Extracted from the Journals of The Royal Army Service Corps and Royal Corps of Transport (The Waggoner)
The first DUKW Company to be formed after WW11 was 116 Amphibious Company at Cairnryan in 1951. The unit was Commanded by Major J A Abraham MC this consisted of Company HQ and 4 Platoons of 16 DUKWs each, the unit moved to Fremington in March 1952.in June 1954 it was reduced to three officers and 37 other ranks it was redesignated Amphibian Training Wing RASC in February 1960.
All extracts relate to Nuclear testing.
1958 May
Late last year Lieut. A. F. R. Evans rejoined 116 Company from Christmas Island, where he had been in charge of the Dukws. Shortly afterward we heard with great pleasure that he had been appointed an M.B.E for his outstanding services; we offer him our warmest congratulations. Early in the New Year a special course was run for the officers and men who are next to go to Christmas Island for Dukw operations.
Amphibious Detachment Christmas Island 1957 January
THE JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL ARMY SERVICE CORPS OUR NEWEST STATION—CHRISTMAS ISLAND READERS of THE WAGGONER may be interested to hear that a posting is now possible to a mid-Pacific coral atoll Christmas Island The island has most of the expected desert island attractions, blue skies, green lagoons, constant sunshine, beautiful sunsets, and coconut trees. A small "basha" type village is occupied by members of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands who work on the island under contract and add local colour, for on occasions a grass skirt is seen. In order to discourage too many applicants for posting to this island paradise, it should be added that the only married quarters belong to the Gilbert Islanders, so far there is no leave or L.O.A, and the working week often has seven days in it.
According to the press, tests of thermonuclear weapons arc due to take place in this vicinity in the New Year, but be that as it may, a R.A.S.C Special Services Unit is in support of the three Services forming the island garrison. Amongst the Corps commitments on the island, part of the ship to shore movement is provided by ten amphibious vehicles, which in spite of the fact that they are far from new vehicles, have logged over 3,000 running hours and are still capable of many more, We regret to state that one DUKW sank completely with a load of supplies 200 yards offshore; Sgt. Crampton braved the sharks to fix wire ropes under the vehicle so that the Royal Navy could recover it.
Seven cases of marmalade still rest on the sea bed. A small supply depot, within thirty yards of the beach and is assisted in its function by sixty tons of rather erratic cold storage, which is only kept in operation by considerable effort on the part of the R.E. and R.E.M.E. A field bakery detachment in charge of Cpl. Smith provides a very popular loaf, especially for those who remember the fourteen days issue of biscuits in lieu. M.S.S. Silk resides in a coconut plantation in charge of POL, stacked along a mile of a narrow peninsular between the Pacific and a lagoon. A petroleum installation, in the final stages of construction, completes the Corps commitment on this particular island, and together these depots occupy a large area of the Port of London, which is situated fourteen miles from the main encampment. Lieut, A. F. R. Evans is about to open up a branch office and provide normal services on an even more remote island, and it is probable that the Corps flag will be flown on further islands before the operation is completed. In addition to the normal Army sports, swimming, sailing, and fishing provide popular recreations, when work permits.
Dvr. Clarke holds the record catch so far with a 127 lb shark. There is also an open-air cinema which provides evening entertainment for those well enough endowed for sitting in comfort on wooden plank seats. Our main sporting success has been in an "American tournament" when, despite the fact that we were the smallest contingent of five, we were runners up to the Royal Marine and Royal Navy combined team and celebrated accordingly. One achievement of note is that L/Cpl. Rigg has made the highest score for the Port of London Cricket Team by making forty-three runs in eighteen minutes. Reinforcements have been located in Honolulu and we hope that on their arrival we shall be able to deal more thoroughly with the local teams.
1957 March DUKWS "DOWN UNDER"
At Christmas Island two Dukws unloaded eight five tons of stores from a ship in one day and set up what is believed to be very nearly a Corps record. At one period Dukws were the only craft able to get ashore in the surf. One Dukw did in fact sink and another capsized, R.N. signals have been passed stating "We think your Dukws are wonderful. [EDITOR: We hope that this operation may provide material for an interesting article.]
