APPENDIX VI:

ORGANISATION AND LOGISTICS OF A HEAVY TANK BATTALION

1. Organization of a tank unit: who does what

The fundamental role of the 9th was to support infantry formations in attack and defence, using its heavy tanks as the main weapon. To be able to do this continuously, ammunition, petrol, water, rations etc. had to be brought up to the tanks and all supporting crews; facilities for repairing and maintaining all vehicles had to be close at hand, as well as spare parts.

The battalion also had additional fighting troops for special purposes, notably the Anti-Aircraft (AA) Troop with the AA tanks (cruisers with twin 20mm Oerlikon guns) and the Reconnaissance or Recce Troop with their light tanks. The light tanks were the M5 Stuart, alternatively and generally called the Honey. John Hodges describes the task of the Recce Troop: "They were used generally to have a good look ahead to try and spot what was waiting for us - a nasty job". They could also fight very effectively against the right sort of targets, as they did with Gordon Findlay at Le Havre.

Battalion Headquarters

The overall command structure of a tank battalion such as the 9th is shown in Fig VI-1. The five main components were the Battalion Headquarters (BHQ), Headquarters (HQ), Squadron, and the three heavy tank squadrons A, B and C. The heavy tank squadrons were alternatively called the sabre squadrons. The L.A.D and the Signals Section provided specialist support in vehicle maintenance and communication respectively.

BHQ controlled the activities of the whole battalion, but was itself small. It consisted of five officers and twenty-five other ranks mounted in six tanks and a staff car. But although small, it was powerful. Four of the tanks were commanded by:

the Commanding Officer (CO), a Lieutenant-Colonel

the Second-in-Command, a Major

the Adjutant, a Captain,

the Intelligence Officer, a Lieutenant

Also in the group was the Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM), the senior warrant officer in the battalion. The two other tanks in BHQ were observation post (OP) tanks. These were used to carry Forward Observation Officers (FOOs) from supporting artillery formations, and were normally assigned to one of the sabre squadrons. This means that the two tanks were quite often commanded by gunner officers who might have little understanding of how to do it.

FIGURE VI-1: ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE, HEAVY TANK BATTALION

Sabre Squadron

A sabre squadron consisted of three sections: fighting headquarters, administrative headquarters, and five tank troops each of three tanks; the command structure is included in Figure VI-1.

Squadron HQ (F) consisted of three officers and nineteen other ranks; they were mounted in two close support infantry tanks, one standard infantry tank, an armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) and a scout car.

The squadron leader, a major, commanded the squadron from one of the close support tanks; these had a 95mm howitzer as their main armament, and were either a Churchill Mark V or a Churchill Mark VIII. The squadron second-in-command, a Captain, had the second close support tank. The third tank was commanded by the second captain in the squadron, whose formal title was the Reconnaissance Officer, known for short as the Recce Officer or RO. The Recce Officer's principal task in action was to maintain contact with the infantry being

supported by the squadron. To do this he could use either the third tank in HQ(F) or he could use the scout car. Because it was less conspicuous the scout car was often the choice. It could be used brilliantly, as for example by Ken Kidd, RO of C Squadron, at Le Valtru in the last days of June 1944. The Recce Officer's other main task took place when the squadron moved from one location to another. He went ahead of the squadron, identified or selected appropriate areas for all the squadron's vehicles and people, and then signed the areas and the routes to them. When the squadron arrived at its new location the comments on the Recce Officer's parentage and intelligence were sometimes far from flattering!

The remaining vehicle forming part of Squadron HQ(F) was the ARV. This was a Churchill without a turret, and it had special facilities for recovering vehicles from situations they could not get out of themselves. On the battalion's first day in action, 26 June 1944, Tom Tomney's tank "Independent" was driven by Cyril Rees. It became inextricably bogged in an anti-tank ditch, and remained there for some hours; but then: "It was a great relief when our armoured recovery vehicle turned up and made short work of towing us out of the ditch".

The Admin section of a sabre squadron HQ consisted of support vehicles of several different types. The squadron leader had a staff car which could take him rapidly to briefings and order groups (O Groups) and was roomy enough for him to do his own planning and then briefing of subordinates. There were two 2-wheel drive 15 cwt trucks, one for the squadron officers' mess equipment and the other modified to carry a water tank.

Three vehicles provided greater mobility across country and some protection against small arms fire; these were the "15 cwt trucks half tracked", always known as half tracks. One of these carried the squadron fitter sergeant and some of the fitters, and the other two normally carried relief crews. Some of the time they did indeed carry relief crews, but under some conditions they would carry anything that needed to be ferried up to the tanks.

