Red Hawk Rising

by Peter William Hall

  ***

  The RAF coach wended its way through the centre of Newcastle on its way to Wensley Electronics (Monday 26th). Corporal Andy Hill was reflecting on the day before and the note given him by Alice. She wanted to see him again and had written her telephone number for home and for work. He’d be gone in three days. That made it hard. Corporal Dan Brennan thought about Margaret Muir and next weekend when they planned to go to a concert together in the City Hall. Corporal Lance Williams felt pleased about the outcomes of yesterday. He and Anne had furthered their friendship and it would develop even more, he was sure. Alice taking to Andy Hill had been a real break for himself and Anne. They would meet in Hexham on the Wednesday evening if he didn’t have to work late. So to the day’s problems and getting the radar functioning properly.

  Sam Wilson had started work early. He was employed on assembling the different modules of the radar. For this reason, he had access to the ‘high security’ section of the factory. He had gained security clearance and was working on the project before being befriended by Sean Byrne. He thought about the klystron. It was one of the few parts of the radar that was not duplicated. Apart from its size, it was not expected to fail except under extreme circumstances. The module was under test in the laboratory. He would have to wait for it to be fitted back into the prototype before he could get at it.

  The RAF team arrived and went about their work. Andy went with Lance and Dan to the lab., returning the manual that he had taken on the Saturday. ‘Sarge’ directed him to the location of the radar being assembled and Andy headed off to that section. It was in a large bay of the factory used for such assembly. The radar was in three units, including the aerial. Each unit had a number of modules. A generator and power supply formed a fourth unit. This was for use when no mains supply was available and allowed the system to be self-sufficient and operate virtually anywhere. Andy busily made notes, talking with both RAF and civilians about the construction and maintenance. Going through his notes he noted that a couple of cards had a common function and were used in more than one module. Sam Wilson was busy fitting a module and Andy tried to engage him in conversation but received a surly response. He sensed an atmosphere in the workshop that was almost confronting and decided to stick with conversing with the RAF personnel to avoid trouble. By lunchtime, the klystron unit had been successfully calibrated and waited fitment into the radar. There would be final tests of the completed radar before it was separated into its units for transporting to West Danby. Lunchtime came and went and Sam Wilson was given the task of installing the klystron module into the main frame. Corporal Lance Williams stood close by and watched Wilson’s every action. Likewise, Corporal Andy Hill was an interested observer although not as closely as Williams. Andy watched Sam Wilson’s nervous movements, as though the man was waiting for an opportunity to do something, and decided to keep an eye on him. Unexpectedly Andy’s name was called by Corporal Brennan and he turned away to see what it was about. The call also distracted Corporal Williams who stood up and turned to face the entrance of the radar unit. “You’re wanted up at the office, Andy!” Andy waved in reply. Sam Wilson saw his opportunity and slipped metal shavings into a multi-pinned cable socket and screwed the cable into it. When the power was switched on it should blow the system. The RAF electrician would get the blame for not checking it properly. Andy went down to Flying Officer Goodhew’s office and knocked. When he heard “Come!” he went in and saluted. Standing in the office was the MI5 man, Hamilton. Flying Officer Goodhew said, “I understand that you have both met. Mr Hamilton would like a few words with you.” Turning to Hamilton, he said, “Use my office. I want to go and see how things are progressing.” He went out, closing the door behind him.

  “Good to see you again, Corporal Hill. What have you come across this time?”

  Andy grinned and then, more seriously, said, “I’ve just been watching a civilian employee acting quite nervously. They called him ‘Sam’. Spare parts have also been going missing from the lab and the employees here seem unconcerned. I think we need to do some checking as there seems to be some laxity in security.”

  Hamilton nodded. “Check on that man’s name and also on the missing parts, with the times and dates they were found to be missing, and then let me know. Any other incidents?”

  Andy knew what he meant. “Quite the opposite so far, sir, it’s been good but there’s still time.”

  Hamilton smiled and said, “You know the score. Just watch your back. I’ll be here for much of this week. How long do you expect to be here?”

  “Just another couple of days and then I head south,” replied Andy.

