FIRST FIELD DAY

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 135, 4 March 1941, Page 8

FIRST FIELD DAY

Red Cross Women’s Transport

GOOD DISPLAY IN ALL SECTIONS

Exercises At Trentham

With a mechanized transport convoy five miles from end to end on the main road between Wellington and Trentham on Sunday morning the Red Cross Women’s transport service began its first field day under perfect conditions. There were 100 cars and 130 members under the commandant, Mrs. V. Hole. The Wellington Racing Club made available the course centre at Trentham where, under the supervision of army non-commissioned officers and Red Cross men’s officers, the women of the service put in a full day in the field, going through the instruction they have received since the service started in October, 1939. The opinion of observers with considerable experience of military exercises was that the women did a good job.

From 8.45 a.m. the ears of the members began to assemble in line in Aotea Quay from the overhead bridge to the Social Security Building. The rendezvous of the vehicles was well carried out; the drivers getting them neatly in line on the roadside without hitch. A point of note was that all the cars were smartly polished; the reflection of the sun on 100 shining car bonnets made a fine spectacle. The first car moved off at 9.19 and the front car entered the racecourse at 10.12 a.m. They travelled under proper convoy conditions, • with the regulation distance for army vehicles engaged on similar work between each.

Experience with transport units of territorial regiments has shown that simple though it appears to have an extensive convoy travelling at set distances between vehicles, the carrying out of this order is difficult and requires considerable practice for per‘fection. For a first time out the service drivers did this well; the time of arrival of the cars proved it. The speed set was 20 miles an hour, the distance from point to point 17 miles, and the gravelling time 53 minutes. This particular operation was supervised by Captain J. Hollows, N.Z.T.S., transport officer for the Central Military District, and men of his staff. There were some lapses from the regulation distance, civilian traffic having to be considered, but the drivers were soon put right by the army supervisors who sped up and down the convoy line throughout the journey. Service members went ahead and acted as pointswomen at the Petone and Trentham camp railway crossings.

Hard Day in Sun.

Once assembled on the racecourse centre, the women began a hard day’s work under a boiling sun that would have been trying even for men who had spent weeks training under summer conditions. They stood up to it splendidly, and while there was firstaid and stretcher drill on the programme for the day, none of the women became patients as the result of their exertions. Possibly the hardest test was the foot drill exercises at the “double” carried out for some squads late in the afternoon.

The foot drill was done under the supervision of Sergeant-Major J. Meldrum, assisted by Staff-Sergeant C. G. Gardiner. The standard was, with the exception of the excusable errors of more recent recruits, very good. The service has three divisions and the first division has been having this class of instruction one night a week right from the start. The second and third divisions have had shorter periods, at it, dating from the times they were formed. A reasonable standard was expected after the period of instruction most of the women have had, but the fact that they put on a really smart showindicated that they have been keen about their two-hour weekly parades. It is not the easiest thing, as soldiers know, to keep a good step on grass with no sound of marching feet to help keep the time. The towing drill and instruction was given by Corporal Barn, N.Z.A.S.C., and Driver Rowntree, N.Z.A.S.C. This was cleanly done. Driver Jepson, N.Z.A.S.C., gave the mechanized drill instruction. The service has been practising this, by units, on Sunday mornings as part of their training and in this branch, too, the women showed that they had profited by what they had been shown previously. Mr. Harkness, commandant of the Red Cross men’s voluntary aides division, with his assistant, Mr. Booth, took the women in squads for instruction in the removal of patients and first-aid lectures. This was less strenuous than the drilling and made a welcome break. Most of the arrangement of the day’s syllabus was done by Miss M. Thodey, sergeant-major, and it worked smoothly and to time. Miss Hackworth was quartermaster and arranged meals for the instructors.

The best mass showing of the a.-iy was the fall-in at 4.10 p.m., where the women were briefly addressed by the commandant. Mrs. Hole, who bad supervised the day’s programme She was seconded by the assistanl commandant, Mrs. M. I. Bunny. Unit leaders had charge of the assembly of their squads for I lie various instructional periods. Prospective Officers.

The service has not yet adopted any of the recognized forms of officer and non-commissioned officer' control, it being desired that prospective candidates for such posts be well fitted for such rank before undertaking responsibility. .Sunday's field day showed that there are some very capable women in the service who should fill these positions satisfactorily The practice has been adopted in territorial force regiments of taking good n.c.o.’s from first battalions and giving them a chance to qualify as officers for second and later battalions. At the same time the. best in battalions after the first are given their chance. This women’s service lias a similar construction with its first and later divisions and could follow I lie same practice. The practical capabilities of the women have been tried out with heavy driving fests (as the result o p which more than 100 have heavy traffic driving licences), military drill ind first aid examinations. On the theoretical side there have been ex aminations under the auspices of the Institution of Automotive Engineers After Sunday’s field day the service left the impression of being a well trained and disciplined unit, ready to take its place in any emergency calling for its assistance. The facilities made available tiy the Wellington Racing Club enabled the field (jay to be carried out under conditions assisting its success. If is hoped to hold another shortly. (Pictures on page 5.)