Yorke Scarlett Posted 19 May , 2015 Share Posted 19 May , 2015 I came across a Capt John Beech who died on 12th May 118 and buried in Gwalia Cemetery outside Poperinge recently and his unit made me curious. Could anyone enlighten me (and possibly others) as to the doings of this unit. 'I' Section was part of 4th Field Survey Company RE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteStarLine Posted 19 May , 2015 Share Posted 19 May , 2015 Sound ranging was an innovative technique to determine the location and direction of approaching aircraft. The Report on Survey on the Western Front 1914 1918 defines it as "the system of fixing the position of enemy guns by recording the sound of their discharge (known as Sound Ranging). Chapter 3 of this publication details exactly how it works and its fascinating history (just as this forum's search engine would have revealed to you). RE Signals had sound ranging sections, co-located with anti-aircraft batteries, as this extract from Priestley ("The Signal Service in the European War of 1914-1918 (France)" shows: The artillery alone, with their allied services — kite balloon, sound ranging, flash-spotting, anti-aircraft sections, etc. — required considerably more intercommunication now than had been allowed to the whole Expeditionary Force as originally constituted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clk Posted 19 May , 2015 Share Posted 19 May , 2015 Hi, http://www.defencesurveyors.org.uk/Images/Historical/WWI/4th%20Field%20Survey%20Battalion.pdf will hopefully answer your question. He is mentioned in it in a couple of places. Regards Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorke Scarlett Posted 19 May , 2015 Author Share Posted 19 May , 2015 Thanks WSL/Chris, Chris, It does - and in detail Hopefully 4th Field Survey Company Royal Engineers will no long be a mystery to others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nigelfe Posted 20 May , 2015 Share Posted 20 May , 2015 Actually the SR sects, like the FS ones, were multi-cap badge. Administratively they were part of RE Svy Coys/Bns, but operationally they were under artillery control, specifically the Corps Counter Bombardment Officers. See http://nigelef.tripod.com/p_artyint-cb.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorke Scarlett Posted 20 May , 2015 Author Share Posted 20 May , 2015 Thanks nigelfe, I think you and Chris have comprehensively covered the subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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