Post by Diarist on Dec 17, 2017 4:57:59 GMT 1
Orde has returned from Abbis Adeba and in a letter HM Haile Selassie has agreed to consider my request and would welcome formal talks with the British government and Jewish representatives from Palestine. I guess that such things don't happen overnight but it will be useful for a future Jewish State. In Tel Aviv preparations are being made to raid the Grand Mufti's home and offices. He and others will be temporarily detained pending evaluation of seized material. LG Geoff Howard has authorized the raid which will be carried out in the early hours tomorrow, i.e. not today on a Friday. I'm hoping the Grand Mufti resists and he gets shot in a firefight but I'm keeping those thoughts to myself.
George has finally arrived with Irvine. "How much longer can you stay here, Bob?" The latter asked.
"A few more days then I have to travel to Italy."
"Do you have space for a few presents for my family?"
"As long as they are not too spacious or heavy, Irvine. I want to buy a few myself for Sally."
"Have you heard from her?"
"Yes. She sent a letter from Munich. Just a note to say that she had arrived safely and that Prince Rupprecht is great company."
"Do you intend going to Germany again on the way home, Bob?" George asked.
"Yes, combining work with pleasure. In addition to visiting Prince Rupprecht I hope to travel to Würzburg to meet Heinz Guderian and his 2nd Panzer Division. If anyone is making progress in Germany it will be Heinz."
"That's the pleasure part I presume?"
"It is. I also wish to see how advanced their radial engines are. We need them for our carrier aircraft and they would also be ideal for heavy bombers. In addition we need an alternative to the Merlin engine. Too many aircraft are being designed around that engine."
"Bombers too?"
"I know of three, possibly four twin-engine aircraft requiring the Merlin. Luckily we have three Merlin production plants planned in England with probable sites in Canada, Australia and hopefully in the United States."
"In America for export to Britain?"
"No, for aircraft produced in the US for their armed forces and for export if enough are produced. Nothing is certain yet. We have some good designs on the drawing board and we are hoping for export opportunities. Winston and FDR have already agreed to purchasing items off-the-shelf in order to reduce costs and to field the equipment earlier."
"That does make sense but seeing is believing."
I had to laugh at that. "We have an advantage though, George." He looked up at me. "Our equipment is more likely to be combat proven. We British always tend to be at war somewhere."
"You are such likeable people."
"Well you appear to our enjoy our company. When I visit the US later this year I hope to convince General Malin Craig that your time-in-grade and time-in-service in British uniform be counted in your US Army records."
"Does my family realize that I can't go back to Germany even though the Nazis have gone?" Irvine asked.
"Yes. I told them that the Wehrmacht is there to stay and you'll probably be considered a deserter."
"That's true. I am happy in Britain and we have a wonderful home. How stable is the situation in Germany, Bob?"
"It appears to be relatively quiet. The military is supporting the new government but I can imagine that the people are very divided. Also the SA was incorporated into the Wehrmacht so there is a possibility that they are divided too. Only time will tell. I believe that priority should be given to feeding the people not rearmament. Rationing should be lifted as soon as possible so that the people can feel the benefits of the new situation. Jobs are necessary too."
"What about the Soviets? How are active are they?"
"To be honest, George, we don't really know much about what is happening there. Hopefully they are busy with domestic problems because we haven't heard much on the diplomatic front. Poland is worried about them but that is only natural. The Russians lost a lot of territory in the Great War and I can imagine that like Germany they want it back. Hopefully we'll have a few years to prepare for them. My main concern is Japan. They have a powerful military and are very expansionist. I'm trying to convince the MoD that we need to show more presence in the region."
"Any luck?"
"We have the Foreign Ministers from Britain, France and Holland visiting the Far East and SE Asia hoping to sow the seeds for a common front against Russia and Japan. There are also plans to station more naval forces in the region but that might take a while because the new situation in Europe hasn't really sunk in yet."
We talked for about another hour then retired. Tomorrow could be a busy day for all of us.
George has finally arrived with Irvine. "How much longer can you stay here, Bob?" The latter asked.
"A few more days then I have to travel to Italy."
"Do you have space for a few presents for my family?"
"As long as they are not too spacious or heavy, Irvine. I want to buy a few myself for Sally."
"Have you heard from her?"
"Yes. She sent a letter from Munich. Just a note to say that she had arrived safely and that Prince Rupprecht is great company."
"Do you intend going to Germany again on the way home, Bob?" George asked.
"Yes, combining work with pleasure. In addition to visiting Prince Rupprecht I hope to travel to Würzburg to meet Heinz Guderian and his 2nd Panzer Division. If anyone is making progress in Germany it will be Heinz."
"That's the pleasure part I presume?"
"It is. I also wish to see how advanced their radial engines are. We need them for our carrier aircraft and they would also be ideal for heavy bombers. In addition we need an alternative to the Merlin engine. Too many aircraft are being designed around that engine."
"Bombers too?"
"I know of three, possibly four twin-engine aircraft requiring the Merlin. Luckily we have three Merlin production plants planned in England with probable sites in Canada, Australia and hopefully in the United States."
"In America for export to Britain?"
"No, for aircraft produced in the US for their armed forces and for export if enough are produced. Nothing is certain yet. We have some good designs on the drawing board and we are hoping for export opportunities. Winston and FDR have already agreed to purchasing items off-the-shelf in order to reduce costs and to field the equipment earlier."
"That does make sense but seeing is believing."
I had to laugh at that. "We have an advantage though, George." He looked up at me. "Our equipment is more likely to be combat proven. We British always tend to be at war somewhere."
"You are such likeable people."
"Well you appear to our enjoy our company. When I visit the US later this year I hope to convince General Malin Craig that your time-in-grade and time-in-service in British uniform be counted in your US Army records."
"Does my family realize that I can't go back to Germany even though the Nazis have gone?" Irvine asked.
"Yes. I told them that the Wehrmacht is there to stay and you'll probably be considered a deserter."
"That's true. I am happy in Britain and we have a wonderful home. How stable is the situation in Germany, Bob?"
"It appears to be relatively quiet. The military is supporting the new government but I can imagine that the people are very divided. Also the SA was incorporated into the Wehrmacht so there is a possibility that they are divided too. Only time will tell. I believe that priority should be given to feeding the people not rearmament. Rationing should be lifted as soon as possible so that the people can feel the benefits of the new situation. Jobs are necessary too."
"What about the Soviets? How are active are they?"
"To be honest, George, we don't really know much about what is happening there. Hopefully they are busy with domestic problems because we haven't heard much on the diplomatic front. Poland is worried about them but that is only natural. The Russians lost a lot of territory in the Great War and I can imagine that like Germany they want it back. Hopefully we'll have a few years to prepare for them. My main concern is Japan. They have a powerful military and are very expansionist. I'm trying to convince the MoD that we need to show more presence in the region."
"Any luck?"
"We have the Foreign Ministers from Britain, France and Holland visiting the Far East and SE Asia hoping to sow the seeds for a common front against Russia and Japan. There are also plans to station more naval forces in the region but that might take a while because the new situation in Europe hasn't really sunk in yet."
We talked for about another hour then retired. Tomorrow could be a busy day for all of us.