The title for this post should really be ‘everything up to the Bailey Bridge’ because equipment bridging took a leap forward with the Bailey that made all before it more or less redundant although as I will show, the Bailey would not have been possible without the innovations introduced in the bridges described below. Most of the designs here saw [...]
Mexeflote pontoons have proven to be a versatile solution for working over water. They are road transportable, shallow draft, capable of supporting loadsof up to 10 tons per float. They can be assembled to create a wide variety of different sized platforms, from a 30m x 12.5m crane barge to a four pontoonconfiguration (measuring 11m x 6m) for site investigation works.
This is relatively short post, construction, or non equipment bridging uses construction materials rather than pre –manufactured equipment like a Bailey or Medium Girder Bridge. As bridging equipment evolved, the need to use construction bridging techniques has lessened but it is still a subject that is taught to all combat engineers. As weights of vehicles increased the ability of these [...]
The CRAYLER BM is a remote controlled forklift complying to EMC 89/336/EWG with lifting capacity options from 1500 up to 2100 kg andis available with 2 and 4 wheel drive. C130 Hercules transportation is possible. Lifting capacityoptions from 1500 up to 2500 kg (3000 kg for the CRAYLER CR) and lifting mast heights up to 3.7 m are characteristics of [...]
Concrete Cloth is a revolutionary material technology that has a wide range of applications in the construction and defence industries. Visit www.concretecanvas.co.uk for further information. Essentially a cement impregnated fabric, the material is flexible and can conform to complex curvatures. Once hydrated, the material hardens to form a durable, water proof and fire proof concrete layer.
The pontoon bridge is probably the oldest form of military bridging equipment, back to the original ‘Bridge of Boats’ I looked at the beginning of the series. At its simplest form, a pontoon bridge is a collection of shallow draft boats, lashed together across a river or canal, with some form of track or deck lashed to the top. The [...]
So this is the last of the first half of this series, looking at the history of UK military bridging. Once past this, it’s on to equipment. Any takers on whether Mexeflotes and ISO containers will sneak in? Iraq – Operation Telic During the initial assault operations in 2003, Iraqi forces had tried to destroy one of the bridges (North [...]
The final part of the history part of the series will look at Iraq from 2003 onwards and Afghanistan but in this penultimate post, post war and recent UK bridging operations will covered. Germany The Royal Engineers were in just as much demand post war as during, the landscape of Germany, France, Holland, Italy and Belgium was devastated and in [...]
UK military bridging enjoyed several finest hours during WWII and it would be impossible to describe every single operation. Instead, I am going to look at a significant operation in the three theatres of North West Europe, Italy and the Far East. Italy The Italian campaign, although on a smaller scale to North West Europe is interesting because it was [...]
UK military bridging enjoyed several finest hours during WWII and it would be impossible to describe every single operation. Instead, I am going to look at a significant operation in the three theatres of North West Europe, Italy and the Far East. Africa The first Bailey Bridge to be constructed in any operational theatre was at Medjez-el-Bab over the River [...]
UK military bridging enjoyed several finest hours during WWII and it would be impossible to describe every single operation. Instead, I am going to look at a significant operation in the three theatres of North West Europe, Italy and the Far East. The Far East Operations in the Far East were very different to those in Europe and although the [...]
As the Boer War drew to a close most of the Royal Engineer units returned to the UK and a period of re-organisation followed that culminated in the formation of three bridging Companies, allocation of Field Companies to Divisions and additional units to take responsibility for searchlights, air, works and telegraph signals. A number of additional organisational recommendations were made [...]
Anything to do with ancient China always seems to elicit a great deal of discussion and debate so the historical reference points for the emergence of military bridging are varied but most historians see China as the first recorded place that military bridging used pontoon bridges several hundred years BC These were commonly called a bridge of boats or pontoon [...]
Any military commander will always strive for freedom of movement and the opposing commander will equally strive to deny that freedom. Obstacles may be natural or man-made. Mobility and counter mobility is the core role of military engineers. Breaching those gaps, providing the force with that essential mobility and freedom of movement is as old as warfare but as speeds [...]
One of the great unsung success stories of British military endeavour is that of gap crossing, or perhaps more commonly known as military bridging. In the next series of posts I am going to shine a light on this little known subject, concentrating on UK aspects but touching on other nations where I think it adds value. This is a [...]
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