1958 January CHRISTMAS ISLAND 1956-1957
"Bang Goes Our H-Bomb" is no longer headline news, but it may be of interest -to hear of some of the experiences of the R.A.S.C. Special Services Unit taking part in the Christmas Island megaton trials. In choosing a location for these trials, there must have been few alternatives other than the Pacific, and Christmas Island was certainly well-chosen as the main base for Operation "Grapple."
Situated in mid-Pacific two degrees north of the Equator, Christmas Island is believed to be the largest coral atoll in the world. In outline, it is shaped like a battered boot thirty-five miles east and west and twenty-four miles at its greatest width, It is 3,600 miles from the nearest mainland of California and more than 4,000 miles from Australia; the nearest civilization is at Honolulu, 1,200 miles to the north. Discovered by Captain Cook on Christmas Eve, 1777, it was appropriately named but since then it has never had an indigenous population, The main Army commitment on the island was to build and maintain a base, involving the rehabilitation and extension of the U.S. Second World War airstrip. A task group consisting of a Field Engineer Regiment, R.E., and supporting Services converged on Christmas Island by sea and air during June 1956, The original members of the R.A.S.C. unit were flown across North America to Fiji, via Honolulu and Canton.
The ten-day break in the journey at Fiji, among a friendly population, was enjoyed by all as the last outpost of civilization to be seen for over a year. The next stage of the journey was completed in H.M.T. Devonshire, which arrived off the island on 24th June 1956. The R.A.S.C. were among the first ashore in. the local copra boats. After the "fleshpots of Fiji" the local conditions proved somewhat of a contrast, The first night's rest in the open on the beaches, in close company with curious lizards and land-crabs, provided a dubious welcome. The food provisioned was of excellent quality, but it was unfortunate that the equipment to cook and distribute it was noticeable by its absence.
After these initial inconveniences, the unit quickly settled down to its job of supporting the Field Engineer Regiment and elements of the two other Services. As soon as the wartime vintage dukws were offloaded, their drivers started an unloading program which was eventually to aggregate over 7,000 running hours for the ten original vehicles. These drivers soon found that coming alongside a ship at anchor in a swell and landing through surf were rather different from their training conditions at Fremington but they soon mastered sufficient nautical experience to gain the approval of the Senior Service. It is not possible in this review to summarize the work carried out by the dukw drivers during their many landings over difficult coral beaches on four different islands. Some of these landings have been made under conditions in which no other craft, including L.C.Ms., could be used.
Casualties must be accepted in such circumstances and two dukws were unfortunately sunk of which one proved recoverable. Among the highlights of the many amphibious activities have been the unloading of eighty-five tons of cargo in one day by a pair of dukws and numerous rescue operations. Two ladies of the W.V.S. were rescued from a local island after a boating accident but no mention is made of what was waved to attract the driver's attention. An L.C.M. which broke away from its moorings was recovered and towed for two miles; salvage money is still awaited by the optimists. On top of the normal duties, these drivers have been employed as baker's storekeepers, clerks, and conservancy agents and have further demonstrated their versatility as operators of distillation plants, cranes, and bulldozers. One dukw has in fact been used as an air/sea rescue launch but fortunately for the pilot, it was not called upon to produce maximum revs.
The amphibious vehicle has become part of the standard equipment of nearly all H.M. ships visiting islands in the "Grapple" area and although a helicopter was tried instead on one occasion, the small payload necessitated a return visit with the appropriate amphibian. One ship's captain signaled that the parting of a dukws steering cable as it was negotiating a narrow gap in the reef took five years off his life. In order to reduce further wear and tear on naval nerves an escort launch as far as the reef was arranged on the next occasion; unfortunately this time the escort craft broke down and was saved from destruction by the military vehicle under escort! It is difficult to visualize how this operation could have taken place as at present constituted without the ubiquitous dukws and the fact that the running hours are reported weekly to the Task Force Commander confirms the value placed on the work of these vehicles.
