BtZ42, 21: Slothrop backstory in UK

[Monte Davis]

Jochen and David: yes, there were small US military missions in London even
before Sep 1939, growing larger and more numerous with the 1940 destroyer
deal, again with Lend-Lease, and exploding after December 1941. I'd bet
they were more Navy than Army early on, but as I said: in itself,
Slothrop's presence that early is not a Big Red Flashing Clue.

But that he and Tantivy have (at least as I read p.21) since late 1941 been
colleagues engaged in joint US/UK "technical intelligence" aimed at
Northern Germany... that really raises my eyebrow. Given how slow
bureaucracies -- government, military, and intelligence -- are to work out
their collaboration, that's a quite specific team and target for late 1941.
If P had tossed in some chaff about them studying German radar at
Ludwigshavn, or advanced mines protecting the Kiel Canal... but he didn't.
The Allies had only scraps and rumors about the V-weapons, and no dedicated
intelligence effort I know of, until May 1943.

...or at least that's what the history books say.
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