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'A' Echelon: The Fort Garry Horse
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(62)
'A' Squadron Sherman exhibiting the triangle tactical
sign on the stowage
bin mounted on the rear plate, and the white numeral '52' above a
white rectangular
strip; painted over the left side track. The Formation sign is
barely visible
above the right side track. Rijssen, Netherlands, 09 April 1945.
'A' Echelon
| RHQ | HQ SQN | 'A' SQN | 'B' SQN | 'C' SQN | |
| Motorcycles | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Car, 5-cwt (Jeep) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Truck, Heavy Utility Personnel | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Truck, 15-cwt, GS | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Half-track | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Truck, 15-cwt, Water | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lorry, 3-ton | 0 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Truck, 15-cwt, Battery Charging | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Truck, 15-cwt, Fitted for Wireless | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Trailer, Water (180-gal, 20-cwt, 2-wh) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Attached as in WE | Light Aid Detachment (LAD) |
| Attached from Bde | Aux. Service. Officer and helpers with Lorry, 3-ton |
| Attached from Corps Troops | Dental Officer with Lorry, 3-ton, Dental |
The Following text appears to be an extraction from a field report (date unknown) and is presented in the first person to retain the flavour of the original.
This Echelon functions very well as shown above. Each squadron has its cook's lorry which can be used when out of battle. Each squadron carries 3 ammunition, 2 petrol, 1 technical stores and 1 baggage lorry in addition to the cook's lorry. Only in rare occasions of an HE shoot has it been necessary to call on additional ammunition lorries from B Echelon. Generally, when an HE shoot is on, the squadron takes an ammunition lorry up close behind the tanks and leave it with the fitters. It can then either be called forward by wireless or tanks can come out of battle by troops and re-ammunition. This echelon has done most of its trips to F Echelon in late evening or right after dark. If squadrons are fighting until last light the only thing to do is get a meeting point on the wireless and have A Echelon lorries there when tanks arrive. This then allows the tired crews to eat, get ammunition and petrol, and then rest. Sometimes it has not been possible to get to F Echelon until around midnight or later and this only disturbs the crews with consequent loss of efficiency. L.A.D. function perfectly from A Echelon. Auxiliary services are best in A Echelon as they can keep in the ops picture and thereby get films put on for F Echelons at very short notice. Each F Echelon had been able to see at least one film per week for the past few weeks. Dental Officer functions best from A Echelon. He is quickly available to tank crews and is located where the most of the regiment is readily available. On occasions he has gone to F Echelons when they were out of battle and in a comparatively safe spot.
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© Chris Johnson, 1997