[Milsurplus] DFing Myth?

[Richard Brunner]

Re:
"... as I understand it, the Allies concocted the whole DF on the LO myth as 
a disinformation
> campaign to convince the German's that the British Navy was sinking their 
> U-boats by DF'ing the LO in their radio receiver, instead of by locating 
> them by radar....."

Could be.  I have heard of German commanders who were paranoid about that, 
and made their radio people shut down, (to their disgust) in fear that 
receiver emissions were betraying their position.  Then there was the Metox 
Affair.  The Metox was a radar search receiver using a 955 type local 
oscillator with no rf stage, which did indeed radiate a bit.  The concern 
was raised when subs were often surprised on the surface with no warning 
from the search receiver.  They conducted tests by flying a plane at various 
altitudes, and found radiation could be detected at several miles, depending 
on airplane altitude.  They then pulled the Metox receiver from service, but 
the real problem was the Brits had gone to microwave radar which was not 
detectable by the Metox receiver.  The Metox tuned 113 to 484 MHz, and 
British coastal command radar originally operated on 200 ± 15 MHz.

Referenz:  "Funkpeilung als alliierte Waffe gegen deutsche U-Boote 
1939-1945,"  Arthur O. Gauer, 1997
(Radio direction-finding by the allied forces against German U-Boats 
1939-1945, by Arthur O. Bauer, in German)

Richard Brunner, AA1P