By Brigadier R.B. Muir, CBR, BSC, MICE, AMIMechE, AMIEE, AMIStructE
This article deals with the nuclear trials held at Christmas Island in 1958. The aim of the article is to describe the part played in these trials by the Army in general, the Royal Engineers in particular, and an attempt will be made to point the lessons learned. Over two-thirds of the military garrison on Christmas Island were Royal Engineers.
Extracted from the Royal Engineers Journal - March 1960.
TASK FORCE GRAPPLE
Grapple was the name given to the Joint Task Force, charged with responsibility for setting up and executing nuclear tests in the Christmas Island area. This joint force, which was commanded by an air vice marshal, comprised four task groups-Naval, Army, Air and Scientific. Briefly the Royal Navy were responsible for logistic support, weather reporting and sea search, and for sea communication with the adjacent islands of Fanning, Malden and Penryhn, on which meteorological and scientific recording detachments of the Task Force were stationed. The Royal Air Force, in addition to weather reporting and area search, were responsible for delivery and firing of the weapon, flying Canberra sorties for cloud sampling after each test explosion; maintaining regular air communication using Hastings and Dakota aircraft with the advanced base at Honolulu, the adjacent Islands, Australia and UK, and also for general administration on Christmas Island, including the feeding of all troops ashore. The Scientific Group from the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston, provided the weapon, assembled and tested it, and were responsible also for health physics control and for recording, collation and assessment of scientific test data.
The Task Force Headquarters included four staffs serving the four task groups. It was located in the Air Ministry and, with the exception of a rear headquarter component, moved to Christmas Island for the duration of each test series. The military staff was headed by a Chief Military Planner (Colonel) who was also Commander of the Army Task Group. His staff consisted of two elements-a military logistics staff, under an AA & QMG, which dealt nith the provisioning of stores and plant, movement and personnel matters and an RE planning team, under a staff officer Royal Engineers Grade I, which was responsible for the detailed development of plans for major works projects.
CHRISTMAS ISLAND
Christmas Island is situated in the mid-Pacific, about two degrees north of the Equator, and some 1,200 miles due south of Honolulu in the Hawaiian Islands. It is a classic coral island, and the largest coral atoll in the world. Its maximum length is just over thirty-five miles from NW to SE, and it varies in width from about twenty miles at its broadest point to just under three miles at the SE tongue. Of its total area of 350 square miles enclosed by its coast line, more than 250 square miles are water in the form of lagoons. The island is fringed by a reef at from 50 to 150 yards from the shore and, beyond the reef, the sea bed drops very steeply into extremely deep water. Sea transport, carrying supplies, stores and plant had to anchor about two miles out in the lee of the island and cargoes were transferred into lighters and DUKWS for carriage into the port through a gap in the reef. During the months of October to January the swell was sometimes so severe that the channel into the port had to be closed for several days.
The ground is flat and the maximum height above sea level does not exceed 30 ft. Vegetation consists of sporadic coarse grass, prolific evergreen bushes and a number of coconut plantations. Coconut palms were first planted by Captain Cook when he discovered Christmas Island on Christmas Eve 1777. The island abounds with a variety of sea birds, principally terns, frigate and booby birds, many of which are migratory. The terns nest twice a year in colonies of several million birds, and these can constitute a hazard to low flying aircraft. Wild life is completely harmless, and consists principally of jerboa rats and numerous land and hermit crabs.
Temperature varies little throughout the year. Day temperature averages 88°F with a drop of about ten degrees at night. Humidity is always very high -in the region of 98 per cent. Yet the climate is far from unpleasant, mainly because of the trade winds which blow almost continuously from the northeast at speeds of from eight to twenty-five knots. Rainfall is quite unpredictable, and can range from nil in one year to six inches in eight hours. There is no indigenous population, but about 200 Gilbertese and their families are imported from islands of the Gilbert and Ellice Group to work on the local copra industry. They usually spend about two years on the island but some families have now been there for over ten years.
ARMY TASK GROUP GRAPPLE
Task. There were two main Army tasks:-
(a) Preparation for the tests, and close support to the RAF and scientists during the actual tests. (Preparatory work included the provision of facilities for delivering the weapon; weapon assembly buildings, laboratories and decontamination centres; and the setting up each time of an elaborate ground system of telemetry and effects measurement.)
(b) Development of Christmas Island base. (This task consisted principally of the construction of a hutted camp to house approximately 3,000 all ranks; road development; and the provision of workshops and covered storage to meet inter-service requirements.)
Composition. The Army Task Group comprised:-
Headquarters HQ38 Corps Engineer Regiment
48 Field Squadron RE
59 Field Squadron RE
61 Field Squadron RE
63 Field Park Squadron
RE 12 (Independent) Field Squadron RE
73 (Christmas Island) Squadron RE
Two Construction Troops, Fijian Military Forces
One Transportation Troop, 51 Port Squadron RE
504 Postal Unit RE
2 Special Air Formation Signal Squadron, R Sigs
94 Company RASC (MT)
RASC Services RAOC Services
2 Special Engineer Workshops REME
Role. The Commander Army Task Group, in addition to being Chief Military Planner in the Task Force Headquarters, was also Chief Engineer to the Task Force, an arrangement which worked well. The Army Task Group Headquarter staff on the island consisted of a DAA & QMG and a small works staff comprising an SORE 2 (Works); SORE 3 (Works); SORE 2 (E & M) and an SORE 3 (Resources). The Army Task Group Commander held a co-ordinating conference of all unit commanders once a month, and a works progress meeting once a week with sapper unit commanders. Representatives of the other three task groups also attended these meetings, as clearly the closest inter-service liaison was essential.
The engineer field units listed above together with the construction troops of the Fijian Military Forces were placed under command of 38 Corps Engineer Regiment which was responsible for the execution of new works projects. A small pool of six Clerks of Works (Construction, Electrical and Mechanical) was allotted by Army Task Group Headquarters to field squadrons, according to the type of work in hand. The Christmas Island Squadron Royal Engineers, which was organized on an E & M basis, was concerned mainly with the operation of utilities and with the maintenance of completed buildings and installations. The field park squadron integral with the engineer regiment supported all of the sapper squadrons by providing heavy plant, such as earth moving equipment and cranes; workshop facilities; and materials, such as crushed aggregate and prefabricated stores. A Command Engineer Stores Depot was set up to receive, unpack, identify, record, hold and issue imported stores. In order to avoid critical shortages, policy on controlled stores was laid down by HQ Army Task Group. This varied necessarily from time to time, depending upon timings of operational requirements, changes in shipping programmes, and the ability to economize in stores in short supply by the use of substitute materials.
The transportation troop provided the stevedore organization for unloading sea transports at open anchorage. The activity was controlled by a Port Commandant who acted also as DAA & QMG (Movements) to the Army Task Group Commander. Each ship required about three weeks to unload after arrival at the island, and the operation was pre-planned from a detailed record of loading, to ensure that, as far as possible, stores came ashore in the order required. In transferring cargo from hold to lighter, and from lighter to wharf, considerable ingenuity was exercised in handling and slinging of awkward loads, some of which weighed up to 25 tons. Whenever feasible, stores were transferred at the swharf from lighter direct into MT for transporting up country in order to avoid unnecessary handling.
504 Postal Unit RE ran the British Forces Post Office 170, which provided both air and sea mail facilities for all personnel in the area. In view of the impact of this service on morale, emphasis was placed on speed and efficiency of operation. Detailed sorting of mail down to cities and counties in the United Kingdom was carried out on the island before despatch, and a close liaison maintained with all movements staffs to ensure that every available lift was utilized to the full. The introduction of Post Office Savings Bank facilities proved a popular innovation, and the BFPO also carried out a brisk trade in Premium Bonds.
The Special Air Formation Signals Squadron laid and maintained telephonic communications on an island wide basis. Royal Signals personnel were trained to operate a wheeled grader and a mechanical trencher, thus economizing in the Royal Engineer support required. Reduction in signal operating personnel was achieved by combining certain telephone exchanges. The life of signal electronic equipment was substantially increased by introducing air conditioning. The load on communications generally was restricted by emphasis on signal discipline.
94 Company RASC was organized as a headquarters, a HQ platoon, and three transport platoons. The HQ platoon operated a twenty-four hour service at POL points, and also distributed Dieso and oils to the numerous working sites. One transport platoon was absorbed almost entirely on port clearance and transported imported stores, on a two-shift basis, to the CESD and direct to working sites. The other two platoons operated tipper lorries (3 and 10 ton) in close support of the sapper field units, with whom they formed a close association. As a result of a drive on maintenance by the unit, availability of MT increased from 60 to over 90 per cent.
The RASC Services, in addition to manning the DUKWS, ran a field bakery, which provided up to 6,000 lb of fresh bread a day for all personnel ashore and afloat. DUKWS were used to supplement lighters for ferrying stores ashore from the Christmas Island deep water anchorage. They were also of great value in running stores ashore to Task Force detachments stationed on the islands of Malden and Fanning, and at times their drivers displayed considerable skill and courage in manipulating the heavy swell. DUKWS were particularly useful in avoiding double handling, and were proved to be more suitable than any other vehicle for carrying fragile stores, delicate instruments and explosives over rough ground. By fitting an A frame on the stern, loads of up to 5,000 lb could be loaded with the vehicle winch, care being taken to have sufficient ballast in the bow as a countenveight. Efficient servicing was essential, and hulls had to be painted regularly with red oxide to avoid corrosion.
The RAOC Services ran an Ordnance Field Park which provided common user stores and spares. The scaling of plant and vehicle spares had to be kept constantly under review, in the light of experience gained. The RAOC also operated a field laundry for the island, and this laundered some 13,000 sheets a week, as well as articles of personal clothing. Steam presses were installed to process tropical green uniform. Because a field laundry does not normally include this type of plant, the operators had to be trained locally. The load on the laundry was kept to an acceptable level by virtue of working dress being normally a uniform hat (with badges of rank sewn on), a pair of shorts, boots and short puttees. Tllis pattern of dress had the additional advantage of ensuring that skin diseases were kept well under control.
The Special Engineer Regiment Workshop REME supported the Task Group most ably, by carrying out repairs beyond unit resources on vehicles and engineer plant. On one occasion a large gear wheel of seventy teeth on a vital plant was stripped as a result of a clutch failure. REME artificers, working on a continuous shift basis, built up the wheel by metal spraying; machined the teeth; and had the plant in operation again within seventy-two hours. Several light aid detachments from this workshop were deployed at selected sites where there were particularly heavy vehicle or plant concentrations. The Army Task Group operated about 200 vehicles and 300 items of mobile plant.
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