CHAPTER FIVE

WORLD WAR II
1939 - 1945

On 24 August 1939 Prime Minister MacKenzie King's Cabinet first learned of the German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact. It was agreed that "Canada would participate" in a general conflict involving Great Britain although Parliament would decide the precise nature of Canada's commitment.

On 26 August 1939 General Order 124 announced the "Precautionary Stage of the Defence Scheme". This order called out 10,000 soldiers on a voluntary basis to guard vulnerable points and coastal defences. NPAM Signal units called out included 4, 5, 6, 9, 10 and 11 Fortress Signal Companies and details from 4th Divisional signals and 5, 6, and 11 District Signals.

On 1 September 1939 General Order 135 announced a "State of Apprehended War". Although war had not yet been declared, this placed the Canadian military on a war footing and initiated mobilization. The mobilized force was designated the Canadian Active Service Force.

On 1 September 1939, 1st Canadian Divisional Signals formed at Barriefield and later left for overseas service under command of Lieutenant-Colonel J.E. Genet, MC. 1st Canadian Corps Signals and four other divisional Signals were later formed there as mobilization progressed. In England later on there was a Signals Holding Unit, 2nd Canadian Corps Signals, 1st Canadian Army Signals, 1st Canadian Line of Communications Signals and a number of other units formed, all of which played important parts in the European campaigns.

When Britain declared war on 3 September 1939 Canada, unlike in 1914, was no longer obligated to participate.

On 5 September 1939 the RCAF had only 4,153 military personnel out of its authorized establishment of 7,259, eight permanent squadrons and 11 auxiliary squadrons with a total of 53, mostly obsolete, aircraft available for active service (eight on the west coast and 36 on the east coast including many civilian pattern aircraft equipped for float operation). The Signals Branch was of minimal size. There was no radar. The RCAF initial request for $136 million for the period ending 30 August 1940 had been pared to $77 million by the Canadian government. The reduced budget allowed for an expansion to only 167 aircraft, one third of the pre-war planning figure with no reserves, wastage or training allocation.

On 6 September 1939, in view of facility inadequacies, the Government reversed earlier plans and decided that concentrations by arms of mobilized forces were impossible. Only Signals, with its new school in Kingston, mobilized in one place.

On 7 September 1939 Colonel P. Earnshaw presented the 1st Division with the Signal flag which had gone overseas with the 1st Division in October 1914.

On 10 September 1939, with the approval of the Government of Canada, King George VI proclaimed the existence of a state of war between Canada and the German Reich.

On 16 September 1939 the Government of Canada decided to send a force overseas. Initially this was to be a token division to be followed by a second division, corps headquarters and corps troops when equipment became available.

By 1939, the Air Force Signals Branch peacetime establishment had grown to six officers and 75 men. During World War II it grew to over 20,000 RCAF Signals personnel who operated communications equipment, radios (including on aircraft), radar and navigational aids equipment overseas and in Canada and operated four wireless schools within Canada.

In September 1939 the RCCS formed "Special Wireless" or "Y work" as it was known, to intercept enemy radio traffic. In 1939 Number 1 Special Wireless Station opened at Leitrim near Ottawa. This was the birth of the Canadian World War II strategic electronic warfare or SIGINT effort.

In 1939 "2 RCAF Wing Signal Section, RCCS" was formed to support RCAF airfields in England. By May 1941 this unit worked at Uxbridge where it operated communications to all main airfields in southern England. In 1942 the personnel returned to 1 Canadian Corps and the unit was disbanded. This unit, along with other units, was evidence of the frequent integration of RCAF and Army Signals communications and of the cooperation among elements that was common prior to official integration in 1968. 

By November 1939 units destined for overseas service concentrated at Barriefield included 1st and 2nd Divisional Signals, 1st Corps Signals, 1st Anti-Aircraft Brigade Signals, No 1 Construction Section and No 3 Wireless Telegraphy Section of Lines of Communications Signals.

On 24 November 1939 the advance party of 1st Divisional Signals departed Canada on the Duchess of York. The main party followed on the Aquitania two weeks later.

On 30 November 1939 the Russo-Finnish War started.

On 23 December 1939 the first Canadian troops (over 7,500 men of the 1st Canadian Division) arrived in England.

