1944 Chevrolet CMP 15 cwt Truck
As war was erupting in Europe, Canada realized that it needed a standardized family of military trucks for its expanding army. The government, in cooperation with Chevrolet of Canada and Ford of Canada, designed what became known as the "Canadian Military Pattern" (CMP) family of trucks. They were produced in 8 cwt (cwt stands for 'hundred weight', or the cargo payload in hundreds of pounds), 15 cwt, 30 cwt, and 60 cwt models, with a number of different body styles and designs of cab, depending on the year produced and the mission of the vehicle, such as cargo, ambulance, wrecker, etc.
Our CMP is a 15 cwt cargo truck. This truck was originally restored by a previous owner in Canada, from where it found it's way into the United States, eventually to come into our family. The truck is currently in the paint and markings you see in the above photo. The previous owner who restored the truck dedicated it to Earnest "Smokey" Smith, one of the few recipients in the Canadian Army of the Victoria Cross, the United Kingdom's highest award for valor. Although the paint and markings will change, the dedication to Smokey Smith will not, and his name will always accompany this vehicle, at least while it is in our hands.
The 6th AARR did not drop cargo trucks into Landing Zones by glider. Although the initial assault behind enemy lines was by glider, the intention of the mission was always securing an area that would be held for only a short time, usually a matter of a few hours or days, while the ground forces fought their way through the enemy to link up with the airborne forces. A part of the airborne division moved forward with the ground forces, (always refered to as the "seaborne tail") which consisted of the supply and administrative troops, transport vehicles, and any of the combat troops and other equipment that were not dropped in with the initial assault.
The mission of our truck would be to take care of the needs of the squadron it was assigned to while it was in preparation for combat in Britain. Then, as an airborne mission was given to the unit, the truck would load up with all the supplies deemed necessary for the squadron after the initial link up of the airborne group with the seaborne tail. It would then move with all the other seaborne troops across the English Channel to France, and move up to the front lines in preparation for the airborne drop. Once the linkup with the front line troops and airborne troops had been established, the squadron's supply truck would move into the landing zone area to link back up with and resupply the squadron dropped in by glider. It would then continue to move with the squadron in subsequent combat, keeping it resupplied and providing its transport needs every day.
Our CMP is a 15 cwt cargo truck. This truck was originally restored by a previous owner in Canada, from where it found it's way into the United States, eventually to come into our family. The truck is currently in the paint and markings you see in the above photo. The previous owner who restored the truck dedicated it to Earnest "Smokey" Smith, one of the few recipients in the Canadian Army of the Victoria Cross, the United Kingdom's highest award for valor. Although the paint and markings will change, the dedication to Smokey Smith will not, and his name will always accompany this vehicle, at least while it is in our hands.
The 6th AARR did not drop cargo trucks into Landing Zones by glider. Although the initial assault behind enemy lines was by glider, the intention of the mission was always securing an area that would be held for only a short time, usually a matter of a few hours or days, while the ground forces fought their way through the enemy to link up with the airborne forces. A part of the airborne division moved forward with the ground forces, (always refered to as the "seaborne tail") which consisted of the supply and administrative troops, transport vehicles, and any of the combat troops and other equipment that were not dropped in with the initial assault.
The mission of our truck would be to take care of the needs of the squadron it was assigned to while it was in preparation for combat in Britain. Then, as an airborne mission was given to the unit, the truck would load up with all the supplies deemed necessary for the squadron after the initial link up of the airborne group with the seaborne tail. It would then move with all the other seaborne troops across the English Channel to France, and move up to the front lines in preparation for the airborne drop. Once the linkup with the front line troops and airborne troops had been established, the squadron's supply truck would move into the landing zone area to link back up with and resupply the squadron dropped in by glider. It would then continue to move with the squadron in subsequent combat, keeping it resupplied and providing its transport needs every day.
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Left: New coil. Right: repaired clutch linkage, after having been bent. Below left: rebuilt master cylinder for the clutch. Since the truck is right-hand drive, and the replaced engine and tranny are left-hand drive, the clutch has to be linked hydraulically. Below center: New markings, and the CMP is out for its first event with the 6th AARR, "Muster Day" at Camp Mabry in Austin, Texas, April 2014. Below right: Same event, parked near an M5 Stuart light tank, and just visible to the left is an M24 Chaffee light tank.
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Left and right: Beginning the process of turning the CMP into a purpose-adapted B Echelon vehicle for our club. "Crates" scrounged from around the "airfield" of our RAF tug crews are being purpose built to contain supplies and spares we need for the vehicles and crews of our club. This first crate has been built to contain six compo crates, one for each vehicle crew. Further crates will hold jerry cans for fuel and water, wireless spares, batteries, tools, and other necessities to keep an armoured recce squadron functioning in the field.
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An industrious REME has added a cushion to the top of this hydraulic strut crate so that it can double as a bench for seating troopers needing a lift.
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Above left - Bows for the back redone, with backrests added for passenger safety and comfort. Above center and above right - new waxed canvas tarp added to the back to protect cargo and passengers, along with a new observers hatch cover.
Links
Old CMP dot net. Site dedicated to the preservation and history of the CMP truck and to those who operated them.
http://www.oldcmp.net/findit.html
History of the CMP Truck on Maple Leaf Up
http://www.mapleleafup.net/vehicles/softskin/index.html
Colin Steven's web page on CMP trucks
http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net/cmp_canadian_military_pattern.htm
Wikipedia page on CMP Trucks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Military_Pattern_truck
Review of a beautifully modelled Italeri 1/35 scale Chevy CMP 15 cwt truck of the type we have with the number 13 cab, but with the earlier square roof hatch.
http://www.tanksplanesthings.com/tpt/Armor/Kits/15-cwt/15cwt.htm
Online photo gallery of CMP Trucks
https://www.google.com/search?q=cmp+trucks&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=_9GLUdq3O6eo0AH7kID4DQ&sqi=2&ved=0CFsQsAQ&biw=1214&bih=635
Youtube video set to WW2 song "We'll Meet Again" of a pre-and-post restoration and driving demonstration of a CMP 15 cwt truck.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3ivoJ6mKLU&NR=1&feature=endscreen
CMP Flickr group
http://www.flickr.com/groups/cmp_vehicles/pool/
Smokey Smith dedication website
http://smokeysmith.com/
Wikipedia page on Smokey Smith
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Smith
http://www.mapleleafup.net/vehicles/softskin/index.html
Colin Steven's web page on CMP trucks
http://bcoy1cpb.pacdat.net/cmp_canadian_military_pattern.htm
Wikipedia page on CMP Trucks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Military_Pattern_truck
Review of a beautifully modelled Italeri 1/35 scale Chevy CMP 15 cwt truck of the type we have with the number 13 cab, but with the earlier square roof hatch.
http://www.tanksplanesthings.com/tpt/Armor/Kits/15-cwt/15cwt.htm
Online photo gallery of CMP Trucks
https://www.google.com/search?q=cmp+trucks&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=_9GLUdq3O6eo0AH7kID4DQ&sqi=2&ved=0CFsQsAQ&biw=1214&bih=635
Youtube video set to WW2 song "We'll Meet Again" of a pre-and-post restoration and driving demonstration of a CMP 15 cwt truck.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3ivoJ6mKLU&NR=1&feature=endscreen
CMP Flickr group
http://www.flickr.com/groups/cmp_vehicles/pool/
Smokey Smith dedication website
http://smokeysmith.com/
Wikipedia page on Smokey Smith
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Smith