Maintaining the diversity of engineering skills necessary in wartime had always been a severe challenge to the Army.
The peacetime the RAE was never very large. Moreover, only in the first weeks of mobilisation did many qualified men volunteer who could move rapidly into technical postings. Therefore the Australian wartime engineer units had to train their members intensively in aspects of civil construction and maintenance necessary for their roles – after lengthy basic instruction in soldiering and military engineering.
After demobilisation, various military and civilian engineers, especially the council of the Institution of Engineers, Australia, considered ways to reduce this problem by developing a nucleus for rapid wartime expansion.
In late 1945 the Cairns group of the Institution’s Brisbane Division suggested Australia could maintain a very large corps of military engineers on major public projects during peacetime, including flood mitigation and dams, as does the US.
Shortly afterwards, Maj Gen Clive Steele, leaving the Army, returned to the council of the Institution. In July 1946, the councillors considered a report to the US Secretary of War from the Chief Engineer, US Army, and Steele’s own analysis of the RAE during 1939-45.
(Sir Clive Steele wrote a book called ‘Royal Australian Engineers – Some lessons from the War 1939-1945’. The RAEAV has this book in its collection and it will be the subject of a future post)
In July 1948, Col CG Roberts MC, Chief Engineer of Victoria’s Country Roads Board, informed Steele of a US Army engineer activity, the Affiliation Program, whereby public bodies sponsored reserve military engineer units. Members’ military roles would parallel their peacetime occupations. The Institution’s Melbourne Division and senior officers of Victorian government departments involved in construction activities met and judged this scheme very practical. In November 1948, a second proposal eventuated, this time to the Minister for Army, the Hon C Chambers, who endorsed it.
The latter proposal praised the US scheme, and detailed a British Supplementary Reserve system which addressed military transportation needs between the Wars. The proposal indicated too that certain Victorian authorities would participate in a similar scheme, taking responsibility for recruiting and organising their units, thus reducing the defence budget. By being involved in staffing, the authorities could minimise disruption to their day-to-day activities.
It stated also that the federal Department of Works and Housing might co-operate; if successful the scheme could extend to municipalities and also cover military transportation and signals through various port and railway authorities and the PM’s department. Raising these SR units would not conflict with the concurrent re-establishment of the CMF, as most potential members were of the ‘older type, living in areas not served by the CMF (particularly ‘the bush’). Members would spend a fortnight in camp each year,
In August 1949, the Victorian Premier (Thomas Hollway) consented to three instrumentalities participating – the Country Roads Board (CRB), State Rivers and Water Supply Commission (SRWSC) and Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works (MMBW); the NSW Premier made a similar move in June 1950.
The new Victorian unit was 22 Construction Regiment under Lt Col I O’Donnell OBE ED, the former CRE AIF Malaya, who had looked at SR units in Britain in 1948. His first task was to recruit sufficient officers, NCOs and other ranks to ensure viability.
Collaborating with O’Donnell were Lt Col ATJ Bell, Chief Engineer Southern Command; his staff officers, Capt HE Clear and Lt J Burton; and senior personnel from the sponsoring authorities. The latter bodies had by then appointed senior engineers, all with wartime experience, to raise the individual squadrons.
So it was that 22 Construction Regiment began its first annual camp at Puckapunyal on 30 September 1950. The regiment reported to the Chief Engineer, Southern Command and numbered twenty-six officers and 389 other ranks.
There were a number of tasks carried out by the new 22 Construction Regiment (SR) RHQ who were sponsored by the Country Roads Board (CRB) during their first camp at Puckapunyal and one was to build their first Bailey bridge.
105 Construction Squadron (SR) which was sponsored by the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission (SRWSC) had that honour and the result is shown in the attached photo.
Source; Swan Street Sappers
RAEAV Photo collection PV 105
Mel Constable
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