In January 1940 advance parties totaling 394 personnel designated 1st Canadian Corps Signals Details departed for overseas. The detachment included No 1 Line Section, No 2 Line Section, No 1 Operating Section, No 1 Wireless Section, No 1 Dispatch Rider Section, No 1 Line Maintenance Section, No 8 Army Field Regiment Signal Section, No 11 Army Field Regiment Signal Section, No 1 Medium Regiment Signal Section, No 1 Medium Brigade Signal Section and Paymaster. On arrival in England the advance force was initially attached as a fourth company to 1st Divisional Signals.

On 9 April 1940 Germany invaded Denmark. The country was overrun and its capital, Copenhagen, was captured in 12 hours.

On 9 April 1940 Norway was invaded. Fighting lasted until 10 June 1940 when allied forces were evacuated.

The German army began their attack in the West on 10 May 1940. On 15 May 1940 the Dutch army capitulated at 1100 hours.

On 29 May, 1940 Her Royal Highness, Mary, the Princess Royal, sister of King George VI, became Colonel in Chief of RCCS. During the war she frequently visited her RCCS units and showed keen interest in their welfare.

In June 1940 the British Air Ministry requested Canada to supply experienced civilian radio personnel to service radar equipment. Professional and amateur radio men were enrolled in the RCAF and sent to England without any military training to be trained on radar equipment, a field virtually unknown in Canada due to the secrecy surrounding the technology. In April 1941 recruiting began by the RCAF for "Overseas Duty" and in June 1941 preparatory radio training began in Canada.

On 10 June 1940 Italy declared war on England and France.

At dawn 14 June 1940 1 Brigade (Canadian), with J Section, 1st Divisional Signals, landed at Brest as the vanguard of an attempt to reinforce the collapsing allied front in France. The British had already decided to evacuate the British Expeditionary Force and this was the only formation to cross the channel before the recall order was executed. Sergeant D.G. Hutt of J Section was injured while riding a motorcycle through Morlaix, France. Sergeant Hutt died of his injuries, becoming the first casualty of the expedition and the first Canadian soldier to lose his life in France in World War II. E Section landed with 1st Field Regiment. After traveling almost 200 miles toward the front and without firing a round 1st Field Regiment was withdrawn to Brest for evacuation, the only British and allied regiment to bring its guns out of France, albeit the Signal Section's wireless vehicles were left behind. The force was back in Plymouth on 17 June short six men and much equipment.

On 21 June 1940 France surrendered to Germany at Compiégne. On 24 June 1940 an armistice was concluded between France and Italy.

In June 1940 Number 1 Canadian Signal Reinforcement Unit began as a company of the Canadian General Holding Unit in England. It was the receiving depot for reinforcements coming from Canada. In September 1940 it became an independent unit, initially operating at Tournay Barracks. As the unit grew, Delville and Morval Barracks were also added to the establishment.

From July 1940 to July 1943 No 1 Dispatch Rider Section averaged 33,000 miles per month.

On 27 August 1940 20 officers and 402 men of 1 Canadian Corps Signals, along with 21 officers and 457 men of 2nd Divisional Signals departed Canada for England aboard E-64, the Scythia. Eight days later they arrived in England.

In September 1940 a brigade signal section which had been detached to join "Z" Force (occupation of Iceland) returned, No 2 Light Anti-Aircraft Signal Section arrived from Canada.

In August 1940 Britain asked the Canadian Government to begin manufacturing radar equipment in Canada. Research Enterprises Limited opened a factory at Leaside, Ontario which was soon producing enough radar equipment to supply most of the military requirements of Canada, Britain and the United States. Shortly after, other factories opened in the United States. The National Research Council of Canada opened a field research station near Ottawa to manufacture and test experimental radar equipment. Interestingly enough the first early warning sets off the production line were given to the United States to be used in the defence of the Panama Canal. In February 1942 RCAF personnel went to the Canal Zone to install these sets and instructed the Americans in their use. The Canadian made sets were superior to those being manufactured by the United States and, hence, more effective. At the same time the United States provided some American made radar for Canadian west coast surveillance.

On 15 September 1940, following legislation passed in August, single men ages 21 to 24 were called up for home defence.

