Top Stories

Engineers all aboard
By Bill Cunneen and
Cpl Mike McSweeney

Edition 1165, May 03, 2007
 
Floating success: Engineers conduct the watermanship phase of the three-month engineer subject course for corporal at SME.
Photos by Bill Cunneen
 
Buoyant: Engineer-course members manoeuvre Floating Support Bridges on the Georges River.
SAILING for Botany Bay usually meant imprisonment 200 years ago, but for 17 engineers it has been a necessary step for promotion to corporal.

Instructor Sgt Andrew Pitt said the trip from Georges River in April was part of the watermanship phase of the three-month promotional course held at SME.

“They’re learning to become raft commanders on the Floating Support Bridge,” Sgt Pitt said.

“It’s one of a swag of skills a corporal Engineer needs to have.”

Sgt Pitt said the floating modules could be used for rafting or bridging.

“The raft is used for river crossing operations, to get vehicles from the friendly bank to the enemy side of a river,” he said.

“We can carry up to 60 tonnes, but for exceptional circumstances we can take 70 tonnes. We haven’t tried an Abrams yet, but I’d like to try it.”

Sgt Pitt said the budding corporals sat through a series of theory and practical lessons on the raft.

“They learn how to launch the boats and the raft into the water using our launch/recovery vehicle and then they get lessons on how to construct the raft and be raft commanders,” he said.

“Once the module slides into the water and the exterior pontoons have unfolded, the Propulsion Boat moves in, captures the module and puts it in the work area.

“They have two hydraulic winches on the back of the Propulsion Boat with Kevlar rope and AD straps to secure the boat to the raft.”

The Bridge Erection Propulsion Boat is an inland tug boat used to capture and manoeuvre the rafts.

Sgt Pitt said it was not a requirement for sappers to have completed a BEPB course before the subject course.