RAOC Gazette - page 20
Image details
| Corps | RAOC |
|---|---|
| Material type | Journals |
| Book page | |
| Chapter head | |
| Chapter key | |
| Chapter number | |
| Full title | RAOC Gazette |
| Page number | |
| Publication date | 1978 |
| Real page | |
| Colour | No |
| Grey | No |
| Early date | 1978 |
| Late date | 1978 |
| Transcription |
Materials Handling Trials Unit •T has been a long time since Materials Handling Trials Unit vas appeared in these pages and the ever-increasing burden of ^Liilt at this omission having now become intolerable, the local correspondent has put pen to paper at last! We are a small unit comprising thirty four souls including twelve soldiers. For the uninitiated our tasks include the train- ing of MHE instructors, various technical trials, a flying ad- visory service (Ihey all swagger around like Detective Inspector v Hackett of Target" fame!) and a liaison function designed to keep us abreast of latest developments in the commercial materials handling field. We also run the annual ' Fork Lift Truck Driver of the Year' Competition and contribute person- nel and equipment to the Aldershot Army Display, Armex and various other functionSn A brief glance now at the military personnel within the unit: The OC is Major D. G. Smith who joined us in May from the Directorate of Clothing and Textiles. The Second in Command is Major Mansfield, already semi delirious at the prospect of his impending posting to Viersen in January 197S where he will resume the task of OJC RSG which he performed up to 1975 when he joined MHTU. Now the real workers—WOl Durrant manages the pack- aging side of life here and is totally wrapped up in his work. Staff Sergeant Self ridge runs the Mechanised Transport and has three children one of whom (Matthew) is currently at RMA Sandhurst. Staff Sergeant Selfridge soon leaves us at the end of his army service and plans to retire before his son is com- missioned (hopefully inlo the Parachute Regiment) and outranks him! Next in line is Staff Sergeant Clever ley—our MHE in- structor. He has been at MHTU for so many tours over the years that it is rumoured that he conducted the acceptance trials on Stevenson's Rocket t Sergeant Owen l is the last remaining military member of our Trials Team 3 ( The Pallet Crushers') and has represented the Corps in cricket and hockey. Sergeant Taunton is our chief instructor on cranes. He throws the hammer and keeps fit by running during the lunch hour. Corporal Chapman is our crane instructor and the veteran of countless Aldershot Shows. He will shortly be leaving us after twelve years colour service to sample the joys of civvy street. Corporal Skerritt joined us in April from 1 Combat Supplies Battalion, and our photographer is Corporal Walker who joined us in August 1976 from the Joint School of Photo- graphy. The most insignificant member of the Unit is undoubtedly Corporal Blay (seventeen and a half stone and six foot four inch tall) who came to MHTU ostensibly as a crane instructor from COD Bicester in November 1976. Corporal Blay is the unit gladiator and set up a Corps record for putting the shot in the Travers Clarke Athletics meeting in 1976 with a throw (or put?) of 12.54m. During 1977 Corporal Blay has represented 16 Battalion at Athletics, giving them their only win in the Travers Clarke with a shot put of 12.35m. He has recently joined the Oxford City Athletics Club and came sixth in the National League Shot-put and won the League Cup Semi-final later at Bedford with distances of over twelve metres in each case. Corporal Blay also plays squash and hockey and swims for 16 Battalion. No wonder we scarcely see him! At the base of our pyramid is Private Parsons—a lonely Atlas driver by trade and normally abused as general dogs- body. Currently attached to the Unit is Captain Colin Ward RAAOC enjoying a * Long Look * at the Poms. We have tried to ensure that he has as little spare time as possible and intend that he should steal the obligatory sheep so that he can be ceremoniously ' transported * back to Australia. The civilian staff of MHTU include several Professional and Technical Officers—most it seems, ex-boys from REME and a suitably bolshy lot they are. They form the long term technical backbone of our Trials and Advisory functions and include the Trials Officer Ron Brooke (who designed the prototype of Stevenson's Rocket which Staff Sergeant Cleverley is reputed to have trialled). Bob Pritchard, Mike Worthington, Bill Holbrow and Frank Gazeley are the advisory team. The Trials Teams include Jim Alcock, Ivor Oakley, George Arnott and Dave Margieson. Our youngest P and TO was Joe Starrett who won himself a place at RMCS Shrivenham and departed in June to begin his degree course there. Not forgotten are the personnel in our orderly room, Roy Easton our labourer and our carpenter, Mr Cross. Our typist, Miss Carol Pointer, is leaving us in November to get married and to move to Corby. We wish her all the best in her new life. Regional Depot Thatcham SINCE our last report in July there has been a significant change over of personnel within both the Depot and Manage- ment Services Team. The Management Services Team's three new members have f been making a determined effort to read in on ' Fair Value whilst being in the midst of its implementation planning. It is believed that with a new team leader and two new assistants, it may be quicker to plan and implement ' Fair Value* by ear rather than read in on all that has gone before. Captain Richard Simmons currently attending the Junior Division Staff College at Warminster, returns to us briefly in January prior to joining the Long Petroleum Officers Course. With the coming of winter our migrant stores are changing over—in come the camp stores and out goes the skis—and of course support for troops on fire-fighting duties. Farewell to Captain Geoff Garrick and family to the flesh- pots of Bicester. Welcome to Major Ian Campbell and family (SSO), Major Steven Roberts and family (OIC Management Services Team), Major Bob Nesbitt (OIC RSG), Captain David Moore and family (Management Services Team) and Mr Roy Kibblewhite (Management Services Team). Central Ammunition Depot Kineton M&":'- 1 ''"'! CAD Kineton has had a varied succession PlM ^IIll^ : - : ^ e were a '^ very n o n u r e d by the jK^ ';':/?||g& I'vyf-^JB V T T t j \ **L?TS* / \ t^fro S \ ^ ~ ^ / visit of the QMG, General Sir Patrick Howard Dobson, on the 14th November. During his visit the QMG visited the R eDu ild Site in the Depot to view its pro- Whilst he was here the QMG presen- ted tne B E ^ t S t a f f Sergeant Gregson RPC, and the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal to WO I Murphy. Our congratulations to both of them for their awards. Our second visitor to Kineton has an exotic flavour. The DOS Nigeria, Colonel R. M. Dumaje paid us a visit as part of his tour during which he is to visit many Ordnance Installations in the country, We were also the host unit to five potential officers who came to visit us as part of their " Look at Life" with the Army. Several of them intend to join the RAOC once they have completed their training at Sandhurst — or so they promised! Thunderbird II, a ground to air missile, radar controlled, has been sited outside the Headquarters Building here at Kine- ton and 'opened* by the Commandant, Colonel Berresford. The Colonel was heard to mutter as he lit the fuse on the missile aimed at Headquarters 'Space* Organisation, 'Promotions have been getting rather slow!' Afterwards the ATs in the crowd fixed a second aim on Headquarters Logistic Executive just in case! All systems go—' Space Org ' lookout! But seriously the missile was very kindly donated to Kineton by Bramley, and the launcher was ' acquired * from the Army School of Ammunition, A team of volunteers from — 249 — |
| Book number | R0246a |