British Motor Cyclist's helmets of WWII

[tinlid]

Here's a picture of helmets in use.

[Walkwolf]

Great thread on Dispatch Rider lids, and a great photo of the boys at work.........!

[aj4010]

Great thread on Dispatch Rider lids, and a great photo of the boys at work.........!

Fantastic thread. My father was a Dispatch Rider, attached to Pattons division in WW2. He was involved with the "OBOE" bomber directional system, (he was RAF.)
Because he was attached to the Americans, he got to ride to war on a Harley!

Regards,

A

[tinlid]

I'm waiting for a picture to arrive that I will post up showing an RAF DR on a harley or Indian.

[aj4010]

I'm waiting for a picture to arrive that I will post up showing an RAF DR on a harley or Indian.

Fantastic, when you get it, could you PM me with a copy?

Regards,

A

[Walkwolf]

Fantastic thread. My father was a Dispatch Rider, attached to Pattons division in WW2. He was involved with the "OBOE" bomber directional system, (he was RAF.)Because he was attached to the Americans,
he got to ride to war on a Harley! Regards,A

The guy in the middle with the bent nose in the above photo
could be my Godfather.........

[Battery Command Post]

Fantastic thread. My father was a Dispatch Rider, attached to Pattons division in WW2. He was involved with the "OBOE" bomber directional system, (he was RAF.) Because he was attached to the Americans, he got to ride to war on a Harley!

The RAF actually used Harley-Davidson bikes quite extensively, whether they were dealing with US forces or not. Here are a couple of pictures, both showing men of 2nd Tactical Air Force in NW Europe:



These were Harley-Davidson WLC models, which were originally special versions for the Canadian Army, but were also purchased by the British forces. 2nd TAF did provide support for Patton's Third Army on many occasions, so this might very well be exactly what your father was involved with.

By the way, OBOE has nothing to do with Americans or Don-Rs, it was a radio navigation system used by RAF bombers, and wouldn't involve despatch riders, or do you mean he was involved with it at a different time?

Rob

[aj4010]

The RAF actually used Harley-Davidson bikes quite extensively, whether they were dealing with US forces or not. Here are a couple of pictures, both showing men of 2nd Tactical Air Force in NW Europe:



These were Harley-Davidson WLC models, which were originally special versions for the Canadian Army, but were also purchased by the British forces. 2nd TAF did provide support for Patton's Third Army on many occasions, so this might very well be exactly what your father was involved with.

By the way, OBOE has nothing to do with Americans or Don-Rs, it was a radio navigation system used by RAF bombers, and wouldn't involve despatch riders, or do you mean he was involved with it at a different time?

Rob

Thanks for the photos, Rob.
You are correct, OBOE was a British thing.
As the Allies swept across Europe, the OBOE and similar systems used radio transmitters usually located on high ground. As they advanced, the transmitters went with them. My father did mention it, though of course his role was not exclusively this. However, due to the secrecy involved, it could have been rumour/conjecture. It is what he believed anyway. Certainly, he told stories of delivering communications to remote transmitting locations, mentioning OBOE specifically, especially in the Ardennes, shortly after the "Bulge," and seeing piles of abandoned SS kit at the roadside.
How, or why he managed to get attached to the Americans, I don't know. I do know that he was on occasion rather better fed than the average Tommy though!

Kind regards,

Andy

PS. I remember him mentioning that he had a leather contraption on the front of the bike to hold a rifle, would that help identify the bike?

[Battery Command Post]

Thanks for the photos, Rob.
You are correct, OBOE was a British thing.
As the Allies swept across Europe, the OBOE and similar systems used radio transmitters usually located on high ground. As they advanced, the transmitters went with them. My father did mention it, though of course his role was not exclusively this. However, due to the secrecy involved, it could have been rumour/conjecture. It is what he believed anyway. Certainly, he told stories of delivering communications to remote transmitting locations, mentioning OBOE specifically, especially in the Ardennes, shortly after the "Bulge," and seeing piles of abandoned SS kit at the roadside.
How, or why he managed to get attached to the Americans, I don't know. I do know that he was on occasion rather better fed than the average Tommy though!

Kind regards,

Andy

There were certainly mobile OBOE stations operating (in 'cat' and 'mouse' pairs) in Europe after D-Day, which was necessary as OBOE was a very accurate, but limited range system. It was also very limited in the number of aircraft it could direct at one time. So its very likely he was right in his belief.

His history sounded interesting, so I'm just trying to work out exactly which unit he may have been attached to. There were RAF forward radar units that were issued US uniforms when operating with American units...

Rob

[aj4010]

There were certainly mobile OBOE stations operating (in 'cat' and 'mouse' pairs) in Europe after D-Day, which was necessary as OBOE was a very accurate, but limited range system. It was also very limited in the number of aircraft it could direct at one time. So its very likely he was right in his belief.

His history sounded interesting, so I'm just trying to work out exactly which unit he may have been attached to. There were RAF forward radar units that were issued US uniforms when operating with American units...

Rob

Thanks for the info Rob. I have his service records, but they are really difficult to decypher. I cannot recall him mentioning actually wearing US uniforms, though he did mention often that the US EM uniform was of equal quality to that of British Officers kit.

Regards,

Andy