In November 1940, the first Canadian radio direction finding (Radar) course was held at Anti-Aircraft Defence, Wireless Wing, Halifax. Called the First Canadian Radio Group. it was made up of RCCS, Artillery and 23 RCAF candidates and was later the 13th class "Special Signals" of the Royal Air Force.

14 November 1940 - the Germany "terror bombing" raid on Coventry England. The British knew of the impending attack thanks to the secret ULTRA decoding machine which enabled them to read coded German messages. The decision was made that retention of the ULTRA secret was ultimately more important than saving Coventry. To their credit the British believed that they were not leaving Coventry completely without protection as they had a technological "ace in the hole" which would misdirect the bombers. They relied on BROMIDE, a radar jammer used to jam the X-Gerat radar used by German bombers. Unfortunately, and to Coventry's misfortune, BROMIDE did not work!

In December 1940, the first RCCS field electronic warfare unit "1 Canadian Special Wireless Section, Type B" was formed to support 1 Canadian Corps. Canadian electronic warfare units worked in Canada, Europe and Australia.

In late 1940 three RCAF Signal Officers were sent to the United Kingdom to receive complete training in all aspects of radar. They returned to Canada in May 1941 where they were instrumental in organizing Canadian radar training at Clinton.

During World War II women were enrolled in the military to free up men for combat duties. The Royal Canadian Air Force Women's Division was formed in 1941, the first Canadian Military element to employ females. By January 1944 15,000 women were serving in air force blue and the trades open to them had gone from eight to 60. In the process, one OBE, eight MBEs, 14 BEMs, six Associates of the Red Cross and 27 mentioned in dispatches had been earned. The Canadian Women's Army Corps had a large signal service component which was fully integrated into the RCCS (while retaining their unique cap badge). The RCAF and Royal Canadian Navy also employed women in uniform for signals duties. WRCNS or "wrens" staffed many of the navy's high frequency direction finding stations.

In 1941 RCAF began planning its early warning radar detection and defence of Canada. By February 1945 35 detachments were in operation. Radio homing beacons for aircraft were also deployed with 37 in operation by January 1945.

During 1941 many signalmen training in England learned to their expense that, in addition to the small arms training and military subjects required of all troops, for Signals, failure to carry a pencil, illegible writing, transmitting incorrectly, exceeding the time limit for clearing a message or overlooking a breach of security had been added to the list of chargeable offenses.

In January 1941 No 1 Canadian Radio Location Unit, RCCS, was formed. Its role was the operation of radar in conjunction with Anti-Aircraft defences. The unit manned radar stations on the south coast of England until disbanded in early 1943. Anti- Aircraft radar however, generally became the responsibility of the Royal Canadian Artillery with technical support from Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps (Engineering) (May 1944 redesignated Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers).

In February 1941 authority was granted to form Army Tank Brigade Signals in Canada.

In March 1941 the Air Council of Canada agreed to the establishment of a radio direction finding school in Canada. Two months later the Tyndall farm outside Clinton, Ontario was selected and construction of the new school was under way. The only vestige of the original farm to survive was the silo which is still in existence today. The school was ready for the arrival of staff on 20 June 1941.

On 22 June 1941 Germany invaded Russia, Operation BARBAROSSA.

In July 1941 1st Army Tank Brigade Signals moved to England.

In August 1941 3rd Canadian Division arrived in Aldershot, England after six depressing months training at Debert, Nova Scotia.

On 6 August 1941 K Section, 1 Divisional Signals departed on the Empress of Canada for EXERCISE HEATHER. This "exercise" was the cover name for OPERATION GAUNTLET, the British and Canadian raid on Spitsbergen. The Canadian rank and file did not find out that this was a real operation until 22 August 1941.

On 11 August 1941 "GEE", a navigational aid to assist bombers over Europe, was used for the first time.

19 August - 3 September 1941 OPERATION GAUNTLET. 35 men under Captain W.H.T. Wilson, all of K Section, 1 Divisional Signals arrived at Hvalfjord, Iceland enroute to Spitsbergen as part of "111 Force". On 25 August four signalmen under Lieutenant M.H.F. Webber, made the first landing (from the destroyer HMS Icarus) at the wireless station at Kap Linne, Spitsbergen. Meeting only friendly Norwegians they organized deceptive weather reports indicating fog over Spitsbergen, effectively canceling routine German reconnaissance flights for the raid's duration. On 3 September the Kap Linne station was destroyed. The rest of K Section landed at Barentsburg where, in addition to signals duties, they helped destroy several German radio stations and strategic supplies including 540,000 tons of coal and 275,000 gallons of petrol, oil and lubricants. Russians stationed on the island were evacuated to Archangel in the intervening eight days. When the Empress of Canada returned from Archangel the force then withdrew taking the Norwegian civilians from the island.

