fv1609 Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 I have just returned from Chelsea Hospital after bidding a final goodbye to Peter who died on 27th July 2009. In due course a range of regimental magazines will make formal note of his career. This is a brief & self-centred appreciation of a most supportive friend over the last 15 years. When we restore our vehicles, most of us I think, would like to present it as close as we can to its in-service performance. With that we try to learn something about the history of the vehicle itself, together with its role militarily & technically. Any of us would feel pride in be complimented on the presentation of the vehicle by veterans. When veterans engage in helping then that is a bonus indeed. I have been most fortunate in being given that support by Peter. At the age of 15, Peter joined the RTR as a boy soldier in 1938. As a driver-mechanic his technical skills came to the fore, at the end of the war this mechanical role drew him into REME. Being parachute trained his skills took him far and wide from jungle & sea drops to Airborne REME Workshops through to tank design. Much as he loved tanks it is ironic that the climax of his military career was devoted to anti-tank warfare with the Malkara missile system fitted to Hornet. After his spell at the School of Tank Technology, Peter was appointed as EME to Cyclops Squadron 2 RTR as the Trials Officer for the Hornet/Malkara missile system. He was responsible for making a working system from the Malkara designed in Australia with the Hornet designed here by FVRDE. It required relentless technical effort & personal commitment to bring the system to a standard of formal acceptance. Once this had been done the system was handed over in 1965 to the Parachute Sqn RAC formed from a residue of Cyclops men and the recently disbanded SRS. After this success Peter moved onto a successful career in the Canadian energy industry. Nearly 16 years ago I negotiated the loan of a non-running Hornet that was residing at the back of the Tank Museum. Sorting it out automotively took some time (clutch, flywheel, track rods, hub seals, entire brake system, hydraulic rams etc) but the biggest frustration was not knowing anything about the deployment of the vehicle. Books were less than informative either not making mention of it or providing contradictory or what I have since found wrong information. I placed an advert in Pegasus appealing for information. This led to my first meeting with Peter when I drove the Hornet from Salisbury to where he was staying at Aldershot. Although it was a rainy day I could see the tears in his eyes on seeing a driveable Hornet once again. From then on Peter provided me with a vast amount of information from his notes & records with many photographs that has enabled me to compile articles in Windscreen, Tank & Pegasus. Here we are at the annual reunion of the Parachute Sqn RAC Old Comrades Association. Here is Peter taking an active interest in my Shorland restoration a few months ago. We had been in regular & productive contact for the last 15 years, but that has now suddenly stopped. It is not just a loss on a personal level but there was, I am sure, still a vast wealth of information should have been recorded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmite!! Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 Once again Clive, sorry to hear about the loss of Peter & thank you for sharing a bit of the history about him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony B Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 Condolences on your loss. Another god man gone, but he has left you quite legacy in the vehicles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rambo1969 Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 A great man, RIP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toner Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 Another one gone. R.I.P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Burley Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 He must have been a great help to you over the years Clive. i bet he was a mind of info on some of your restoration projects. Codolances to you and his family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Al Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 Sorry to hear about peter I had the privlage to meet him 2 years ago with John Pearson who has known for a long time it was intresting to hear his stories about his life and his passion for tanks. Big Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisg Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 R.i.p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoggyDriver Posted August 13, 2009 Share Posted August 13, 2009 It's a wake up call when you look at old photo's like those. Time just flies by. RIP, another old soldier gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enigma Posted August 14, 2009 Share Posted August 14, 2009 May he rest in peace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topdog Posted August 14, 2009 Share Posted August 14, 2009 Clive Let us be grateful for all the information and memories that you were able to get from him and realise that helping you also gave him a lot of pleasure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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