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As an alternative to towing the French initiated the portée method by transporting their M1897 75-mm guns and limbers on the backs of flat-top trucks - a system employed by British Commonwealth anti-tank units during World War 2. Wear and tear on carriages and wheels were thus virtually eliminated but the inconvenience of loading and unloading them proved irksome, even with the ramps provided. The Germans went one better and fitted their truck with a winch to assist in loading and unloading the gun on to and off the flat-top. For cross-country movement small tractors were sometimes carried for use when the gun-carrying trucks ran out of road. The tractors were then unloaded and used to bring the guns into action.
The RA tried the portée method during the 1920s but soon gave it up. The RNZA also tried it a decade later but were likewise unimpressed. On more than one occasion was heard the remark, 'For Gawd's sake give us back the horses!' |
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WL Ruffell Issue 81 March 1994 |
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