Tank Crew Training

[Keith Woodland]

My Grandfather joined the Tank Corps in February 1918 after over three years in the Bedfordshire Regiment. Whether he volunteered or not I don't know and never will. However in June 2018 he was back in France with 10th Battalion Tank Corps. This leads me to ask what training did he have, was it just in one role, gunner, driver or steersman. Were they expected to know more than one role? Did they then have crew training all together so they got to know one another or was it a case of get in and get on with it? In any case it would have been much different to my own training 45 years later in the black beret.

i would love to know what his own role was but his record is no help with regards to training.

[Gareth Davies]

Great question, and one that I should know the answer to in detail.  But in my defence I have a raging temperature and so am not quite thinking straight.  @delta will know the answer.

[Keith Woodland]

Gareth get well soon. I look forward to your input.

[pjwmacro]

Keith

Gareth (when he is recovered) and delta will be able to answer in rather more detail than I can, but in the interim.

The initial training was normally in just the one skill, probably as a gunner, unless your grandfather was specifically previously mechanically minded or trained. However, the aim was always that crewmen could do all the jobs on the tank, so once trained as a gunner, he would be given further driver/gearsman training. Certainly in 1916/17, Pte drivers were paid twice as much as a gunner - so there was an incentive! The driver was frequently the tank NCO, so the most senior man on the tank apart from the officer crew commander. Keep in mind as well, that on Mk1 to Mk1V tanks the gearsmen did the gears and also acted as machine gunners/loaders for the 6lbrs - so they were trained in both disciplines anyway. I`m not sure if 10 Bn had MkVs when it went to France or whether it trained on and then used MkIVs - but the MkV was driven by the driver alone so the gearsmen were not required - they either became gunners, in some bns signallers, and in other cases bns simply reduced the number of men on the crew. I cannot recall the exact timings of 10 Bn forming and whether they trained in Bovington - but at a guess, individuals received their individual trade training, and there was then sufficient time before going to France (and in France before going into action) for at least some crew training.

You may find this site helpful: https://sites.google.com/site/landships/home Or search for 10 Bn on the GWF - there are a number of threads.

Regards, Paul

[Ron Clifton]

In the case of field gun detachments and machine gun sections (Vickers and Lewis), the normal practice was to train men in one main skill and then develop multi-skilling as time and the men's individual aptitudes allowed. It would make excellent sense if tank crews were trained along similar lines, to enable the crew to cover each other in cases of wounding, or absences for other reasons.

 

Ron

Edited 15 January , 2019 by Ron Clifton