Transition and Transformation: RNZAOC in 1972

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In the historical tapestry of the Royal New Zealand Army Ordnance Corps (RNZAOC), 1972 is a pivotal year, marking twenty-two years since New Zealand’s initial involvement in combat operations in South Korea. The nation continued actively participating in conflicts such as the Malayan Emergency, the Indonesian Confrontation, and the South Vietnam War. Throughout this period, New Zealand maintained a robust part-time territorial army sustained by Compulsory Military Training, all aimed at creating a versatile, all-arms Combat Brigade Group.

However, 1972 marked a turning point. It witnessed the conclusion of Compulsory Military Training, resulting in a reduction in the Territorial Force and its transformation into a volunteer force. Concurrently, with the conclusion of New Zealand’s commitment to the Vietnam War, the country entered a phase marked by individual engagements in United Nations Peacekeeping operations, a eighty-day mission to Rhodesia, the establishment of a permanent peace monitoring force in the Sinai, and participation in exercises both in New Zealand and overseas. This era ushered in a period of peace for the New Zealand Army, with nearly two decades passing before the RNZAOC would deploy a unit into a combat environment once again.

As 1972 concluded and the New Zealand Army and the RNZAOC entered this new era, they did so with a cadre of well-trained and experienced warrant and non-commissioned officers. This article will delve into the RNZAOC Regular Officer Cadre of 1972, as documented in the New Zealand Army Graduation List Regular Officer of 31 Oct 1972.

The RNZAOC of 1972 consisted of around 350 Regular and Territorial Officers and Other Ranks, including Storeman Clerks, Ammunition Technicians, Auto Parts, Footwear Repairers, Motor Trimmers, Tailors, and Clerks across numerous units, including.

  • Main Ordnance Depot, Trentham
  • RNZAOC School, Trentham
  • 1 Central Ordnance Depot, Hopuhopu
  • 2 Central Ordnance Depot, Linton
  • 3 Central Ordnance Depot, Burnham
  • 1 Composite Ordnance Depot, Mangaroa
  • 5 Advanced Ordnance Depot, Singapore
  • Workshops Stores Section in RNZEME Workshops’
  • As Staff in various Headquarters

At this stage, female soldiers belonged to the New Zealand Woman’s Royal Army Corps (NZWRAC), with many posted to RNZAOC units as integral members of those units.

The Graduation List Regular Officer is divided into three Parts.

  • Part 1 – Regular Officers
  • Part 2 – Regular Quartermaster Officers
  • Part 3 – Supernumerary List

Part 1 – RNZAOC Regular Officers

Lieutenant Colonels

  • Clifford Leaman Sanderson, psc
  • Geoffrey John Hayes Atkinson, MBE, M Inst PS

Majors

  • John Barrie Glasson, (T/Lt-Col 1 Jan 71)
  • Malcolm John Ross, psc (T/Lt-Col 20 Oct 72)

Captains

  • Arthur John Campbell, ANZIM, psc (T/Maj 1 Aug 68)
  • Piers Martin Reid, (T/Maj 1 Feb 69)
  • Michael Dawney Hunt, ANZIM (T/Maj 1 Feb 69)
  • Terence David McBeth, (T/Maj 1 Nov 69)
  • Ian Geoffrey Ross
  • Ronald Leslie Cross, psc (T/Maj 21 Jun 70)
  • Gary Malcolm Corkin
  • John Andrew Henderson
  • John Robert Hicks
  • David John Rees
  • Michael Joseph Cooper
  • Terence John Verrall

Lieutenants

  • Maxwell Frederick Newnham, (T/Capt 7 Mar 70)
  • Patrick Te Tahuri Puohotaua
  • Michael Alexender Cowan
  • John Francis Hyde, (T/Capt 1 Apr 71)
  • Kevin John Dreyer, (T/Capt 22 Jun 72)
  • Paul Edwin Dangerfield
  • Keith David Hansen
  • Mark David Stuart, BA (mil)
  • Peter Martin O’Brien
  • Grant William Blackburn

