Roy,

Please find an image of the white topped RMP Landrover we spoke about in a previous post.



For your info this was taken from the following website; www.redecap70.net. If you never had the opportunity to take a look at this site, do so. It's excellent and packed with articles/images and info relating to the Corps.

Regards,

Gary Ross

Roy,

It's been a long day at work (still there). That should have read www.redcap70.net

Good modelling,

Gary

Gary what I can I say but your a man of your word!
I'm over the moon with this photo, thank you so much!

I've just spent the past two hours looking at each and EVERY photo on that website. I've managed to find a second black and white photo also.
..there is also a lot of information and other material there that I'm very interested in. I've saved the link to my Favorites bar.

I'm already planning this addition to my ever extending collection of Piglets

I've just a few questions if you can help Gary;

(1) have you any idea how long these vehicles carried this white roof, was it just the one year or one tour?

(2) could I be correct in thinking the green colour was the older dark glossy type?

(3) Do you remember seeing any of these land rovers fitted with the roof "crime scene" illumination lamps. (The large twin headlight giraffe like system sometimes seen on MP vehicles)

(4) did this marking exercise stay in Derry (Londonderry) or was it trialed elsewhere do you know?

Roy,

I'll endeavour to answer your questions to the best of my meagre ability, unfortunately as I'm (still) at work I don't ave access to my database. However, a little background beforehand may be of assistance (if you already know this just ignore and move onto the answers below)here goes:

From the start of the troubles in July/August 1969, 173 Pro Coy RMP was the only unit deployed in NI. This rapidly grew in size however, other units on short tour emergency assignments began arriving and assisting. After a couple of years new units began to be formed and on 5th November 1971, 1st Regt RMP was formed. With this came standard 2 years Op Banner tours, rather than temp assignments. That way the units (mostly) tended to stay put and individuals were 'trickle fed' posted into them. At one stage almost a third of the Corps, spread across both 1st Regt & 2nd Regt RMP were on active service in NI. With time these unit were either disbanded, or in the case of 174 Pro Coy RMP at the beginning of 1982, moved to England. On the Recap 70 website take a look at the scans from the two books dedicated to the role of the RMP in NI, Ulster Watchdogs Part 1 (1969-1974) & Ulster Watchdogs Part 2 (1975-1984). That will provide you with a great deal more info on the period and the Units. A third covering 1985 to the end of Op Banner in 2007 has been muted, written by Major Martin (Paddy) Bird (to think I knew him when he was a full screw in 1980 in Munster) but hasn't yet appeared in print.

Q1: Not exactly. I believe that they started painting them this way in the early 1970's and it lasted until sometime in 1977/78. Let me dig around a little bit more and I might have a specific answer for you in the future.

Q2: At this stage the colour was standard matt IFF OG. I think the tint of the photograph simply makes it appear to be British Army Bronze Green, rather than the colour mentioned above.

Q3: No. I spent the bulk of my tour split between 174 Pro Coy RMP (3 Inf Bde, covering North & South Armagh, East Tyrone and South Down) and 176 Pro Coy RMP (8 Inf Bde, Covering Fermanagh, West Tyrone, Co. Londonderry and Antrim). I did spend two 24hr stints in Belfast, one as part of my familiarization training at the very beginning of my tour and another as part of a replacement team for the 'Pointer' (Arrest & Finds Teams) Platoon based at Springfield Road RUC station. By a strange quirk of admin, although it was based in Belfast, the Pointer Platoon 'belonged' to 174 based in Armagh. During my two years I didn't see any RMP Lannies fitted with the aforementioned light system.

Q4: These markings were unique to 176 Pro Coy RMP in Derry City.

Hope that's been useful. Just let me know if you need anymore assitance/info.

Good Modelling,

Gary.

Gary as ever your comments are very (VERY) useful and welcomed! Thanks for taking the time out to help me.
I'll be able to add some background knowledge to the project now, this is always very important to me witht he subjects I model.

BTW I've been reading both of those "watchdog" books online since my post last night. Very interesting indeed..