Page 295 - The Secret War in the Italian front in WWI (1915-1918)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

In the Italian army, in addition to
the 100 W transmitters mentioned
above, other CW stations were
distributed. For instance, the 2
nd
Corps deployed to the Western
front, was equipped with CW
telegraphic transmitters for
communications between
Headquarters down to Division
level . In picture 13.6, the red
10
lines represent the radio links
implemented with this type of
equipment, while the blue lines
refer to connections between the
Brigades by spark gap transmitters,
and finally, the black lines refer to
13.5 A Bardeloni receiver (ISCAG Archive) geo-telegraphy used down to the
Battalions .
11
In the last months of the war, many tests of voice transmissions by means of CW radio equipment
carried out on the Italian front demonstrated the feasibility of this kind of communications in
operative conditions. Two Marconi Wireless radio telephone field devices delivered to Genoa in
December 1917 were tested and compared with the equipment provided by SFR, in early 1918 .
12
Ronge provides some information about a radio interception, occurred on 5 October 1918, of
two Italian stations talking about an eavesdropping school . In short, intelligence-related issues
13
subsisted, as expected, also in the field of radiotelephony, so much so that some commands harshly
challenged this technology because of the difficulties in efficiently encoding voice communications
at the time, as demonstrated by the eavesdropping successes in wire telephony.

radIo InTercePTIon and cryPTograPhIc servIce wIThIn The ITalIan arMIes

As explained in more detail in the following pages, the strategy adopted by the Austrian
Headquarters of severely restricting the radio transmission had undergone a profound
modification in the first months of 1918. The consequent extension of the Austrian radio-
communication network and the increase of the produced radio traffic highlighted by the
Italian radio surveys, induced Intelligence Service, with the assistance of Sacco, to issue
a new Ordinamento del Servizio di intercettazioni radiotelegrafiche, radiogoniomentria
e decrittazione dei dispacci nemici (Organisation of the radiotelegraphic interception,
radiogoniometry and decryption of enemy dispatches).
The foreword to the letter announcing that decision of the Supreme Command to the Headquarters
of the Armies and to the Chief Inspector of the STM reads:

10 Mario Caracciolo, Le truppe italiane in Francia, Mondadori, Milano, 1929, p. 217 - 218.
11 ISCAG, Coll. 242.
12 Communication from Marconi Office to the Army Operations Office, Technical Division, Complessi radiotelefonici
trasmittenti (Wireless Telephone Transmitting devices), 6 December 1917, ibidem.
13 M. Ronge, Der Radiohorch, op cit., p.40.

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