  Hamilton responded, “If there is something to your suspicions then I may want you to stay longer until it’s cleared up. I’ll arrange that with Flying Officer Goodhew. Oh! Just so that you know, I’ve been made aware of the instructions you’ve received, apart from your official RAF responsibilities. It seems we may have a loose partnership for a while.” Andy nodded but said nothing. “Okay, Corporal, let me have that information as soon as you can get it together. Thank you.” Andy left the office, determined to check on whether Hamilton had been informed officially. It wasn’t normal practice to share such information with other security agencies unless a partnership had been agreed beforehand. He headed back to the radar assembly bay and saw that work appeared to be completed. Corporal Williams was there checking that all the units were in place and serviceable. Andy joined him, asking questions and making notes as Williams worked. When he had got the information he wanted, he went back to the lab. and found ‘Sarge’ at his desk. Asking if he could interrupt, he sat down in a chair ‘Sarge’ pointed to and asked about anticipated life of units from a planned maintenance perspective. ‘Sarge’ said that there were some unknowns, partly because they were trying out a new invention called a transistor. He said that it replaced the valve and was very small in size compared to valves but it was still unproven as far as the RAF was concerned. The airfield trials would let them know the benefits or otherwise. Since they were alone, Andy asked him about the missing spare parts. Sarge got up and pulled a file out of his cabinet. “I’ve made file memos of all these incidents plus others so we can soon get a picture of what has been happening.” He opened the file and flipped the pages, reading out the date and time of each occurrence and the part in question. Sarge had made a list for the whole project and not just the laboratory. Andy wrote them all down in a duplicate notebook and wondered aloud which employees had been working in each area at the time of each incident. Sarge pointed out that RAF personnel had been double-checking on parts supplied out of the store so there was no mistake on what had gone to each work area. They also kept a record of when parts were replaced and why, so that a maintenance picture could be built up. He would vouch for all the RAF team and the scientists from Royal Aircraft Establishment. They went on to discuss parts which had been giving problems and the rates of failure of different components. In conjunction with the contractor, the RAF team was identifying components that were not meeting the specification and making changes where possible. This would go on after the RAF had taken delivery of the initial equipment to be used in the trials and the information fed back to the manufacturer so that improvements could be made. Part of the work of Andy’s section would be to collate this information during the trials and prepare regular reports. When they had finished, Andy went in search of Hamilton, tearing the top sheets out of the duplicate notebook and putting them in an envelope. He was directed to the company’s personnel department and asked to see Mr Hamilton of the Department of Defence. The secretary disappeared into an office and Hamilton followed her out. Andy gave him the envelope and said it was the information he had asked for. “Good,” said Hamilton. “I’ll be in touch.” Andy was doing his own thinking and decided to ask members of the RAF team which company employees were normally seen around the project. It might help if a pattern emerged regarding which ones were around on the days in question. He went back to the labo
ratory and found no-one was there and headed for the assembly bay where the radar unit was. There was the scientist, Flying Officer Goodhew, Sarge and the rest of the team in earnest discussion. They had powered up to start tests and there was an electrical short which blew a fuse but after it had blown the klystron. The cause had been quickly identified and questions were being asked of Corporal Brennan. He claimed that he had checked everything properly. The scientist was more concerned to get a replacement klystron from Manchester. Goodhew told Sarge to write up an incident report and get it to him by the morning. He took the scientist with him to get a replacement unit across to them overnight. Andy listened with interest, thinking back to when everything was being connected up. The team set up to start checking each unit. There was real concern that the transistors might have blown and that could mean the replacement of a number of circuit cards. Fortunately, they should all have duplicates in the units and be switched over. Sarge headed back to the lab to start compiling the report. Andy asked Corporal Williams if he remembered what happened when Corporal Brennan called out to him (Andy). The reply was that he followed Andy to the door of the module. Andy asked what had changed when he went back to check on the civilian installing the klystron unit. Williams thought about it and then said the cables had been connected while he wasn’t watching. He turned back to the cables connecting the klystron and looked closely at the multi-pinned plug and socket. It had black soot marks from the flash when the system shorted. The electrical short had welded the metal shaving to the pins and although much of it had melted, it was still clear that some foreign material had been in the plug and socket when the power was switched on. He called Corporal Brennan over and said, “What do you make of this?” as he showed him the plug and socket. There was an insistence that they had been clean before they were re-connected. Andy excused himself and headed across to see Sarge in the lab. He explained his misgivings to Sarge and asked the name of the civilian that had installed the klystron. He was told it was Sam Wilson. Andy wondered aloud if he was linked to any of the missing spare parts. Sarge suggested that they discuss it with the team on the way back to Ouston and out of earshot of the employees at the factory. Andy agreed and then went in search of Hamilton. He found him again in the personnel department and asked if he could see him privately. Hamilton nodded and beckoned him into an interview room. He shut the door after them and Andy explained what had happened to the klystron and the possible role of the employee, Sam Wilson.

