In At The Deep End

I did my Basic Army training in the Infantry & Engineers and joined the transport company on Salisbury Plain.
They were all older men back from the desert.
Here I helped paint the vehicles from sand colour to green ready for the invasion and then spent the rest of my time until we went to France cleaning the billets and working in the cookhouse.

The day we were going to France several of the drivers disappeared, so they gave me a vehicle, a 60ft truck with 14 wheels! It was being used for bridging equipment. (Previous to this all I had done was my 6 weeks basic training with a 3 ton truck)
Just as we were moving off in convoy to get on the landing craft the cook chased after me, I presume because I had been working with him. He threw his kit bagin the back and got into the passenger seat. After a few miles, and a few scary mishaps the convoy stopped somewhere, at this piont the cook got out and said "I would rather take my chances with the Germans!"

When I drove the vehicle onto the landing craft I wasn't able to turn it around, a sergeant dragged me out of the cab and turned it around for me. Several days later when we arrived in France because I was the first one on the landing craft I was the last one off and when it was my turn to hit the beach the tide had come in and I was up to my knees in water, a tank had to drag me up the beach, this is how I helped Hitler to nearly win the war.

Later on, I hung the trailer on a bailey bridge in Caen and held the war up until they brought a tractor along to lift me back onto the road.

My training must have been of som use because later on again the carburetor fell off the engine and I was left behind and using an empty cigarrette carton for a gasket and copper wire in place of the screws I was able to get going again and catch up with the convoy.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.