MIMIC WARFARE

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12622, 6 December 1926, Page 6

MIMIC WARFARE

PRACTICE AT TRENTHAM BIG GUNS IN ACTION REALISTIC ATTACK Realistic mimic warfare exercises were carried out at Trentham. during the week by the officers and men of the New Zealand Staff Corps and permanent staff, who were spending a period in camp there. Lino communication was used to straff© the enemy trenches —which were lined with falling dummies—and tho whole attack was executed in accordance with the strictest precision and attention to details.

Tho operations were under the direction of Major-General R. Young, G. (N.Z. Military Forces), other senior officers of the Staff Corps associated with him being Colonels-Com-inandant H. R. Potter, C. G. Powles, M. M. Gard’ner, Colonel on the Staff \V. L. H. Burgess, Lieutenant-Colonols H. E. Pilkington, E. Symon, J. E. Duigan, . H .Whyte, R. B. Smyth©, I T. Standish, and N. W. Thoms. Among visitors were Colonels G. E. C. Campbell and li. St. J. Beere, LieutenantColonels N. S. E'alla and R. L. Evatt, Captain Reyn, Chief Naval Staff Officer; Commander Fletcher, Naval Secretary; Lieutenant-Colonel J. Hughes, late Staff Corps; Sir Joseph Ward, and Sir Alexander Roberts. Having received reliable reports that the enemy force had landed on the coast and was moving down on Wellington, headquarters ordered the 2nd Field Brigade, the 6th N. and a proportion of administrative troops to move from Wellington towards Upper Hutt. At “1300 hours’* (1 p.m.) the Advanced Guard Commander, who was then at Silverstream, received information from the advanced guard mounted troops that an enemy force of about two platoons had established itself on the foothills south-east of the Trentham railway station. He immediately detailed to the attack A Company, Ist Battalion, Wellington Regiment, a machine-gun platoon, Ist Wellington Regiment, the sth Field Battery, N.Z.A., and tho 17th Howitzer Field Battery, with 4.5 howitzers and 18-pounder field guns, the big chaps then being well baok upon Silverstream and the lighter guns being rushed up under smoke screen or something of the sort—this movement being left to the imagination and the guns being placed in nioe position in tho morning—and machine-guns were also posted under cover on Flagstaff Hill. The * ‘footsloggers, ** with a sufficiency of machine-guns pack-saddled on horses, were miles away from business.

The battle commenced by a series of light signals, and thereafter big guns, machine-guns, infantry, and hidden mines did their work with commendable accuracy, and with gratification to those in cnarge, as well as to the edification of the privileged spectators. A inarch p-ast ended the exercises, Major-General Young briefly addressed the officers and men, and congratulated them heartily upon their work.