Quartermaster Supply Operations - US Army Combined Arms Center ...

=:des, the time required for nev pipeline csnstructicn,
%he size af tho can population, thc oandition of railroads
and rail equipmnt, on6 tho docontin;- T cilities all
had an offcct an decanting operations, and it was often
necossar tc dallvor psolirro to khc army supyly paints
In bulk.% In such cases decanting was dono by the ur~~les.
e. In viovi of the fact that retail distribution
by five-gallon containors was the only netbad suitable for
csabat and othor units, a can gopulntian sufficient to
met tho nccds of such distribution vfas cssoaticl. Such
factors JS tho nuraber of troops, tho nubor of vehicles involvad,
typo of pLinned opcrettlons - pertlculurly t!;osa
calling for tho oaplsynimt of largo srriorod Tarccs, and %hi
rapid fomard iisrencnt of tho arilios, all hnd to bc csnsid-
ercd in deternining thc size af tho can 2opuldtIon. In a
fast novinr situation such as thc drive &cross Pranco it
was essential that full cans ba alwoys availablo when
nocdod, and additiand oms for naiiitennnco wcro afton roquired
by the coabnt units. il sufficient stock ha2 to bo
on hand ta elinln.,tc &lay caused by waiLlnF, Tor cans to
bo rGfillod 5r for bulk gasnlirio to bo dcczntod. ‘!ithwt
such a stock af oms on h;nd to supi?ort thc cmbat units,
thc drivc acrms Bruncc ciuld nilvor haw bcan rmdo. In
such a drivo, tho oasc ana rapidity of ecsclino dlstrl-
bution to tho using units nnd ‘to tho individual vohicles,
io of priiic csnsidcratlon. It ws ilrifinally ost-
imted thRt seven xJ.lllon cans w“. sup?nrt the ooil?at
forces throuphout tho operations in thc %uro>cen UeaCcr.
This included not only thu iiimliatc? rcqiiircaonts cf thc
grnics, ‘Jut also tho rcquiromnts or thk) Ssmunicotions
Zono troJps cnEclgcd in haulinC: to tho aimiils. Bofor~
hostilitics ccasod, thirty-Tivc nillisn cms wre iaportcd
to thc aontincnt, and to this was ddGd an indr;t?r-
ninablc nuiibor of copiured Gcriloa cons. In s3itc of this
largo nwibor, vhilc thoro was novcr a roal s.hortn{:c except
in isolatod instances, them was ncvor un ovor abundant
su.pply, and it Y ~ Sstill nocossary tn ricidly oiiforca
can di iplinc in order to naintain o sufflclcnt stcic!c ‘an
hand. $8
214. Pipulines.
a. i, linltcd mount r;f fuel was pwlped frcri the
Uiiitod 13ngdsr.i by undervrntcr pipelipcs . This opcrstion was
holm as Pluto (pigclino wder tho ocaan). Thoro wcro two
systorm: Banbl, whloh was a four lino systo:i that Irovad
of llttlo iuportanco duo to the enell qkmnttty c1olivi;rad
nnd tho cxpcnslvc Dpcraticnal trouble t?X:>C”xa; and hbo; a
15 Uno systcu DCPCWS the narrov nock of thj ZKqliuh Channol
which avemgcd, up to the cnd ~f hostilities, 27,000 barrcls
n day, The operational ccat of this systoa in mnpowor was
also cxcossive, and elttiough the systcn Va‘a D SucceES it
was oonsidorod th;t tho transilissim by bulk tanker delivery
wns for narc satisfaotory as lone na oir an2 naval sugciria-ity
axistod.
b. Tho ?ipclinc system was thc backbone of tho
aistribution systen an tho contlncnt. It pomittcd tho
tronsrzissim of gasoliuc bvcr torrain ti)c rwgcd for othcr
nenna sf transportstion, avoldod rood ctmgcstion wkcro road
capocity was lidtad and trarri,c heavy, ond corricd 50~solina
ovor vnryirq distnncoa whoro onony action mdu ;>tbor
mens of trnnsportotisn impracticable.
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