.: Cracking Enigma: Secret Ham Operators

January 26, 2026

Cracking Enigma: Secret Ham Operators

Join Lee Love, N2LEE of Ham Radio Gizmos as he explores the story of the hams who helped crack the infamous Enigma code in World War II.

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Why "Son of Bernie"?

Son of Bernie started out in 2007 as a tribute to my dad, Bernie Hanrahan (1916-2003), the finest man I've ever known. My father was the personification of the Greatest Generation and fought his way through the living hell of Guadalacanal and other southern Pacific locations which should never be forgotten. Like many of his brothers in arms, he came home after the war and quietly raised his family.

Bernie's sons, brothers Bill, Tom and Jack (and our late brother Bob) are the Sons of Bernie. We are dedicated to preserving the memory of the man who gave us the the ideals that would shape us as men. He typified strength, loyalty and courage in everything he did. The SoBs know that we owe our dad a debt that can never be repaid. We cherish his memory and are immensely proud to be his sons.

Son of Bernie is heavy into amateur ("ham") radio, but also touches on many of my other interests such as flying, guitar, military history and faith, as well as thoughts about my father, his generation and love of country.

The site originally ran from 2007 through 2011 and was brought back to life in November 2025. (All of my ramblings from 2007 on are available on the site.)

Who is St. Max, SP3RN?

I have a personal devotion to St. Maximilian Kolbe, who is also regarded as the patron saint of amateur radio.

St. Max is the only canonized saint to have held an amateur radio license. Fr. Maximilian Kolbe was a 20th century Franciscan Catholic priest from Poland who founded the monastery of Niepokalanów near Warsaw and operated amateur radio station SP3RN. Fr. Kolbe was imprisoned by the Nazis at the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp (prisoner # 16670) where he volunteered to take the place of one of ten men condemned to death after a prison escape attempt. He was martyred by the Nazis on August 14, 1941 with an injection of carbolic acid following a two week period of forced starvation. He was canonized by Pope St. John Paul II in 1982 with the man saved by St. Max in attendance at the canonization ceremony.

A 2025 movie, Triumph of the Heart, illuminates the life of St. Maximilian and his heroic virtue.

I'm a long time member of the Saint Max Net, which is dedicated to the life and martyrdom of St. Maximilian Kolbe. The net has met continuously since it was founded by Lloyd Roach, K3QNT and Dr. Ted Figlock, W1JMJ (SK) in 1998.

About Me

I'm "Bumpa" to my eight grandchildren and one great-granddaughter, and W1WH to fellow ham radio operators around the world. I'm also the father of three, an adult revert to the Catholic faith of my youth and a Fourth Degree member of the Knights of Columbus. My wife Jane (who, as they say here in New England, "is wicked smaht") and I are former members of Mensa but never took it seriously. Our main mission in life is spoiling our grandchildren and rescuing them from the deprived lifestyle that their parents claim they themselves had endured while growing up.

Professionally, I've been a children's protective service social worker, right-of-way agent, commercial lender, police dispatcher, telecom site developer - and a few other things along the way. For the last 20 years or so, I helped develop hundreds of wireless and fiber optic amplification sites throughout the USA. I finally retired in 2016. It was quite a ride.

ON THE AIR: I enjoy a good ragchew, casual DXing, an occasional easy contest, and mobile HF. I frequently listen to The World Famous Toad Harbor Net guys on 1930 kHz, but they way outmatch me with respect to antennas and power so I don't try. Sunday nights usually find me on the 20- and 40-meter Saint Max Net. At the bench, I let out my fair share of “magic smoke,” and I’ve grabbed the wrong end of my soldering iron more than once. "If it smells like chicken, you’re holding it wrong."

IN THE AIR: I'm a long time pilot, but unfortunately I lost my FAA medical certificate a while back. It is what it is - the reality of many aging pilots.

I've also played bluegrass guitar with a couple of bands you've never heard of and likely never will. I love cats, dogs, planes and trains, guns, the Constitution, VDH, red meat, cigars, guitars, Stetsons and Tecovas, Tolkien, Rocky and Bullwinkle, my Catholic faith, handlebar mustaches, the Corps, the USA, and my long suffering wife, Jane, who has inexplicaby tolerated my eccentricities for almost 50 years.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Bill Hanrahan
A Son of Bernie

Interests

My Catholic Faith
St. Maximilian Kolbe, SP3RN
My long suffering wife, Jane
Four grandsons, four granddaughters and one great-granddaughter
Kids in general
Marine 9th Defense Battalion, World War II Guadalcanal
The Corps
Amateur Radio
Private Pilot Flying
Geopolitical boundaries and borders
Guitars
Guns
Handlebar mustaches (especially mine)
Tolkien's Lord of the Rings
Music (especially baroque and progressive bluegrass)
My Newfoundland Irish heritage
New England Patriots
Planes, trains, cats and dogs
Red meat
Stetsons and Tecovas
Victor Davis Hanson
Maintaining this damn blog
Rocky and Bullwinkle