  “Okay, leave it with me,” said Hamilton. “I’ll do some quick checking on who Wilson associates with.” Andy headed back to the lab. while Hamilton went down to Flying Officer Goodhew’s office because it had a scrambler on the telephone. Knocking, he went in and asked if he could use the telephone urgently, suggesting that Goodhew stay.

  The scientist left the office and Goodhew said, “We’ve arranged for a replacement klystron to come from Manchester tomorrow morning. They couldn’t send it overnight but it should arrive by lunchtime tomorrow.”

  Hamilton nodded and said, “An employee here appears to have sabotaged the klystron but we can’t prove it yet. I need to talk to my office to find out who his associates are. Then I think we should talk to your CO.” Goodhew nodded and pointed to the ‘phone. Hamilton made his call to London and explained what he wanted and why. He was to organise a photo of the suspect and a copy of his personal details and someone would pick them up in thirty minutes time. Wilson would be tailed and a check also made of his known associates. He was also told that a Russian trawler, the Ivor Noventsky, appeared to be heading into the River Tyne. An alarm bell went off in Hamilton’s head. “I think we need to proceed with caution,” then went on to discuss a possible plan with his colleague. After putting the ‘phone down, Hamilton asked Goodhew to telephone Squadron Leader Dawson and let him know the situation. He then left the office and headed down to personnel to organise the information on Sam Wilson. Twenty minutes later, the security at the main gate telephoned that they had a person seeking to pick up an envelope from the Dept. of Defence person, Mr Hamilton. He took the call and asked to speak to the person. The ensuing conversation identified and verified the person was from MI5 and Hamilton said that he would go down to meet him. At security, he handed over the envelope and indicated for the visitor to go outside with him so they could talk. Hamilton briefed him on the situation and told him to keep in touch. The men shook hands and parted, Hamilton heading back to the office.

  ***

  The 5 o’clock hooter went and men packed up work and headed for the time clocks to punch their cards before heading out. Similarly, the RAF personnel packed up their equipment and tools and headed out to the bus. Outside the main gate a ‘tail’ waited for Sam Wilson. As Wilson left the building and passed through security, Hamilton followed him across the yard to the main gate. As Wilson went out, Hamilton nodded to the man waiting outside and the ‘tail’ was on. Wilson headed towards Shields Road and went into the bar of the Blacksmiths Arms. He ordered himself a ‘half’ of ‘Exhibition’ beer and retired to a table in a corner. The ‘tail’ followed him in and ordered a ‘half’ of ‘Scotch’ beer and moved to another table nearby. Soon, other men from Wensley Electronics walked in and ordered beers. Two of them went across and joined Sam Wilson. They were his companions from the previous evening. After preliminary talk, Sam bent his head and lowered his voice. The ‘tail’ pulled a device out of his pocket and quietly slid it under the table, flicked a switch and pressed. The suction cup held it place under the table. Pointed in the direction of Sam Wilson and friends, it was a powerful miniature microphone. In his pocket, the conversation was recorded on a miniature tape recorder. Sam told Sean Byrne and his companion how he had blown the klystron and a new one had been ordered from Argonaut Industries in Manchester. It would be sent over in the morning by a truck. Sean Byrne told Sam that he had done well and that he would take the next step. The other two asked him what that would be. “I’m not sure,” was Sean’s reply, “but I’ll be giving it a lot of thought.” They all grinned at that reply. “Sam,” said Sean, “don’t do anything more for the time being. You’ve done a good job at holding things up but let it be for the time being.”