On 27 August 1941, Number 31 Royal Air Force Radio School opened at Clinton (three weeks after the arrival of the first contingent of staff from England). Staff consisted of 360 Royal Air Force personnel and included the three RCAF officers who had been trained in England the previous year. The first commander was Wing Commander Cocks, RAF. This station was created to provide a secure environment to teach radio direction finding or radar as it later became known. Security of the technology was very tight and the camp had electrically charged fencing and armed guards, something virtually unheard of in Canada. Even local civilians were unaware of the nature of training or of the station's contribution to the war until long after. The first course, started in September 1941, consisted of United States Army, Navy and Marine Corps students taught by Royal Air Force instructors. Even before America entered the war Britain was assisting them to develop radar and other technologies in a form of reverse "lend-lease". By war's end 2,345 Americans and 6,500 Canadians had graduated from Clinton.

In September 1941 land was purchased just outside Whitby, Ontario, for use by Special Training School 103 (a British unit also known as "Camp X", the famous spy school) and later for the long range HYDRA radio station linking Canada and Britain which evolved into Oshawa Wireless Station after the war.

On 27 October 1941, C Force embarked aboard the Australian liner Awatea escorted by HMCS Prince Robert. They arrived in Hong Kong on 16 November 1941. This force consisted of an under strength brigade headquarters and two infantry battalions, the Winnipeg Grenadiers and the Royal Rifles of Canada. The Signals component was commanded by Captain G.M Billings from 1 Canadian Corps Signals and had 31 men drawn from the original 4th Divisional Signals at Barriefield. Because of hasty planning the partly trained force sailed without transport. It was still without vehicles when the Japanese attacked 40 days after their departure from Canada.

In November 1941 1st Canadian Anti-Aircraft Brigade Signals, RCCS, arrived in England. The unit was based at Colchester. Within five months, it was employed in the defence of England. The unit was disbanded in April 1943 and the personnel were transferred to No 16 Canadian Anti-Aircraft Operations Room Signals, later the only Canadian signal unit to go to Normandy in 1944 with an anti-aircraft artillery role.

In November 1941 5th Canadian Division departed for England aboard HMT E-355, the Sobieski.

On 7 December 1941, Canada declared war on Japan following the Japanese surprise attack on American forces at Pearl Harbour (the first allied country to do so).

On 9 December 1941 Special Training School 103 (also known as "Camp X", the famous spy school) opened for business at Whitby Ontario. This was a British Special Operations Executive, or SOE unit, hidden within the Canadian Military District Number Two. It trained intelligence agents for overseas "secret warfare" duty. While undergoing training the prospective agents, normally Canadians or recent emigrants from a targeted area of operations, were enrolled in the Canadian Army, usually RCCS, and were then released upon graduation to be enrolled in British Intelligence. STS 103 was a well kept secret which, if they even heard of it at all, was known to Canadians as "Project J" or "J Force". Its existence was well hidden from even Prime Minister MacKenzie King. STS 103, in addition to training agents for British employment overseas by British Intelligence, provided initial training for the American agencies such as the Office of Strategic Services which later evolved into the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA. STS 103 operated until April 1944.

On 8 December 1941 the Japanese began their attack on Hong Kong. The One officer and 31 signalmen who were part of the Canadian brigade (C Force) operated on both the Island of Hong Kong and the Kowloon Peninsula, sustaining the first Canadian battle casualties of the Pacific war on that date. By 12 December the mainland had fallen to the Japanese and the defenders had withdrawn to Hong Kong Island. On 19 December the Japanese assaulted Hong Kong Island. On 25 December the Hong Kong garrison surrendered. Nine of the 32 died, three while in captivity, the highest percentage of casualties for any Canadian unit involved.

In 1942 French speaking Signals personnel were recruited to work with the French resistance movement in occupied France. Of 28 Canadians involved, seven were killed or disappeared in the course of clandestine duties.