Second Lieutenants

  • Noel Anthony Hitchings
  • Allan Charles Lash

Part 2 – RNZAOC Quartermaster List

Captains and Quartermasters

  • William Maxwell Campbell, (T/Maj & QM 1 Aug 68)
  • Patrick George Burns, (T/Maj & QM 25 Apr 69)
  • David Ralph Hughes, T/Maj & QM 3 Jun 70)
  • Keith Alexander Watson
  • Ian Roy Larsen
  • Alan Paul Bezar

Lieutenants and Quartermasters

  • Donald Winter Stewart, (T/Capt & QM 22 Feb 71)
  • Hector Searle McLachlan, (T/Capt & QM 1 May 71)
  • Godfrey Edward Lee, (T/Capt & am 5 Apr 71)
  • Stewart McDonald Fussell, (T/Capt & QM 5 Apr 71)
  • John Edward Hancox, (T/Capt & QM 1 Jul 70)
  • Edward Vennell Sweet, (T/Capt & QM 11 Aug 71)
  • Alfred Stephenson Day, (T/Capt & QM 3 Sep 71)
  • James William Twist

Part 3 – RNZAOC Supernumerary List

Majors

  • Ronald George Henderson Golightly

Captains

  • Carleton Robert Duggan, (T/Maj & QM 14 Sep 68)
  • George Edward Butler, (QM) (T/Maj & QM 4 Aug 69)

Statistics on the RNZAOC 1972 Officers List

  • Duntroon Graduates- 1
  • Portsea Graduates -10
  • RF Cadets – 2
  • Served in other Corps before joining RNZAOC – 7

Operational Service

  • WW2 – 4
  • J Force – 2
  • K Force – 2
  • Malaya – 6
  • Vietnam – 15

Service and Age

  • 1972 Average age – 36 years
  • Average age on leaving RNZAOC – 44 years.
  • Over 20 years of RNZAOC Service – 27
  • Cumulative amount of RNZAOC Service – 880 Years
  • Shortest Service in RNZAOC – 2 Years
  • Longest Service in RNZAOC – 36 Years
  • Average length of NZ Army Service – 62 Years
  • Average length of RNZAOC Service – 59 Years

Appointments

  • Chief of General Staff-   1
  • Director of Ordnance Services – 7
  • Chief Instructor RNZAO School –  8
  • Chief Ammunition Technical Officer – 3
  • Colonel-Commandant – 2

In 1972, the RNZAOC entered a transformative period, marked by changes in training, force structure, and the cessation of its involvement in the Vietnam War. The graduation list reflects a diverse group of officers, well-versed in various aspects of military service. As the RNZAOC transitioned into a new era characterised by peacekeeping missions and operational diversification, the officers of 1972 carried with them a wealth of experience and training, setting the stage for the Corps’ future endeavours. The statistical overview provides insights into the officers’ backgrounds, service history, and appointments, highlighting the depth of expertise within the RNZAOC during this pivotal time.

Bryan Nelson Jennings Memorial Trophy

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The Bryan Nelson Jennings Memorial Trophy would, for a short period in the 1990s, be a coveted trophy awarded to the most outstanding Automotive Parts and Accessories Merchandising Apprentice of the Royal New Zealand Army Ordnance Corps(RNZAOC).

Apprenticeships for the Automotive Parts and Accessories Merchandising Trade (AP Trade) had been established in 1965 to provide the RNZAOC with skilled tradespeople for employment in RNZAOC Workshops Stores Sections that had been established as part of Royal New Zealand Electrical Mechanical and Electrical Engineers(RNZEME) Workshops and Light Aid Detachments in 1962.

The role of RNZAOC Stores Sections was to carry and manage the specialised holdings of spares, assemblies & workshop materials (Class 9 stores) of their parent workshops.

Administered by the New Zealand Trade Certification Board (now the New Zealand Qualifications Authority), the Automotive Parts and Accessories Merchandising apprentice training scheme consisted of 9000 working hours of study and on the job training with three Trade Board examinations required to gain the trade qualification.

