Just Finished Reading: A Game of Birds and Wolves – The Secret Game that Revolutionised the War by Simon Parkin (FP: 2019) [278pp] 

It was a dire situation, an existential threat to Britain and the continuing war effort. If what Chruchill called the ‘Battle of the Atlantic’ was lost, then the much-needed supplies Britain needed to stave off starvation would be insufficient, and she would have to sue for peace. New technologies were on their way and new escort ships were being built (or borrowed from the US) but that would take time. Something was needed NOW. Enter a medically retired naval officer with an off the wall idea – he would get destroyer and escort captains to play a game, ably assisted by a group of young and often brilliant WRENs (Women's Royal Naval Service) who had never been to sea and had never experienced a single U-boat attack. 

Scepticism was, all too predictably, high and at least at first the unit – Western Approaches Tactical Unit (WATU) - was allowed to exist on sufferance as long as it didn’t draw on too many scarce resources. But when tasked to review existing anti-submarine tactics it showed its metal by not only showing tactical failures but also developing a working, and highly effective, response to the new U-boat tactics that were causing so much damage, misery and death. When the tactics were approved and implemented through training at WATU the losses of merchant ships began to drop, and the U-boat kills began to increase. The tide looked like it was turning in Britain’s favour, then the Krigesmarine changed its own tactics, deploying ever larger wolf packs to stop the Allied convoys in their tracks. The clash of tactics was going to be played out on the already dangerous waters of the Atlantic Ocean. The only question at WATU was whose game was better – the Allies or the Axis? 

It’s odd that, after all of my previous reading on the pivotal Battle of the Atlantic that I’d never come across WATU before. It seems that their contribution, although significant, has been largely sidelined and forgotten – no longer! Wargaming in the military has a very long tradition and was, arguably, perfected in Germany in the early years of that country's existence. Britain was a late comer to the appreciation of gaming, both as a teaching aid and as a safe way to try out new ideas and new tactics without putting actual lives at risk. The thousands of games played at WATU proved their worth in both ways by trail and teaching new tactical ideas to many hundreds of naval and civilian ship captains to give them a much-enhanced chance of survival in their respective convoys and the ability to fight back with great effect. 

As a LONG time gamer this was an interesting insight into modern official wargaming in a military context. I played a bit of tabletop gaming (back in the day) so appreciated all of the hard work that went into making the games as realistic and instructive as possible. It was also interesting to see the involvement (after much scepticism and opposition) of young women in the unit and how it both changed their lives personally and changed the military itself in respect to the role of female officers and other ranks. Recommended for a whole host of reasons, especially if you have any interest in the convoy system and anti-submarine warfare. 

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