WAR PICTORIAL NEWS NO 60 [Main Title]

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  • Title: WAR PICTORIAL NEWS NO 60 [Main Title]
  • Film Number: WPN 60
  • Other titles:
  • Summary: Libya.
  • Description: 'Libya.' British troops find it hard going during a vicious Khamsin (sandstorm) somewhere in the Libyan desert. The commentary outlines the harshness of climatic conditions facing the Eighth Army during the 1942 summer campaign. RAF ground crews unload 250lb bombs from the back of a soft-skinned vehicle by throwing them to the ground. The bombs are then hand loaded on to the racks of a Curtiss Kittyhawk fighter aircraft of 112 Squadron RAF (Squadron code GA). The commentary stresses the risks taken by RAF fliers during dangerous ground attack missions against enemy lines of communication in support of British Army operations in the Libyan desert. A Kittyhawk fighter has its engine started and raising dust, taxies along an uneven sand and shrub track to its take-off point. Wounded British infantry are taken out of a Chevrolet ambulance on stretchers as a Khamsin blows. The commentary contrasts the oppressive heat and sand storms of the desert with the freezing conditions to be found on the Russian front. Free French infantry smile and wave at the camera following their successful retreat from Bir Hacheim. The commentary outlines the events of battle around Bir Hacheim over scenes of Free French Legionnaires in white Kepis eating a meal off an improvised table. Elsewhere, a White 6X4 tank transporter (White 920 ?) carries an M3 General Grant tank to an undisclosed location. The commentary outlines the work of the Motor Transport drivers and stresses that in carrying out their vital work they are constantly hunted from the sky by Axis aircraft. British soft-skinned vehicles tow 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns across desert terrain. The crew of a General Grant tank replenish supplies to their vehicle and load 75mm high explosive shells into the tank's stowage racks by hand. South African Air Force (SAAF) Douglas Boston bomber aircraft run up their engines prior to a raid on enemy communications. Footage showing a bombing raid by Bostons follows, with aerial views of bombs impacting on the desert floor. SAAF Bostons fly through a barrage of Flak on the return leg of their mission. A British gun crew manhandles an Ordnance QF 25-pounder howitzer into a camouflaged emplacement as General Grant tanks manoeuvre in loose formation across the desert. The commentary stresses that the Grant tank has proved to be a nasty surprise for the Germans due to the thickness of its armour and its 75mm main armament. Captured Axis prisoners are shown, including Italian infantrymen playing the traditional Italian card game "Scopone". A British White tank transporter crew scrutinise a commandeered Italian map showing the area around Sollum in an attempt to locate a disabled British tank. A Scammell TRMU/30 6x4 tractor towing a TRCU/30 semi-trailer sets out across scrubland on a recovery mission as the commentary highlights the tactical importance of the tank recovery role which is often carried out under direct enemy fire. A disabled Crusader tank (Cruiser Mk VI) is winched aboard a semi-trailer as an enemy barrage apparently explodes nearby. The Scammell recovery truck drives off to return the salvaged tank to a forward repair shop. Following delivery of the tank, the men of the tank recovery section relax by smoking cigarettes, drinking tea and lounging in the sun by their vehicle.
  • Alternative Title:
  • Colour: B&W
  • Digitised: Yes
  • Object_Number: WPN 60
  • Sound: Sound
  • Access Conditions: IWM Attribution: © IWM
  • Featured Period: 1939-1945
  • Production Date: 1942-06-22
  • Production Country: GB
  • Production Details: Ministry of Information, Middle East (Production sponsor) War Pictorial News (Production company) Martin, Charles (Production individual) Keating, Rex1910-02-142005-01British newsreel commentator, WW2 period (Production individual)
  • Personalities, Units and Organisations: British Army, Tank Recovery Section (regiment/service) Free French Forces (regiment/service) South African Air Force (regiment/service)
  • Keywords: combat, South African - air strike (object name) medical, British military - emergency (object name) supplies, British, movement [FA] - munitions (object name) prisoners of war, Italian - custody (object name) prisoners of war, German - movement (object name) Libya (geography)
  • Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W Sound format: Sound Soundtrack language: English Title language: English Subtitle language: French & Arabic
  • Technical Details: Format: 35mm Number of items/reels/tapes: 1 Footage: 775 ft; Running time: 9 mins
  • HD Media:Yes
  • Link to IWM Collections page:

    WPN 60

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