MILITARY TESTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 110, 12 May 1939, Page 8

MILITARY TESTS.

MADE ON LONG TRIP.

MOTORISED UNIT'S WORK.

EXERCISES AT WHANGAREI

Tuetieal schemes and te*ls are beins c.inic'l out all over the province bv 148 iifliwr* and men of A Squadron," 4tii Mounted Rifle* (Motmiscd). who passed through Queen Street this afternoon o-i their way to Narrow Neck. The squadion went into <-ump at Cambridge last Saturday with its motor cycles, transport lorries and vans, and' two Bren carriers, and left on Tuesdav for Rotorua.

Y, T S | n ? e th(>n !t n as visited Tauranjra, \vaihi and Paeroa. Demonstrations have been jriven in all centre*, and on the routes exercises have been carried out to test the efficiency of men and machines under varying conditions. One of the moat interesting exercises was the negotiation of road. Mocke .built bv pupils of the Rotorua High School. To-night will be spent at the Narrow Neck Camp, and to-morrow the squadron will move on for Wellsford. Somewhere between Warkworth and Welleford the advance will be held up by men of the North Auckland Regiment. It is expected that this will provide an excellent opportunity of. testing the mobility of the squadron and also the reaction of the infantry attempting to create a defensive position.

Probably the squadron will elect to move around the defenders and attempt to come in on the flank. This crosscountry work will certainly teet the efficiency 06 the Bren carriers.

A night will be spent at Welteford. and then the squadron will move on to Whangarei on Sunday to join the let Composite Mounted * Riflee Regiment. Public demonstrations will l>e given hv both units and the camps will be thrown open for inspection. Later in the day a night march of Iβ to 20 milee will be nmde by the mounted men to prepare for Monday's exercise, which will be a further test of mobility, about CSO men taking part.

Monday's test will he the largest concentration of territorials eince compulsory training days, and also the first. exercise of ite type in the Auckland Province. Lieutenant-Colonel L. Potter will be in charge at Warkworth and Whansarei.