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| VEHICLES
& EQUIPMENT |
| Introduction |
| As you've read in the previous
HISTORY
SECTION, the 11-month reign of the Kangaroos
saw the unit evolve through several iterations, each of which was characterized
by, and depended upon, a certain degree of classic Canadian ingenuity. |
Vehicles
Weapons
Uniforms
&
Equipment
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| Initially conceived as a
secret, experimental ad-hoc unit, the original Squadron was assembled from
troops and equipment already in the field, within a few days at the beginning
of August, 1944. The 'volunteers' (one man per Priest and a small HQ detachment)
came to the new unit from a variety of corps, regiments and other subunits,
with little more than what they carried in their packs. |
| While the new organization
was technically attached to the Elgin Regiment for administrative purposes,
the reality was that they were basically on their own logistically, as
each of the troops was invariably always 'somewhere out in the field' with
the infantry. |
| This lack of
centralized organization was to continue throughout the war, even after
the expanded new Regiment was deployed across the entire northern area
of operations in support of both British and Canadian formations. This
resulted in subunits employing a wide variety of uniforms, vehicles and
equipment drawn and maintained from both British and Canadian stocks. From
the beginning, independence was the chief operating characteristic of the
Kangaroos, one which was particularly suited to the classic Canadian distaste
for the strict regimentation of more traditional army formations, but it
presented its own set of challenges as well. |
| In this section,
we'll examine some of the vehicles, weapons, uniforms and equipment used
by the Canadian Kangaroos, from both technical and logistical perspectives.
In addition, we'll attempt to relate this information to the organization
and structure of the daily life of the average Kangaroo in the field. Please
select one of the links (upper right) to proceed... |
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