THEM TO THE LETTER.

5 AS THEY DROVE ROUND THE NEXT CORNER THEY RAN STRAIGHT INTO A LARGE COLUMN OF GERMAN ARMOUR, LED BY THEIR FORMIDABLE NEW TIGER TANKS. IT WAS, TO SAY THE LEAST, SOMETHING OF A SHOCK.

YE GODS! GET US OUT OF HERE, ANDY!

ACHTUNG, ENGLANDERS!

THE GERMANS TOO HAD BEEN TAKEN BY SURPRISE, WHICH WAS JUST AS WELL BECAUSE THE FIREPOWER THEY HAD AT THEIR DISPOSAL WAS ENOUGH TO HAVE WIPED OUT A SCORE OF L.R.D.G. PATROLS. AS IT WAS, THEY MANAGED TO INFLICT CONSIDERABLE DAMAGE BEFORE THE UNIT SCATTERED AND RAN FOR ITS LIFE. FEUER!

SOUND THE ALARM, SPARKS! DON’T WASTE TIME ENCODING IT. SEND IT IN CLEAR.

6 THE SURVIVING JEEPS JOINED UP AGAIN A MILE FURTHER ON, BUT BOTH BOB AND ANDY KNEW THE OUTLOOK WAS BLEAK IN SPITE OF THEIR WARNING CRY. NO CHANCE OF AIR SUPPORT IN THIS WEATHER AND WE’RE ONLY TEN MILES FROM THE COAST ROAD. UNLESS THERE ARE ANY HEAVY FORCES NEARBY THERE’S NOTHING TO STOP THE JERRIES FROM CUTTING IT COMPLETELY.

WE’RE STRUNG OUT ALONG IT FOR HUNDREDS OF MILES AT THE MOMENT, SO THE CHANCES OF ANYTHING BEING CLOSE ENOUGH TO STOP THEM SEEM PRETTY UNLIKELY.

UNLIKELY, MAYBE, BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE. AS THEY CRESTED THE LAST RISE LEADING DOWN TO THE COAST ROAD THEY WERE DELIGHTED TO SEE WHAT APPEARED TO BE AN ENTIRE ARTILLERY REGIMENT PREPARING TO DO BATTLE. LOOKS LIKE I’M GOING TO HAVE TO EAT MY WORDS, SKIPPER. THE CAVALRY’S ALREADY HERE, OR IN THIS CASE THE ARTILLERY.

IT’S CERTAINLY A STROKE OF LUCK, BUT IT MAY NOT BE ENOUGH. THOSE GUNS CAN’T MANOEUVRE LIKE THE JERRY ARMOUR CAN.

7 WHEN THE GERMAN FORCE ARRIVED A FEW MINUTES LATER THE SIGHT OF THE WAITING GUNS CAUSED ITS COMMANDER TO CALL A HALT, BUT ONLY BRIEFLY. GOTT IN HIMMEL, HERR OBERST, WE’VE RUN STRAIGHT INTO AN ARTILLERY REGIMENT!

SO IT SEEMS, BUT THOSE GUNS CAN’T MOVE. WE SHALL DIVIDE OUR FORCE AND LAUNCH SIMULTANEOUS ATTACKS ON BOTH THE RIGHT AND LEFT FLANKS. OUR TIGERS WILL SOON DEAL WITH THIS LOT!

WATCHING FROM A DISTANCE AS THE ATTACKERS STARTED PICKING OFF THE GUNS AT LITTLE COST TO THEMSELVES BOB CONCLUDED THAT THE ARTILLERY COMMANDER HAD MADE A TERRIBLE MISTAKE.

THEY SHOULD HAVE PUT THEIR BACKS RIGHT UP AGAINST THE SEA AND RESTRICTED THE TANKS’ ROOM FOR MANOEUVRE. THEY PROBABLY DIDN’T HAVE TIME TO DO THAT, SKIPPER. THEY ONLY HAD ABOUT FIFTEEN MINUTES’ WARNING. EITHER THAT, OR THEIR COMMANDER KNOWS SOMETHING WE DON’T.

