Werner Heubeck
Encyclopedia
Werner Wolfgang Heubeck, CBE
(24 October 1923 – 19 October 2009) was a German
-British
transport executive, who was managing director of the Northern Ireland
transport companies Ulsterbus
and Citybus
.
, Germany
in 1923, the son of an engineer in the city's gas works. In 1942, aged 19, he was a member of the Hitler Youth
, and was conscripted
into the Luftwaffe
as a soldier and engineer in the Hermann Göring division
. He was initially posted to anti-invasion duties in western France
, then moved to Italy
, before being assigned to the Afrika Korps
in the last stages of the North African Campaign
. The transport ships carrying Heubeck to Africa were attacked by air and sunk four-and-a-half miles from the African coast. Heubeck swam to Cap Bon
, also managing to rescue some of his colleagues, of which 60 from 550 survived the attack.
, Heubeck was sent to the United States
on the last prisoner of war
convoy to a POW camp at Fort Polk
, Louisiana
. He was repatriated in 1946, and returned to Nuremberg to rebuild his family home. After a brief period working for the United States Army
, Heubeck obtained work as a translator and proof reader at the Nuremberg Trials
held in his home town. It was at the Nuremberg Trials that Heubeck met his future wife, Monica, a Welsh
translator who had worked at Bletchley Park
during the war. Despite Heubeck's German heritage and military service, he and Monica gained permission to marry and settle in Britain, which they did in 1949. Heubeck was naturalised
as a British citizen
in 1954, at the time he was described as a "Development
Assistant" and was living in Govilon
, Abergavenny
, Wales.
. In 1965, he happened to notice an advertisement for the position of managing director for buses in Northern Ireland
, and successfully applied for the job, preparing for the interview by taking a day trip to Ulster and speaking to the bus manager in Aberdeen.
The Ulster Transport Authority (UTA), as it was then known, had been making serious losses, and in 1967, Heubeck headed up a major revamping of the organisation, which was rebranded as Ulsterbus
. Staffing was cut, including the phasing out of conductors
, and timetables were rescheduled. He succeeded in running Ulsterbus and Citybus profitably at a time when conventional wisdom said that public transport could never be run profitably. Unlike many managers at the time he eschewed ostentation—sharing the services of a secretary with his Chief Engineer, keeping filing to a minimum and carrying this emphasis on economic working throughout the organisation.
In addition, Heubeck's tenure at Ulsterbus coincided with the height of The Troubles
in Northern Ireland during the 1970s and 1980s, with public transport being a prime target of the Provisional IRA
's bombing campaign. Heubeck was well-known at the time for personally boarding buses and removing bombs himself to keep the buses running to schedule.
where Heubeck produced handmade artifacts and furniture for local churches. He later moved to Shetland where one of their three sons (Martin Heubeck) worked as an ornithologist. Heubeck died on 19 October 2009, aged 86, just a month after the death of his wife Monica. He had been battling cancer
for several years.
. In the Birthday Honours of 1988, the year of his retirement from Ulsterbus, he was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(24 October 1923 – 19 October 2009) was a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
transport executive, who was managing director of the Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
transport companies Ulsterbus
Ulsterbus
Ulsterbus is a public transport operator in Northern Ireland and operates bus services outside Belfast. It is part of Translink , which also includes Northern Ireland Railways, Metro Belfast and Flexibus.-Services:Ulsterbus is responsible for most of the province-wide bus...
and Citybus
Metro (Belfast)
Metro is the trading name for bus company Citybus in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is a subsidiary of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company, within the common management structure of Translink, along with Ulsterbus and Northern Ireland Railways....
.
Early life and military service
Heubeck was born in NurembergNuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1923, the son of an engineer in the city's gas works. In 1942, aged 19, he was a member of the Hitler Youth
Hitler Youth
The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It existed from 1922 to 1945. The HJ was the second oldest paramilitary Nazi group, founded one year after its adult counterpart, the Sturmabteilung...
, and was conscripted
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
into the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
as a soldier and engineer in the Hermann Göring division
Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring
The Fallschirm-Panzer-Division 1. Hermann Göring was an élite German Luftwaffe armoured division. The HG saw action in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and on the Eastern front...
. He was initially posted to anti-invasion duties in western France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, then moved to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, before being assigned to the Afrika Korps
Afrika Korps
The German Africa Corps , or the Afrika Korps as it was popularly called, was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II...
in the last stages of the North African Campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
. The transport ships carrying Heubeck to Africa were attacked by air and sunk four-and-a-half miles from the African coast. Heubeck swam to Cap Bon
Cap Bon
Cap Bon , also Watan el-kibli, is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia. It is located at around . It is surrounded by the Gulf of Tunis in the north. Towns located on the peninsula include Nabeul, Kelibia and Menzel Temime. The ruins of the Punic town Kerkouane are located here....