The "Grapple" handbook on the first nine months of the operation states that "all in all the work of the dukw detachment has been throughout of inestimable value to the operation as a whole, The activities of the supply personnel have not been devoid of interest in their task of supplying Christmas and three other island detachments spread out over 200,000 square miles in mid-Pacific, Dry rations are normally despatched to these detachments by sea at monthly intervals and the more perishable items are delivered by aircraft weekly or bi-weekly the day following receipt at Christmas from Honolulu. The task of victualling R.N. ships and shore establishments has taken place on occasions and is only complicated by the amount of paperwork involved. The issuing of five types of ―in-flight'' ration to the R.A.F. must be an experience "enjoyed" by few other units; these rations are characterized by their choice variety, the necessity for a partial abatement of the basic scale, and the short notice at which they are demanded. in order to safeguard the crew of aircraft from the remotest possibility of developing stomachache during a highly inconvenient stage of the operation special care is taken with all issues.
All fresh fruit and vegetables are hand sorted on the evening of arrival and issued to cookhouses the same night. The absence of supply ships on occasions can be a source of embarrassment when the refrigerated storage ashore is limited and a stench of putrescent potatoes at times has born silent but odiferous testimony to the fact that the supply ship has been absent for several weeks. The supply element on this operation has been chiefly remarkable for its embryonic origin so that a period of prolonged labour and growth was necessary before it reached maturity in the form of a normal supply organization. To quote again from the "Grapple*' handbook: "By November 1956. the supply depot was holding fifteen weeks supply of dry rations and up to six weeks of fresh items. Over 230,000 rations were held and 177 varieties of food were accounted for and issued by one clerk and one storekeeper' We are particularly proud of the efforts of the bakers who were, unfortunately, unable to observe the fourth Commandment for the first nine months due to increasing commitments.
They have maintained the production of a popular loaf under many difficulties including the use of weak flour below the standard normally used by Army bakeries. The popularity of the end product has resulted in demands for R.A.S.C. bread from many of the smaller ships when returning to port and this extra load has been cheerfully met by the bakers in the interest of inter-Service co-operation, Batches of bread with improved keeping qualities are supplied by air to the remoter islands. The six petroleum experts have been kept well-occupied in handling seven million gallons of POL products in both bulk and packed form. The novelty of unloading ocean tankers by barge has now become a routine procedure and up to two tankers, a month is turned around with equanimity, although it must be admitted that a one-time seven percent ocean loss did cause some concern. These men took over a hastily completed bulk installation on one evening and commenced filling it the following morning to the accompaniment of reciprocating pipes and copious fumes; fortunately, these "teething troubles were eventually overcome, The discovery that the "contractors" did not propose to provide tank calibration tables at a late stage occasioned some burning of midnight oil.
Calibration is a pleasant subject to lecture on but one always hopes never to have to practise it to the standard required for peacetime accounting, especially when there is "deadwood" involved. This installation has the disadvantage of only being capable of issuing or receiving at one time so a night shift is frequently necessary during the operational phase. In view of the rather low man-power ceiling, a form of "self-service" has been introduced in both depots without producing any noticeable consumer resistance but it is not intended to apply this principle to the Supply Depot. Here again issues of POL have been made to island detachments by sea and air. Fuels have also been supplied to R.N. and merchant ships with few difficulties other than the acquisition of signatures from ships disappearing over the horizon.
The major portion of the unit is, of course, based on Christmas Island, but the Corps is well represented on the unattractive "forward area" island where a small detachment provides administrative, supply, and amphibious transport services. The dukws in this area, in addition to their normal duties, are used as water barges, pinnaces, and liberty boats when their drivers are not employed in running a canteen or distillation plant. As can be seen their existence on this island is no sinecure and it will be easy to guess which is the last vehicle to leave and the first to return when the island becomes temporarily "unhealthy/' These, then, are some of the activities of the R.A.S.C soldier on Operation "Grapple" and in outline this is an indication of the contribution he has made, as a small but essential link, in the chain of events culminating in the successful explosion of Britain's first Megaton yield nuclear bomb.
It is fitting, therefore, that almost half of these men should have been witnesses of the awe-inspiring and fabulous sight of a hydrogen bomb explosion, to which conclusion their labours had been directed for so many months.
Part 2 of 3 next week.