BRITAIN'S ARMY

Evening Post, Issue 149, 20 December 1935, Page 19

BRITAIN'S ARMY

MECHANISATION PLANS

FOLLOW ON TESTS

Important decisions affecting the reorganisation of the army are reported by Major-General A. C. Temperley, the "Daily Telegraph" military correspondent, says the London correspondent .of the "Sydney Morning Herald." These are the mechanisation of the greater part of the cavalry in Britain and the adoption of machinegun battalions, one for each infantry brigade. The decisions are said to be based largely on tests carried out during the recent army manoeuvres. An experiment was made in mechanising one squadron of the Third Hussars. This was so successful that the mechanical basis is to be extended to other cavalry. Britain has twenty-two cavalry regiments in all, of which six are in India. As the special conditions there are not considered, for the present at any rate, suitable for mechanised cavalry, the change will not apply to India. Six cavalry, regiments at home, which are required for the relief of the British units in India, will, in consequence, retain their, horses. Of the sixteen cavalry regiments at home or in Egypt, two, the 11th Hussars and the 12th Lancers, were converted some time ago into armoured car regiments. This will mean that of the remaining fourteen horsed regiments eight will be mechanised. No final decision, it is stated, has yet been made as to the regiments to be chosen, but among the six at home which will retain their horses it may be safely assumed that the two Household Cavalry regiments will be included. • In making these changes Britain is only following the trend of military thought on the Continent. The French have been steadily mechanising their cavalry for several years. With the introduction of the. machine-gun, the possibilities of shock action disappeared, while the aeroplane took over to a great extent the cavalry task of reconnaissance. Mechanisation gives the cavalry much greater speed and radius of action; Its value on the battlefield is largely increased. MajorGeneral Temperley expresses the opinion that the dream of a fast-moving mobile division composed of mechanised cavalry and artillery, tanks, and armoured cars may very soon become a reality. ■ ' ■ ■ ■ "OVERLOADED." The object of the adoption of the machine-gun battalion is to group into one unit the great variety of weapons with which the infantry have hitherto been ~ provided. The battalion was overloaded, and had become, it is considered, too complex a unit to be efficiently commanded. •Each brigade will consist of three" rifle battalions 'and one machine-gun battalion. In addition to the machine-guns, the latter will also be provided with the anti-tank guns for the brigade, and possibly the mortars, but the exact requirements have not, it is stated, yet been decided. The rifle (battalions will have their rifles and fifty-two light automatics of the Bren type—a very formidable amount of fire-power. The transport for the mechanised cavalry will be the 15cwt lorry, with low-pressure tires, and a special body with several exits so that the men can get out very quickly. It carries a driver, a section Ifeader, and six men with a.light automatic and the kits of. the crew. The use of the 15cwt lorry for the first line transport.is reported to have been a great success, and .it is to be adopted for all the infantry. It proved far superior to the utility tractor, as the latter is said to wear out soon, is very uncomfortable for the driver, has a small radius of action; and is not a commercial vehicle. ■ Both for the cavalry and the infantry, the trade will be able to turn out, large quantities of these lorries very quickly. This will be-a-great saving on mobilisation, as it will be unnecessary to hoKl large stocks of expensive technicals vehicles, which are bound to deteriorate and which will take a long tune to turn out in .the event .of war. Having' once taken, the .plunge, the Army 'Council,-; itis considered, may be relied upon .to ■ push their decision to its logical conclusion and produce the real mechanised army which is long overdue. No country is better adapted than Britain,' it is suggested, for a mechanised army, since Britain has immense industrial resources ' behind her and a long-service army whereby it is practicable to train, without difficulty, the specialists required. Thus, Britain is in a position to make up for lack of numbers by an amount of mobility and flre-power which the average "man-power" army cannot produce. : : ;