The next type of vehicle was a four wheel drive 3 ton truck, of which each squadron had eleven. Nine of these were general purpose trucks used for carrying petrol, ammunition, rations, baggage, blankets – and of course, men, especially when employed for the vital role of a "passion wagon". Of the remaining two 3-tonners, one was fitted out to carry the technical stores and spares most often required by the tanks and other vehicles, and the second was a mobile kitchen.

The remaining vehicle possessed by each sabre squadron was the carrier, tracked, charging, personnel (TCP). This was a fully tracked lightly armoured carrier, and its crew, a driver mechanic and an electrician, were responsible for the health of the vehicle batteries and electrical systems generally. It was more colloquially known as the Slave Battery Carrier.

Each of the five tank troops consisted of three tanks; one was commanded by the troop leader, normally a lieutenant, the second by a sergeant and the third by a corporal. There was another corporal in the troop, often a member of the troop leader's crew, and one or two lance-corporals. Harry Hurt, nicknamed "Lofty" (and it was obvious why when you saw him standing up) remembers that 5 Troop of A squadron had Gerry "Gaffer" Wells as troop leader, Tony Griffiths as troop sergeant, and Albert Johnson as troop corporal.

Every tank in the 9th Battalion had a name beginning with the letter "I", a tradition stemming from its origin as I Battalion of the Heavy Machine Gun Corps in 1916. The three tanks of Gerry Wells' 5 troop were IRAQ, Ismailia, and INDIA, obviously named by someone with a keen interest in geography. The people who did the original naming cannot be identified, and it may be that the names used in World War I were resurrected in World War II. Some names definitely tempted fate, as for example Freddie Smart's INTACT (6 troop leader, B Squadron) and Harry Simmons' IMMORTAL (10 troop sergeant, B Squadron). A list of all tank names that can be remembered is shown in Appendix IV.

Headquarters Squadron

HQ Squadron performed several roles, which are shown in Figure VI-2. The functions of the AA and Recce troops have been described earlier. The remainder of the squadron performed similar functions to those of the Admin troops of the sabre squadron, although with greater and deeper resources. For example, number 12 3-tonner carried a sergeant armourer, a lance-corporal armourer, a carpenter and joiner, and a sanitary dutyman; number 13 carried a storeman, a postman, and an equipment repairer. Most of these trades were not represented in the sabre squadrons.

Summary

It is vital for any military unit to be able to move at short notice, and to be able to function effectively when the move is complete. Infantry and tank units often have to function effectively while they move, for example when advancing against the enemy.

While in training army units tend to be static. They live in billets, ammunition is rarely used, stores, offices and workshops are in static buildings. The change from a static life to a nomadic one is often traumatic, and the first few times it happens there are many catastrophes. But once a unit becomes seasoned at moving rapidly it is much more capable of ensuring that support for the tank crews is always there when it is needed.

2 An army marches on its stomach: where supplies came from

Doug David was the Squadron Quarter Master Sergeant of C Squadron from mid 1943 to 10 July 1944. On that day, as recounted earlier, SSM Monty Bradley of A Squadron was wounded. Doug was promoted to SSM and transferred to A Squadron, where he remained until the end of the war. The SSM and SQMS are both very much concerned with squadron administration, and thus Doug had particularly wide experience of bringing up supplies. This is how he remembers it:

"The supply echelon comprised many 'pack-up' items such as ammunition, petrol, water, rations, mail when available, spare crews, and spares and stores of all kinds. There were people from the ACC (Army Catering Corps), REME LAD (Light Aid Detachment of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers) and the Signals. In C Squadron the SQMS was normally in charge and in A Squadron the SSM. When a battle was being fought a supply package called F1 echelon was put together. This comprised half-tracks, 3 -tonners, and the 15-cwt water wagon, and would take ammunition, petrol, compo rations and mail forward to the tanks of F echelon. We would also bring up spare crews if needed and anything special requested by the Squadron Leader. The SQMS or SSM would re-stock from RASC Direct Issue Depots, or take what they needed from RASC dumps, literally on a help-yourself basis".

Doug also remembers a particular need of the Squadron Leader when he was SQMS of C Squadron: "Coming out of action I always had to provide Ronnie Holden with a couple of those tinned fruit puddings from the compo packs – he loved them".

