Hi! I hope nobody minds me asking what is probably a daft question! In the war diary for 147 RAC I am using as part of my research into my dads war, in his squadron it lists 18 Churchills, 1 slave and 1 half track. So here's is my daft question, what is a slave in this context? Any help greatly appreciated Thanks
This would be a slave starting unit with a large battery charging set-up used for starting tank engines etc. which take a ot of turning over when cold. There was certainly a Loyd Carrier version (it had to be a tracked vehicle in order to be able to get where the tanks could). The official name for the Loyd was "Carrier, tracked, starting & charging" The Loyd Carrier
Re. THE 8TH ARMOURED BRIGADE ENTRAINS AT NEWMARKET TO TRANSFER TO ITS PRE-INVASION ASSEMBLY AREA IN SOUTHERN ENGLAND (PART 1) [Allocated Title] & THE 8TH ARMOURED BRIGADE ENTRAINS AT NEWMARKET TO TRANSFER TO ITS PRE-INVASION ASSEMBLY AREA IN SOUTHERN ENGLAND (PART 1) [Allocated Title] Description Full description Rolls 1 to 3 shot on April 7th show Loyd battery 'slave' carriers, Crusaders anti-aircraft tanks, Valentines and a Sherman ARV belonging to the 4/7th Dragoon Guards being driven onto 'conflats' and 'warwells' at Newmarket Old Station. two trains carrying men of the Dragoon Guards and ten Shermans depart. Two Dragoon Guardsmen are seen briefly sitting in a railway compartment munching sandwiches. Associated IWM notes include... Notes: Summary: comparatively rare shots of Valentine Mark XI armed with 75mm in regimental service - must have been replaced by the Sherman shortly before D-Day. Loyd 'slave' fitted with battery re-charging unit (?) for tank batteries. The Firefly tank was on the secret list at this time. The train's movement serial code '9E59' denotes 9th (April), Eastern (Command), (Number) 59. Remarks: good shots of individual vehicles notably Loyd carriers, Crusader AA tanks, Valentines Shermans and Fireflies, being loaded onto flat-cars. The cameraman's own 'editing' a cause for puzzlement on occasions - the synopsis therefore attempting to highlight certain features and activities without necessarily placing them in the order in which they appear in the film. Pictured - "A" Squadron - 4th / 7th Royal Dragoon Guards - T66129 - (due to the 994)... And another in the same sequence...