, also managing to rescue some of his colleagues, of which 60 from 550 survived the attack.
Post-World War II
Captured shortly after reaching TunisiaTunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
, Heubeck was sent to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on the last prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
convoy to a POW camp at Fort Polk
Fort Polk
Fort Polk is a United States Army installation located in Vernon Parish, approximately 7 miles east of Leesville, Louisiana and 20 miles north of DeRidder, Louisiana....
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. He was repatriated in 1946, and returned to Nuremberg to rebuild his family home. After a brief period working for the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, Heubeck obtained work as a translator and proof reader at the Nuremberg Trials
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
held in his home town. It was at the Nuremberg Trials that Heubeck met his future wife, Monica, a Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
translator who had worked at Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park is an estate located in the town of Bletchley, in Buckinghamshire, England, which currently houses the National Museum of Computing...
during the war. Despite Heubeck's German heritage and military service, he and Monica gained permission to marry and settle in Britain, which they did in 1949. Heubeck was naturalised
Naturalization
Naturalization is the acquisition of citizenship and nationality by somebody who was not a citizen of that country at the time of birth....
as a British citizen
British nationality law
British nationality law is the law of the United Kingdom that concerns citizenship and other categories of British nationality. The law is complex because of the United Kingdom's former status as an imperial power.-History:...
in 1954, at the time he was described as a "Development
Assistant" and was living in Govilon
Govilon
Govilon is a small Welsh village located between Llanfoist and Gilwern near Abergavenny in north Monmouthshire.- Attractions :The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal passes through the village and . The village has views overlooking the valley of the River Usk and up to the heights of the southern...
, Abergavenny
Abergavenny
Abergavenny , meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches...
, Wales.
Ulsterbus and Citybus
In 1957, Heubeck was working for Alex Pirie & Sons, a paper mill in AberdeenPaper mills of Aberdeen
This is an article about the 3 main paper mills in Aberdeen, Scotland .- Donside Paper Mill :The Donside Paper Mill was paper mill in Aberdeen, shortly to the north of Old Aberdeen and the Tillydrone area, by the River Don...
. In 1965, he happened to notice an advertisement for the position of managing director for buses in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, and successfully applied for the job, preparing for the interview by taking a day trip to Ulster and speaking to the bus manager in Aberdeen.
The Ulster Transport Authority (UTA), as it was then known, had been making serious losses, and in 1967, Heubeck headed up a major revamping of the organisation, which was rebranded as Ulsterbus
Ulsterbus
Ulsterbus is a public transport operator in Northern Ireland and operates bus services outside Belfast. It is part of Translink , which also includes Northern Ireland Railways, Metro Belfast and Flexibus.-Services:Ulsterbus is responsible for most of the province-wide bus...
. Staffing was cut, including the phasing out of conductors
Conductor (transportation)
A conductor is a member of a railway train's crew that is responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve the actual operation of the train. The title of conductor is most associated with railway operations in North America, but the role of conductor is common to railways...
, and timetables were rescheduled. He succeeded in running Ulsterbus and Citybus profitably at a time when conventional wisdom said that public transport could never be run profitably. Unlike many managers at the time he eschewed ostentation—sharing the services of a secretary with his Chief Engineer, keeping filing to a minimum and carrying this emphasis on economic working throughout the organisation.
In addition, Heubeck's tenure at Ulsterbus coincided with the height of The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
in Northern Ireland during the 1970s and 1980s, with public transport being a prime target of the Provisional IRA
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
's bombing campaign. Heubeck was well-known at the time for personally boarding buses and removing bombs himself to keep the buses running to schedule.
Retirement
Heubeck retired in 1988, after 23 years at Ulsterbus. He moved near the village of Gleno in County AntrimCounty Antrim
County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...
where Heubeck produced handmade artifacts and furniture for local churches. He later moved to Shetland where one of their three sons (Martin Heubeck) worked as an ornithologist. Heubeck died on 19 October 2009, aged 86, just a month after the death of his wife Monica. He had been battling cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
for several years.
Honours
Heubeck was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 1977 Queen's Birthday HonoursQueen's Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the celebration of the Queen's Official Birthday in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen...
. In the Birthday Honours of 1988, the year of his retirement from Ulsterbus, he was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).