When a tank battalion was in action it divided itself into three echelons, F, A and B; under some circumstances, as Doug has described, another echelon, F1, was interposed between F and A. The diagram of Figure VI-3 shows a typical arrangement for three or four echelons. When in action the echelons remained separate, and F1 or A would come up to the tanks whenever possible or necessary. The aim all the time was to have as many tanks as possible fit to fight. This meant that the tanks should be completely stocked with ammunition, full of petrol, mechanically sound, have full crews, and the crews be fed and watered.

Figure VI-3: Echelons of a Sabre Squadron

There were many and varied circumstances under which replenishment had to take place, and some of these are illustrated in Figures VI-4 and VI-5. When going into action a sabre squadron moved from a rear area to a forward assembly area (FAA). Depending on the type of move it might be desirable to re-stock, especially with petrol, food, and water, before going into action. Re-stocking could be done at the FAA or possibly at the FUP (forming up point).

Figure VI-4: Replenishment Before Action

Figure VI-5: Replenishment During or After Action

Depending on the severity and length of action it might be necessary to replenish the tanks during the action. This would often be done by bringing the tanks back from contact with the enemy – possibly one or two troops at a time – to a "forward rally". After replenishment the tanks might return to action or might adopt a counter-attack role in the forward rally area.

At the end of the day the tanks generally – but not always – returned to a rear rally or laager where they could be replenished and the crews could get some sleep. In such a laager guards would be posted and vigilance strictly maintained. The supporting vehicles of A or F1 echelon could also be included in the laager.

Lawrie Brown was a 3-tonner driver in A Squadron. He talks of some of the duties he had to perform, and the circumstances. "In Normandy we had to make sure you had fuel, food, ammo and spare crews at all times. We brought the wounded backand the POW's to the cages. SSM Monty Bradley kept us all on our toes all the time until he was wounded at Maltot.

I remember supplying Sgts Frank Quinn and Tony Lyall with petrol; I was scared stiff because a German plane was machine-gunning us. After Falaise we could not move the supply dumps fast enough to keep up with you tank crews; we were driving from France to Eindhoven in Holland day and night".

For all formations of all armies petrol was a particularly important item of supply in World War II – although the German army made substantial use of horse-drawn transport. In the early part of the war the British army used non-returnable cans, the ones that leaked considerably and, as Cyril Rees says: "Many may remember the eeriness of the silent tank park in the dead of night as the petrol cans on the fuel dump popped and banged with startling effect as they reacted to the changes in ambient temperature".

These were replaced by the well-loved re-sealable and re-usable jerrican. Well-loved is about right, because apparently of 17½ million issued only 2½ million found their way back into the supply system. The major bulk source of petrol was a supply piped under the English Channel, as Berry Veale found out some years after the war. He describes it as "The dog Pluto".

"A few years ago we spent a week or two in the Isle of Wight. The island bears its place in the history of England and today, is a restful haven because there are no 'M' roads and motor vehicles follow a slower pace. A great place for walkers; never more than a couple of miles from some delightful pub.

On one of our walks along the cliffs we came across a chine, this one an unusually deep slash in the cliff face and overgrown with trees and scrub. Its on the South East coast and called Shanklin Chine.

I just casually mentioned this chine to the bar person at our lunch halt and that set him off on an interesting story.

This chine was chosen for the site of P.L.U.T.O (The Pipe Line Under the Ocean) just before the invasion of Europe June 1944. Its depth and location plus the natural growth, were all features looked for by the planners. It was the pipeline which transported most of the petrol over to France as soon as the break out of the beachhead had been accomplished.

The natural camouflage in the chine kept this end of this valuable transport asset hidden from aerial reconnaissance when the Germans were keenly searching for clues as to where the invasion armada was likely to strike. I did not learn where the Tank Farm or Pump House were hidden. Could have been in the old railway line tunnel between Shanklin - Ventnor".

Pluto left England at the place described by Berry and came ashore in France just to the west of Cherbourg near the village of Querqueville. Just south of Cherbourg the pipe-line split into two, one line going more or less due east via Bayeux, Caen and Lisieux, and the other going south-east via St. Lô, Vire, Domfront, and Alençon. A second P.L.U.T.O was constructed later in the campaign. This went through Kent to the coast near Folkestone and arrived in France in the area between Boulogne and Calais.

3 Keeping the tanks on the road

Replenishment was one thing. But what if anything happened to the tank? Whenever possible tank crews fixed problems themselves. In particular, tank crews became very skilled at dealing with damage to or malfunction of the tracks. Here it was very desirable to have a "strong man" in the crew, such as Ginger Kirk of 13 Troop or Joe Booth of 11 Troop. But under all sorts of circumstances outside help was needed, and these could be put into three main classes:

tank becoming bogged or in some other way unable to extricate itself

damage by enemy action (or sometimes, regrettably, damage by action from supposedly friendly troops, such as the RAF bombing north of Falaise)

mechanical failure

Several systems had been set up to help deal with these problems.

If a tank – or any other vehicle, for that matter – was bogged, down a crater, in an anti-tank ditch or in a stream, there were at least three ways it could be got out. The first was by another tank, and every tank carried a tow-rope and shackles. The second was the squadron Armoured Recovery vehicle (ARV), a remarkably powerful vehicle for this purpose. It was essentially a Churchill tank without a turret, and was thus not ideal for shelter in a mortar stonk. The third method was to use the LAD's Scammell, a very heavy 4-wheel drive truck. Its cross-country performance was not quite that of an ARV, but its recovery powers were quite as great.

Damage by enemy action could be terminal, as when the tank was completely burnt out; in extreme cases the turret could be blown off if much of the ammunition exploded simultaneously. "The Story of 34 Armoured Brigade" states that the brigade tank losses for the campaign (including for 7 RTR and 9 RTR when they were in 31 Tank Brigade) were 272. Of these 85 were brewed, but undoubtedly a high proportion of the remaining 187 were patched up and returned to action. The "patching" process could be literally that. If a tank was hit by armour-piercing shot it quite often gouged a chunk of metal out of the armour, leaving a cavity of varying depth. This could be – and was, many times – filled in by welding armour plate into the hole. Doug David remembers Ronnie Holden's tank. "His tank Incredible had more patches added by LAD than a patchwork quilt. Every time it was hit he insisted on immediate repair and would not command an alternative tank unless absolutely necessary".

The Churchill had by now become quite a reliable tank mechanically. The Story of 34 Brigade gives some figures for three Churchills up to mid-February 1945.

	Mileage on landing	Since	Total	Remarks
"Ramillies" 147 RAC	268	1263	1531	Did about another 150 miles after this
"Lion" 107 RAC	290	1165	1455	Completed 1900 miles before leaving the regiment
"Imperator" 9 RTR	451	1111	1562	Knocked out in the Reichswald battle

The Story comments: "From the beaches of Normandy to the German border and beyond is a long way for 40-ton Churchills very few of which were new, or anything like it, on

D-Day. The figures above show what can be done, if it survives battle long enough, with a tank whose estimated total life in June 1944 was reckoned at 800 miles maximum without complete overhaul".

But of course the tanks did suffer mechanical or electrical breakdown and had to be repaired from time to time. The various ways in which repair could take place are shown in Figure VI-6. As stated earlier, the crew would mend it if they could. The next step was the squadron fitters, the next the Light Aid Detachment (LAD) and the next the Brigade workshops, which were also staffed by REME soldiers. After a tank had been repaired it could either go straight back to its unit, or could go to the Brigade's Forward Delivery Squadron (FDS). The FDS was the channel for new or re-worked tanks, and for replacement crews. The 34 Brigade Story records that the FDS processed 300 or so tanks during the campaign, but this did not include tanks supplied to 7 and 9 RTR while in 31 Tank Brigade. The FDS also processed 129 officers and 1870 other ranks in replacement of casualties, temporary or permanent; this figure includes unhorsed crews awaiting fresh tanks, but once again does not include figures for 7 and 9 RTR while in 31 Brigade.

Figure VI-6: Process for Tank Repair

The LAD was a very important part of the battalion, and consisted of 26 people, all members of the REME. The 9th's LAD was commanded by Capt. Laurie Branson and its senior Warrant officer was Armourer Quarter-Master Sergeant (AQMS) Granville Wilding. Two members of the LAD were Gordon Horsewood and Ivan Pope, and they describe some of their activities: "We serviced all the 9th's vehicles liaising with your Battalion Technical Adjutant Capt Brook. Our activities included front line repairs, changing engines and gearboxes, maintaining electrical equipment, and recovering vehicles under all kinds of conditions. We carried a large range of spares and also we had electric welding equipment. AQMS Wilding had specialist knowledge of all kinds of armament, and was well respected by the CO and the Squadron Commanders. In one short period after Le Havre we changed ten engines before we moved up to Holland".