8 TO ANDY’S ASTONISHMENT IT SEEMED THAT THE GUNNERS KNEW SOMETHING HE DIDN’T WHEN, A FEW MINUTES LATER, A LARGE NUMBER OF STANKS APPEARED ALONG THE COAST ROAD AND DROVE TOWARDS THE BATTLE.

LOOKS LIKE BRIGADE STRENGTH. THIS REALLY IS OUR LUCKY DAY! HMM, I WONDER...

ANDY DIDN’T NOTICE BOB’S PUZZLED FROWN. BEFORE LONG A FIERCE BATTLE WAS RAGING. TANK FOR TANK THE TIGERS WERE MORE POWERFUL THAN THEIR OPPONENTS, BUT THEY WERE ALSO OUTNUMBERED THREE OR FOUR TO ONE.

UUURGH! WE’RE HIT...AARGH!

9 ON THE OTHER FLANK, RELIEVED OF THE NEED TO DEFEND IN BOTH DIRECTIONS THE ARTILLERY REGIMENT WAS ABLE TO CONCENTRATE ALL ITS HEAVY GUNS ON A SINGLE FRONT. AS LOSSES MOUNTED ALARMINGLY THE GERMAN ATTACK GROUND TO A HALT. THE FORCE COMMANDER WATCHED GRIMLY AND KNEW THAT HIS CHANCES OF SUCCESS WERE VANISHING BY THE SECOND. IT WAS A GOOD PLAN, BUT IT RAN OUT OF LUCK. IT’S TIME TO CUT OUR LOSSES. ORDER AN IMMEDIATE WITHDRAWAL!

JAWOHL, HERR OBERST!

A LINE OF TIGERS COVERED THE RETREATING FORCE, BUT THE BRITISH COMMANDERS MADE NO ATTEMPT TO GO AFTER THEM. THERE WAS NOTHING TO BE GAINED AND A GREAT DEAL TO BE LOST BY GETTING INVOLVED IN MESSY FIGHTING IN THE INCREASINGLY RUGGED TERRAIN.

10 THE L.R.D.G. PATROL WAS SENT AFTER THE MAULED GERMAN FORCE TO MAKE SURE THAT IT WAS INDEED RETREATING. THEY’RE DEFINITELY ON THE RUN, SKIPPER. IT’S CERTAINLY BEEN OUR LUCKY DAY.

I DON’T THINK LUCK HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT!

BOB EXPLAINED TO HIS STARTLED SUBORDINATE WHAT HE THOUGHT HAD REALLY HAPPENED... ...FIRST THEY HAD BEEN SENT ON A POINTLESS PATROL IN A SECTOR THAT WAS THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN CLEAR OF GERMANS. THEY HAD RUN INTO AN UNEXPECTED ENEMY ADVANCE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE BAD WEATHER TO AVOID BEING SPOTTED FROM THE AIR.

FOR BOB, THE ANSWER WAS OBVIOUS — THEY HAD A SPY AT GERMAN H.Q. THE BRITISH ALREADY KNEW WHAT THE GERMANS WERE PLANNING, BUT IF THE PANZERS WERE INTERCEPTED EN ROUTE THE ENEMY WOULD HAVE REALISED THAT AND WOULD HAVE LAUNCHED A SPY HUNT. INSTEAD IT LOOKS LIKE A CASE OF PLAIN BAD LUCK. WE HAPPENED TO SPOT THEM AND RAISE THE ALARM, AND THERE HAPPENED TO BE OTHER FORCES NEARBY TO HELP.

THEN THERE HAPPENS TO BE AN ARTILLERY REGIMENT PASSING AND A TANK BRIGADE JUST HAPPENS TO POP UP TO FINISH THE JOB OFF. WHAT ARE YOU GETTING AT, SKIPPER?

AND THE SPY LIVES TO SPY ANOTHER DAY.YOU KNOW SKIPPER, IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE!