COURTING A RELUCTANT ALLY - National Intelligence University

U.S. cryptologists with whom he came in contact through his personality andtechnical acumen. He began a personal friendship with William Friedman andothers, which greatly assisted in the future development of the closer ties betweenU.S.-UK SIGINT organizations that developed once the U.S. entered the war. 333The second visit of significance was that led by Commander Arthur McCollum,U.S. Navy, from August through October 1941. McCollum’s trip was toreciprocate the visit the U.S. had received from Godfrey earlier in the year. 334 Thetrip was significant in that it showed that the tensions that existed within the relationshipwere still prevalent on the eve of the U.S. entry into the war. For example,even though McCollum got along well with his British hosts on a personallevel and was given a great deal of access to the NID, he did not have a very highopinion of British abilities. When asked years later about whether he had seenRoom 39, the OIC’s main plotting room, McCollum responded to an interviewerthat he “may have seen it, I don’t know. Like everything British, you know, youget the impression that it’s not very well organized, that it’s rather diffused, but itdoes work.” 335 McCollum also had little confidence in British assessments onJapan, believing the British lack of focus on the Far East problem significantlyinhibited their ability to do substantive work on that country. 336 As McCollumcontinued his exploration of the NID, he realized that he was being preventedfrom seeing some aspects of the organization, particularly how decrypted COM-INT was being integrated by the NID. He confronted Godfrey on the issue anduncharacteristically, he was told“Well, you know, McCollum, that’s a very difficult thing to dobecause we don’t control that. I couldn’t possibly offer anything ofthat sort because I really don’t have any control over it.” I said, “Well,Admiral, who does?” and he said, “Damned if I know,” which ofcourse was ridiculous. 337333Smith, Ultra-Magic Deals, 89; Bath, 62-63.334 McCollum Reminiscences, 338. McCollum eventually retired as Rear Admiral from theNaval Service and his reminiscences are filled with many frank insights on the functioning of theU.S. Navy during this period. While it may seem odd that the Navy would reciprocate Godfrey’svisit with that from a CDR, McCollum was not originally supposed to be the senior man on themission. Given the vagaries of travel during this period, the senior member of the team took a differentflight from McCollum, a flight which crashed over England, killing all aboard. Unfortunatelyfor McCollum, who was in charge of the Japan Desk at ONI, he had been given only thevaguest notions of what the goals of the mission were. For additional information see McCollumReminiscences, 339-342.335 McCollum Reminiscences, 343.336 McCollum Reminiscences, 350.337 McCollum Reminiscences, 344.91