Dodge T203B in Australia

[Mike K]

I found a naa file (over 300 pages long) relating to the disposal of Lend Lease vehicles in Australia.

One page mentions a single Dodge T203B 4x4 truck that was acquired in the Middle East.

https://www.o5m6.de/redarmy/dodge_t203b.php

Was this truck a ex-French contract truck, diverted to Britain, shipped to the M.E. , then acquired by Australian troops and shipped to Australia ? Seems that the Dodge was located at Ryde vehicle park in Sydney waiting disposal.

The army were unsure of the value or price , they decided on 550 Pounds . The Dodge was probably sold to the Chrysler Aust. dealer: Harden & Johnstone in Sydney. It may appear in the AWM 126 books somewhere.

Another odd one mentioned in the file is a 1 Ton GS with Marmon Herrington kit.

[Mike K]

Found in the same file are numerous papers relating to the vehicles returned to the Commonwealth from the USAFIA , including two long lists of the USFIA vehicles , one compiled in Townsville and the other Brisbane - numbering over 500 vehicles. The file reveals that In 1944, there was a chronic shortage of essential services transport and some of the ex-U.S. staff cars were reconditioned and supplied to civilian medical doctors, i.e., GM-H dealerships purchased these cars through the Disposals Commission and rebuilt them, I found a few Pontiacs.

The list of Reverse Lend Lease vehicles includes: Nash, Hudson and Studebaker sedans and other odd ball cars like a Morris tourer and Ford Prefects. A few 1941 Pontiac , 'masonite utes' as well. The U.S. staff cars were mostly 1940 to 42 models, they even used some Plymouths which the Aust. Army didn't normally use that much.

I found a list of Reverse lend lease vehicles earmarked for disposal at: 5 AOVP W.A. This list includes engine nrs.

[Frank Dallemagne]

Have a look at "Persian corridor supply operations" in this forum ...
And at the "Lenrezerv" collection in St-Petersburg (Russia) web site

[Frank Dallemagne]

There is also a Dodge WF 32 lend-lease truck to USSR

[Philliphastings]

In the mid 1990s I purchased the Chev C60L which I had on club registration and took to Corowa a couple of times

It came from a property at Book Book NSW and had been the local Bush Fire Brigade tanker until I acquired it, anyway on the same property was one of those 4x4 Dodges still in Army green livery.

I never showed any interest in the Dodge even though I could have had it for not a lot of money !

Probably sold off or scrapped by now sadly

Cheers

Phill

[Mike Cecil]

Mike - what is the NAA file ID number, please?

This is a short, very generalised article about the broader RLL account with the USA that I wrote for the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) newsletter about 20 years ago. May be of interest.


It is generally well known that the United States of America supplied the Allied countries with enormous quantities of military equipment during the Second World War. Moreover, the supply of this equipment came under the ‘Lend Lease’ scheme, which deferred any payment until after the eventual cessation of hostilities. With Australia’s comparatively limited manufacturing capability and capacity, there was a great dependence on the United States Lend Lease scheme to provide particular classes of military equipment that were otherwise not available in the quantities needed from more traditional suppliers like the United Kingdom. While tanks, aircraft, searchlights and military motor vehicles were the ‘big ticket’ items provided to Australia under Lend Lease, there was also large quantities of equipment and parts that were essential for the local manufacture of war equipment in Australia. Without such aid, Australia would certainly have been struggling to equip and maintain the military forces with the up-to-date equipment needed for the Nation’s defence and later, the pursuit of the enemy to the final victory.

But what is generally not known is that Australia also manufactured and supplied large quantities of goods and provided many services to United States Forces both in Australia and throughout the Pacific Theatre of operations. While the materiel coming to Australia was provided under ‘Lend Lease’, Australia’s contribution to the United States was called ‘Reciprocal or Reverse Lend Lease’, or just ‘RLL’. For a comparatively small country, it was vast and incredibly diverse. The supply of RLL was based upon three premises. Firstly, Australia would supply from those areas where there was already a sound and expandable basis of production. This included fresh and processed foodstuffs, timber, military cloth and clothing, and leathergoods. Secondly, Australia would supply specialist items of military equipment developed and in production locally. This included such diverse items as AT5/AR8 aircraft radio sets, Light Weight-Air Warning (LW/AW) radar units, mobile steam cookers, mobile laundry trailers and 5,000 miles of combat signal cable. The third category was those items that could have been supplied from the USA, but were available within Australia and thus could reduce the transportation burden between the two continents. Motor cars for local use by US Forces, many of them impressed from Australian citizens for use by the military, fall into this category. Indeed, while the steering wheel position on the right side was unfamiliar to US service personnel, the makes were not, as many were pre-Pacific war American imports such as De Soto, Plymouth, and Hudson. Shipbuilding was a major area of supply as well, with Australia manufacturing everything that floated from small dories to Lighters, barges, tug boats and floating docks. By 1944, more than 20,000 Australians were directly involved in the manufacture of munitions and ships for the use of US Forces, with many more employed by sub-contractors. It was a huge National commitment that totalled $500 Million by August 1945, or about 75% of the value of US Lend-Lease aid provided to Australia. While the US contribution of sophisticated military hardware cannot be underestimated, Australia can rightly claim that it was also a period when we supplied the Yanks.

On another note, I seem to remember Bob Schutt had a 1 ton MH under restoration about 20 years ago. He was having trouble finding parts.

[Mike K]

Hi Mike

Thanks for your interest , a interesting subject it is.

The file I refered to about the returned RLL vehicles is this one .

There's a good chance, the Dodge 4x4 that Phill found, is the same vehicle mentioned in one of the LL files

The Ford 1/2 Ton (or was it 1 Ton) with Marmon Herrington kit, it may have been a diverted Dutch N.E.I. vehicle . But it's mentioned in this file, so maybe the vehicle was supplied directly from the USA, its a mystery.