Martin Lloyd

I drove this vehicle in the 1960s when I was in the AFS in Middlesbrough. Being in the NE region we were allowed to train with the recovery unit and on one occasion, I collected it from Gateshead fire station. We had it with us for the local agricultural show for recruitment display purposes but several cattle trucks got bogged down in the whet grass. We had a whale of a time winching them out with a snatch block lashed to a tree for some of the pulls. On another occasion we towed one of our SPs (popularly know as a Green Goddess - though we never used the term). We did some practice lifts and things in a deserted part of the old steel works and towed the SP back through the centre of town, on the hook. The Chief went potty thinking we had had a crash. We also towed Landrovers on the ambulance a couple of times. We took the cuola cover off for the big tow through town so that one of our crew could stand on the engine cover observe the casualty - all a bit dramatic. As well as the cupola the cab had a couple of rifle clips - empty of course but showing the vehicle's military pedigree. Another difference to our other vehicles, it had air brakes rather than vacuum servo. We used to go on convoy exercises from the NE, rendezvous at Scotch Corner then travel to Chorley in Lancashire over Stainmore. The recovery vehicle was always with us, driven, I think, by a mechanic from the Darlington Depot of the United Omnibus Company. It was needed on at least a couple of occasions. Happy days!