AIF shipment of vehicles to Mid East '40?

[David_Hayward (RIP)]

Thanks to Max Hedges for the loan of an excellent book on the history of the Australian Army up to early 1941.

However, you all know that we have re-written if not written history in this Forum because we have proven that the AIF, and probably NZ Expeditionary Force in North Africa/Mid-East were equipped with BRITISH order CMPs, which were of course used in later campaigns. The question I have has still not been answered. That is, when the AIF elements in the UK left from around December 1940 for Port Said/Alexandria, did they have with them vehicles? The book explains that the AIF were lent vehicles on the drive up to the Libyan frontier, some being convoyed from Palestine. I conject that the loan was of British-owned [nominally] vehicles and that the loan became 'permanent'. This would explain why the trucks had WD Census Numbers in advance of British Supply-Mechanical orders for Australia et al delivery. I believe that the first Australian CMP orders from Canada were in June 1941, which were of course distinct from British Ministry of Supply contracts for Australian and other Dominion forces which then applied their own Census Numbers.

For those interested, the first S/M Contract for CMPs placed numerically was 2002 in June 1940. From memory the contracts then ran to 2008 that included loans to the AIF. The last known [to me] Contract under which the AIF used British-owned CMPs was S/M 2029 for C.8s and 2030 for F.8s, though I query whether S/M 2037 for Chevrolet/Ford were ever issued to Dominion forces with British Census Numbers. As this was a 1942 delivery I discount it for the moment. EDITED....S/M 2029 also included Dodge D8A chassis, some for the UK and some for 'Egypt' delivery. Therefore these trucks were also issued and lent on the same basis. We also know that US trucks were also delivered to the Mid-East direct and were likewise issued/lent...S/M 2007 & 2014 for White Model 920 18-ton Transporters [and White-Ruxtell 922] and Mack EXBX to 2014.