  “Okay, Sean, you’re the boss,” replied Sam.

  “I’d better be going,” said Sean. At that, they all drained their glasses and headed for the door. The ‘tail’ watched them go, retrieving the microphone at the same time. It was clear from watching the three that the leader was the Irishman and the ‘tail’ decided to follow him instead of Wilson. He finished his beer and casually left the bar. Outside he saw the three men separate and followed Sean Byrne down the street. Sean headed towards a telephone box and went inside. The tail followed and stood back, ostensibly fiddling with change. Sean took no notice as he put money into the slot for a local call. The tail stood where he could watch Sean dial the number. He counted the number of holes above Sean’s finger and was able to work out the number as Sean dialled and then the ‘tail’ committed it to memory. Sean’s voice was muffled and the ‘tail’ couldn’t hear it all but worked out that Sean was reporting the conversation with Sam Wilson. Sean hung up and came out of the ‘phone box with barely a glance at the ‘tail’. A bus came down the street and Sean sprinted to the bus stop to catch it. The tail let him go. It would be too obvious to follow and also catch the bus. He went into the telephone box and dialled the operator, asking for a London number. While he waited, he played back the recording he had made of the conversation in the pub. The call went through to MI5 and he asked for an extension. When it answered he gave a report, including the telephone number that Sean Byrne had dialled and a description of Sean. He was told to head for his home but to stay near the ‘phone. Coupled with Hamilton’s conversation earlier, the duty officer contacted the section head and gave a report. He said to trace the telephone number and come back with it. Then the section head telephoned Air Ministry.

  While all this had been going on, the RAF bus was taking the team to RAF
Ouston. Sarge and the team discussed the matters that Corporal Andy Hill had raised. Comparing their memories of events, it appeared that Sam Wilson had been around the areas of problems in the majority of cases. Sarge said that he would report it to Flying Officer Goodhew in the morning. When they got back to the base, Andy said he would catch up with the others and headed for the telephone to call Lutterworth. When he got through, he asked about Hamilton from MI5 and explained what Hamilton had said. Andy was told that it was correct and that the instruction had come from ‘very high up’ and to work with him. Andy then gave a report of events and his concerns. He was told that it would be followed up and he hung up and headed for the barracks to freshen up before going to the mess for dinner.

  Hamilton had booked into the ‘Station Hotel’ next to the Central Railway Station and was preparing to go down to the dining room for dinner when the telephone rang. He answered it and found himself talking to Air Vice-Marshal Denby. “I want to discuss the situation at Wensley Electronics,” he said to Hamilton. They were quickly engrossed in conversation.

  Over in the suburb of Jesmond, Jim Louden, the MI5 tail, also received a telephone call as he was finishing a meal. It was the London office with instructions. They had traced the telephone number and it was the address of a leading Communist Party member. He was to drive over there and keep watch and to photograph anyone coming or going. Louden quickly cleared the table and headed out the door, taking a bag of equipment with him. He had a map in his car and checked the location of the address. It was in Rothbury Terrace, Heaton. Louden headed out. He arrived there fifteen minutes later and parked the car up from the house. Louden had been there about twenty minutes when the Irishman came out, followed by two other men. A fourth man came to the door and stood there giving some last-minute instructions. Louden managed to photograph them all. The three men climbed into a Ford Consul parked in the street and drove off. Louden followed in his car. They drove over to Byker and parked near the Regal cinema. A large shed was nearby and they went in through an access door in one of the main doors. Lights went on and an engine started up. The men opened the main doors and one of them drove out a large panel van. Louden identified it as a 1958 Commer, dark red in colour with a registration number of KGY 984. Louden’s car was equipped with a radio transceiver and he radioed in what he had observed so far. He was told to follow at a discreet distance but do nothing.