question (Another) Vehicle History .

[snowtracdave]

Paul Connor's efforts to trace the service history of his Landie has prompted me to dig out my own piece of paper and request a similar translation from those in the know - not having been in the services myself most of it is a mystery to me !

 

So:Translations / info please .

 

80 KB 53 Unimog 406-121 . Tractor wheeled , snow clearance .

 

IV IV Date UIN Unit Title Rec Date

 

A2855A 5 Ord BN

 

6 29/05/86 A2459D 13 ORD COY CADRE 30/07/86

 

0147 14/01/92 A0805A 4 ARMD DIV TPT REGT 10/09/92

 

CAPITA 13/06/93 CA273B THEATRE DRAWDOWN

 

UNIT VEH COY 14/06/93

 

744M 09/06/94 CA005A DSDC ASHCHURCH 23/11/94

 

17682A 13/07/95 A0982A DOPS(DTE)SOUTH EAST 15/08/05

 

0036 07/07/05 CA005A DSDC ASHCHURCH 11/08/05

 

83987A 23/07/07 CQ710A WITHAM(SPECIALIST VEHICLES) LTD 20/09/07

[snowtracdave]

Bump bump

[schliesser92]

At a guess (relatively educated one) I would say that it was first sent to 5 Ordnance Battalion RAOC, then to 13 Ordnance Company RAOC, 4 th Division Transport Regiment RCT (Bielefeld), and then sent to Ashchurch for storage and eventual disposal (Withams). It would suggest that the vehicle was aquired "off the peg" and served in BAOR, until peace broke out in Europe, and we didn't need so much hardware in Germany (happened sometime after Gulf 1).

[AlienFTM]

6 29/05/86 A2459D 13 ORD COY CADRE 30/07/86

 

Interesting word here is CADRE. It and that the UIN (Unit Imprest Number or familiarly Unit Identity Number), A2459D, ends in D suggest to me that the vehicle may have been preplaced. I have no idea about the Royal Army Ordnance Corps OrBat for 1986, but I do know that on 31 December 1982, 2 Armd Div was withdrawn from the BAOR front line to UK reserve leaving a small stub in place, to be reactivated in the event of trouble.

 

My guess is that 13 Ord Coy may have been designated as a BAOR reinforcement unit (checking the UIN A2495A may well reveal that this is 13 Ord Coy) and that A2459D was the stub in place in BAOR.

 

If I am correct (there is no reason why I should be - it's a guess), this would suggest that for the six years 86 - 92, this vehicle had a quiet life before BAOR contracted at the end of the Cold War ("theatre drawdown").

[schliesser92]

Seems to about cover it - I should imagine that the Ordnance units (formerly known as Ordnance Field Parks) were depots of some sort. Cadre would indicate that the company consisted of just a few souls and a lot of equipment tucked in sheds. ie ready to be activated as a full-blown supply unit, should the excrement hit the fan again!