Initially, apprentices would begin their training as 16-year-old Regular Force Cadets (RF Cadets), who, on graduation, would complete their apprentice training at the Main Ordnance Depot, MT Spares Section at Trentham Camp. However, during the 1970s, RNZAOC direct entry recruits were also accepted as apprentices.

Further progression in the AP trade was achieved by qualified apprentices undertaking the New Zealand Management Certificate in Automotive Parts & Accessories Merchandising. the first two Certificate level qualifications were awarded in 1988 To;

  • Sergeant M Wilson (0001)
  • Sergeant S O’Brien (0002)

The final AP Trade Apprentice would be recruited in 1996, following which the apprentice scheme would cease as the foundation for the AP Trade.

Warrant Officer Class One Bryan Nelson Jennings

Bryan was born in Wellington in 1926. Too young to see active service in WW2, Bryan served with the Melrose Battalion, Wellington South Home Guard unit from 1 April 1943 to 1 April 1944, attaining the rank of Corporal.

Volunteering for service with ‘J ‘ Force, the New Zealand component of the British Occupation Forces (BCOF) in Japan, Bryana would be posted to 4 New Zealand Base Ordnance Depot (later renamed to 4 NZ Ordnance Field Park) in August 1946. Completing his engagement, Bryan would return to New Zealand on 14 September 1947. Following a short period posted to the Main Ordnance Depot in Trentham as part of the post-war Interim Army, Bryan was soon discharged and returned to civilian life.

Enlisting into the Regular Forces RNZAXCO on1 April 1948, Bryan undertook a short period of refresher training at the Army School of Instruction at Trentham before being posted to the Main Ordnance Depot as a storeman in the Technical Spares Group and later in the Tyre Store.

Temporarily posted to 10 Coastal Regiment RNZA at Fort Dorset, Bryan, like many of his contemporaries, would be employed on the wharves during the 1951 Waterfront Workers strike.

Promoted to Temporary Sergeant on 25 November 1953, Bryan would be promoted Staff Sergeant on 13 October 1958. Poste to 1 Composite Ordnance Company n loan back in 1964, Bryan would remain at the Main Ordnance Depot.

Posted to 1 General Troops Workshops, Stores Section, Linton Camp as a Warrant Officer Class Two in 1965, Bryan would soon find himself loaned back to the Central Districts Motor Transport Workshops at Trentham.

Seconded to the New Zealand Cadre (Fiji) of the Fijian Military Forces in 1968 as a Temporary Warrant Officer Class One in 1968, Bryan would spend the next two years assisting in the training and development of the Fiji Military Forces.

Returning to New Zealand in January 1971, Bryan was posted to 1 Base Workshops, Trentham and promoted to Warrant Officer Class One. Bryan would remain at 1 Base Workshops and the IC Stores section until his release from the army on n 21 April 1981.

During Bryans more than thirty-two years of service, he was awarded the Long Service and Good Conduct medal on 25 March 1965, followed by the Meritorious Service Medal on19 April 1978.

Following his retirement, Bryan would remain in Upper Hurt. Staying engaged with the community, Bryan was an active member of the Lions organisation and a member of the School Board of the Heretaunga College.

Bryan passed away on 9 August 1989 at Upper Hurt after a long illness.

In his memory, The Bryan Nelson Jennings memorial trophy was instituted in 1991. Although not an AP Trade Apprentice himself, Bryan was a mentor to many apprentices and was described as a legend in the trade.

The object of the award was to provide a tangible mark of achievement and was intended to encourage junior soldiers of the AP trade to reach and maintain a high standard of professional competence and personnel integrity.

Nominations for the award were graded against the following attributes:

  • Basic Soldier Skills
  • Loyalty
  • Sportsmanship
  • Enthusiasm
  • Dress, bearing and personnel appearance
  • Trade Skills

Personnel eligible for consideration for the trophy were to meet the following requirements

  • Not be above the rank of Substantive Lance Corporal
  • Must have attended either 1st, 2nd or 3rd qualifying examinations in the past 12 Months
  • Must still be serving their apprenticeship.

The Trophy now resides at the Trade Training School of the Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment.