1907288 Norman COOPER, 143 Field Park troop, RE: POW

Hi

My Grandad served in the Royal Engineers training at Ripon at the beginning of 1940 and being sent to the Isle of Sheppey until September 1940 before departing to North Africa on the SS Oreontes WS3 convoy. He arrived at the beginning of 1941 and was captured on or around the 11th April 1941 at Bomba, having made his way back from Derna. He was part of the 143 Field Park Troop which I believe was attached to the 2nd Armoured Division. He would serve as a POW at PG.78 Sulmona before being transferred to E715 in Poland in 1944.
I am writing his war time stories has anyone any information regards the activities of 143 Field Park Troop on Sheppey, North Africa or what time in Sulmona was like pls.

Thanks

 

This might help Search results: 143 field park squadron, royal engineers | The National Archives
A few forum members offer a war diary copy service for a reasonable fee

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If you name the individual and state the info you have and what info you are after forum members will try and help
If you havent already apply for his service records Request records of deceased service personnel

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Death cert can be purchased here https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/

 

Hi

From an old RE OOB doc I found online many years ago

143 Field Park Sqn RE

Formed Apr 1940 as 143rd Field Park Trp (slated for 7th Armoured Division) and arrived in N Africa Nov 1940;

later expanded as squadron. (In Tobruk Fortress in Apr 1941; still a field troop.)

Assigned 7th Armoured Division 17 May 1941.

Hope this helps

Gus

 

Welcome aboard. There is plenty of knowledge and expertise here.

We always recommend applying for the Service Record. It is the definitive account of his service. Yes, it can take time and regularly has good and disappointing responses. A very short note (copied from Clive): you will need his date of birth and death cert available here for £7 https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/ Link for service records
Select the service - Apply for a deceased person's military record - GOV.UK

It is vital you add his full name, Date of Birth, Service Number and if known their unit. Members can check their resources and do some online research. Others may be looking now and in the future for them; we regularly have people join who have found a post or thread about a relative.

Using an online search with "143 Field Park" site:ww2talk.com there are a small number of threads here, some are post-capture. I note most refer to a squadron, not a troop.

It might be worth checking if there is a local newspaper article about him. Most public libraries have access to the British Newspaper Archive when in the library, not online.

It helps to add a ‘tag’ when you create a thread, only you can do this. It is for the formation / corps involved or a theme like intelligence. Searching tags can identify threads, otherwise it takes a bit longer.

Some help via PM next; which is a now four pg. PDF. Also available on: WW2 Soldier Research - Tips and Links for New Researchers (update) Plus: How to Start a new Thread / Edit Post / Upload Image

 

Hi
Thank you both, I've applied for his Service record, although know the bulk of it due to his first hand accounts. I believe the 143 were attached to the 2nd Armoured Div or remnants of it on the retreat in April 1941. I do know my grandad reached as far West as El- Aghelia from the notes he wrote before he died in 2019. Its the finer detail I was after, I have applied to National Archives for records etc just waiting and a kind researcher has pointed me in the right direction.
What he was doing on Sheppey and while in Sulmona I don't know as much about.

Thanks for being helpful

 

The person I am looking for is Norman Cooper dob 28/8/1919 service number 1907288 thanks, will add this to the other thread

 

Hi

I am currently writing regards my Grandads war years. I have been kindly advised to put a thread into this area in the hope someone can assist pls.
I know he served in the Royal Engineers between 1940- 1947, having been trained at Ripon in April 1940 forming 15th Company. Later in 1940 he went to the Isle of Sheppey likely with the Unit 143 Field Park Troop, which he stayed with until his capture at Bomba on or around 11th April 1941.
I know he arrived in Africa on the SS Orontes in January 1941 and went as far west as El-Aghelia. After capture he was sent to PG78 Sulmona and E715 at Auschwitz, before the long march back in 1945.
I wondered if anyone had any knowledge of the Royal Engineers on Sheppey in 1940 and Sulmona between 1941-43.
Thanks.

 

Sulmona is an Italian POW Camp shown as PG78 or PG 78. If you search on Sulmona there are over one hundred posts. There could be information, for context there.

 

Hi

142 Field Park Troop RE

Suggests that they were certainly u/c of 2AD until 06 February 1941.

Here is 2ADs details

2 Armoured Division

Gus

 

Thank you again as I understand he was part of 143 Field Park. That is first hand info and not something he was likely to forget. But the confusion is that while in Libya I have seen that they became attached to 2nd Armoured which had already been depleted for the retreat.
143 would go back to 7th for Tobruk, but my Grandad had already been captured by then. He did write about setting up a Bren gun at an escarpment near to Derna and being told by an Infantry officer to leave it and head back. He took the coast avoiding the road and made it to Bomba.

 

Hi,

Your initial post is identical to the one you’ve made in your other topic which has got more traction than this one.

It’s not best practice on the forum to start almost simultaneous posts on essentially the same subject matter as it can confuse members and lead to duplication of effort.

I will ask a MOD to merge this topic with the other one.

Steve

PS

I’ve responded to the post you’ve made on the long running Service Record thread.

 

Not that it goes into this kind of detail, but the German side of events in April 1941 can be found here:

D.A.K. War Diary Entries 1941

All the best

Andreas

 

Thank you Andreas, I will look at these. Really interesting.

I have reviewed his handwritten notes I have and he says he was attached to RA on the retreat. His route took him from El-Aghelia to Agedabia to Beda Fomm, through Barce to Derna where he was on an escarpment above Derna Airfield. He was told to leave so they walked at night to Bomba where he was captured.

 

The Axis history website has a link to a copy of the war diaries of the 2nd Armoured Div. 143 Park was attached to 3rd Armoured Brigade.